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Showing posts from 2012

Mcleodganj - Where all Come Together in Peace - My article published in TOI Jammu

My article about Mcleodganj, along with pictures by VJ Sharma , was recently published in TOI Jammu. Here's what I had written: Mcleodganj, a small town about 10 kilometers from Dharamshala, isn’t anything like your typical hill station. Yes, there are mountains, temples, and even a quintessential waterfall, but one whiff of the air fragrant with the tantalizing aromas of fresh baking, Italian and Tibetan Cooking, and coffee, and a walk through the Buddhist artifacts-laden market are enough to transport you into another world altogether.   The fact that this town is also the residence of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama is palpable everywhere, from the narrow congested streets, receding into the heart of the town, to the Tsuglagkhang, Dalai Lama’s temple, towering over the town. In this mesmerizing town, it is easy to chance upon sights and sounds that will make your heart burst with joy. At one corner, beautiful notes of the flute played by a tourist from

Barot - A time capsule (Article Published in TOI Jammu)

Recently my article about Barot, a small town in Himachal Pradesh, was published in Times of India, Jammu. The pictures in the article were clicked by my friend VJ Sharma . Here is the article: Tucked away in the remote recesses of the Mandi District of Himachal Pradesh, lies the tiny town of Barot. To a large extent untouched by tourism, the town offers a peaceful getaway to travellers, away from the hustle-bustle of daily life. Surrounded by century-old, tall deodars, Barot is a time capsule and visiting Barot is like taking a peek into the bygone era when human beings still knew how to live in peace with their surroundings and with nature. The river Uhl runs through the town twisting its way amongst boulders and polishing pebbles till they glitter like silver and gold, and birds of all colours and sizes sing their various songs while flitting in and out of sight. On the surface, Barot appears to be a sleepy village with women chasing hens and chicks to put them away for the n

Meet the Street - Manisha and the Dogs

While walking casually in Connaught Place, I was struck by a curious sight. A woman manning one of the roadside stalls was engrossed in her business while two stray dogs were patrolling the area around her. After a while, the dogs took their positions around the stall, curled up, and dozed off. Soon more dogs arrived and joined the sleep-over. The woman, all the while, was apparently unperturbed by the increasing canine presence around her and went on haggling with the customer who was inspecting a colourful patchwork rug that her stall apparently specialized in. As soon as the customer walked away with the rug and the woman pocketed the money, the ears of the apparently sleeping dogs twitched and soon they were looking up at her. She reached inside a polybag that was lying next to her and took out an unopened packet of biscuits. And threw one biscuit at a time at the dogs. The dogs swiftly gulped down their share and gave her that persistent pleading looks only dogs are capable o

The Winged Wonders of Pong Wetlands

Recently, one of my articles, supported by pictures by VJ Sharma , was published in TOI Himachal Pradesh. Here is the entire text. Let me know what you think. Fluttering of almost a thousand pairs of wings sounds like a clap of thunder and the cacophony of their various calls, echoes all through the surrounding wetlands, resonating in the memories of bird enthusiasts long after the birds themselves have flown back to their distant homelands. These are the birds of Pong Lake, some of whom travel to Pong from as far as the Arctic Circle much to the delight of the bird watchers who eagerly wait for their arrival. What is it that fascinates us about them and drags us out of our comfortable homes to brave the chill of winter and travel great distances to get a glimpse of these beautiful creatures? The mystery no longer remains a mystery when at the slightest hint of intrusion, the placid vista of the Pong Wetlands is brought alive by the frenzied flights of these vibrant birds. Mr. Devin

Guidelines for Writing a Post at Ghumakkar

The Editorial Team at Ghumakkar adheres to certain guidelines while accepting and preparing posts for publishing. While some guidelines may change over time, most of them have stayed more-or-less the same. With new authors joining Ghumakkar every day and more and more authors undergoing bootcamp and, as a result, publishing their own posts, we think it is time to share these guidelines with everyone. If you wish to write for Ghumakkar for the first time or are an author who's returning to Ghumakkar after a break, following list should give you an idea of the type of content we are looking for: Subject of Posts Most of the posts published at Ghumakkar are personal travel experiences of travellers. Apart from these, we publish "Ghumakkar Insights" on the 22nd of every month. "Ghumakkar Insights" are travel-related advice, suggestions, tips, philosophy, opinions that our authors wish to share with the audience at Ghumakkar. You can submit your travel experi

Meet the Street - Everyone is someone

World's population recently crossed 7 billion and, out of those, over 1 billion people live in India. There is, indeed, a lot of us! But how many people do we know or recognize? Perhaps 1,000 or 2,000 or, if you are socially very active or have an unusually good memory, 15,000. Of more than 1 billion people, only a handful are famous. And there's enough talk about them already. Twitter, Newspapers, Facebook, post-lunch discussions, all are buzzing with their names and their personal and professional lives are being minutely analyzed. But do we ever stop and think about who runs the country? Not the politicians or famous writers or artists. And definitely not the Bollywood Actors. The country is run by the guard who stands alert outside your housing society and the milkman who delivers milk to your place before you leave for office and your housemaid who cooks, cleans and washes up for you and by you yourself. Unfortunately, not everyone gets fame, but everyone does bring