Garden of Five Senses

  As we got out of the car, the metal sculptures on the gate was what greeted us. We were at the Garden of Five Senses. A park in Saidul Ajaib village, near the Mehrauli heritage area in Delhi. You cant really call it a part, its not a garden nor is it just a center for fun...

There are plenty of trees and plants scattered through the vast space, there are interesting sculptures around every corner. Once you enter the gates, all you see is open space, and plenty of it, stretching far beyond the eye can see..
 

The sculptures have are all a symbol of modern art, created by master craftsmen...  Amongst the innumerable marvelous pieces are a few in  terracotta and stainless steel ..

One of which reminded me of a pinwheel, one with bells around every tier and another that reminded me of the paper fan we get in the beaches....

The leaves and bells seem to flutters with every gush of wind and creates one in hearts too. They were beautiful.. The beauty is that all these are scattered and you will have to walk around the winding lanes, through quite a plethora of flora... 

 The other unique piece of art here is the row of children sitting for class. It is so life like, that we had to literally walk near the sculptures to make sure they were made of stone... Wow, it was fascinating....

Walking around the park, we spotted a row of stones arranged like stairs that led to an amphitheater... On the other side were a few colorful pieces that resembled children's play area and we also discovered a cafe and a few boutique stores... 

Spare yourself a couple of hours to wander the space and enjoy the sights and sounds... But watch your step, cos you never know if you are going up or down in the Garden of Five senses...

Its been about 3yrs since i was here.. wonder what kind of changes have happened... :-) If you do visit, let me know how it is now :)

Skywatch friday- Magic in the air

A swish here

and a swish there

The Gods seem to be playing

Maybe they are also caught up on the Harry Potter fever!!! :D

I captured this shot one afternoon while heading back home after finishing up a few errands... Taken on my Blackberry Curve 8520 from a moving auto.. :) 

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Napier House,Fort Kochi...

 A sign on a roadside food cart in Vasco Da Gama Square....

We had arrived.... It was going to be 1 and a half days of fun, excitment, activities and Fort Kochi...Damn Right i was excited, it was my 1st time in a long time.... The one other time i had been to Cochin was from school, and i remembered nothing from then, except for the beach... 

Fort Kochi is about an hour from the station, and the place is filled with quaint houses, roads flanked by trees on either sides and ofcourse Home stays and resorts... We passed a board that listed down atleast 10 such names, including Napier House, the place we were gonna call home while at Fort kochi...

 

The building opposite Napier house that looked to be about 200+ years old...

It felt nice and warm as we entered the place... No sooner had we dumped our bags in the room, we were off exploring the place. There was a beautiful wooden staircase that led to the 1st floor where we found more rooms and a balcony where Breakfast was served daily. 

 Welcome to Napier House

Wooden flooring has a certain charm to it, plus the place felt like an old home, which made it cozy. 

Our room was on the ground floor, and quite a majestic one at that. As you entered, there was a king sized bed, adjoining was another big room with a bay window of sorts, apart from a wash basin and a counter top. The best part about the room was the bathroom- it was HUGE and neat... We were impressed from the minute we opened the door...

  Napier House and our Room

   The only hiccup was our mobiles lost signal as we stepped into the main building. So, if  we wanted to make any calls or check messages, we had to step out into the alley :-) There was a computer with internet facility at the Napier house which we used to check addresses, and flight details. 

The day was quite warm, and we were glad to see the Air conditioning in the room, along with a fan as well. Though the place dint sport an impressive view, it was comfortable and quite nice. 

 

The Dutch Cemetery which is on the road parallel to Napier House

After a few minutes, we were off upstairs, exploring the balcony, and the buildings around while our breakfasts were being prepared. It was quite a simple spread, but good enough- Toast, jam, Omlette, juice and coffee/tea.. We were all set to get out and explore the town, and the manager at Napier house organised a cab for us, including for the next day to head back to the airport.

Just around the corner from Napier house on the left was Fab India outlet, that was quite chic...  if you turned right, and walked straight down, it led to the famous Vasco Da Gama Square- the beach, Chinese fishing nets, few local artists performing acrobats, and ofcourse the streets laden with cafes and shopping centers.

 

Chinese Fishing set at Sunset

There were quite a few cafes, but some of the good ones- Teapot, Kashi Art gallery& Cafe were shut with a board that said "see ya next season.." or "we are off for a month".. I guess i need to make another visit during Season to experience these cafes. 

 

We spent quite a bit of time walking around the place, enjoying the architecture, the buzz we spotted all over. Along the Vasco Da Gama square there was so much traffic, it would put Chennai or Bangalore to shame.. We wondered why people dint park elsewhere and walk around, since it was a fairly small place... There are so many hotels, shops, and cafes around, it made it difficult to maneuver around them and walk without falling. :-)

 

St Francis Church in Fort Kochi

The 1st night we had decided to dine at Malabar House or Dal Roti, and the next morning at the other... Alas, we were turned away at Malabar House as their Bistro and Wine room were taken up for a private meeting. We returned to our room, ordered coffee and some sandwiches before heading out for dinner at Dal Roti. The coffee was piping hot, and served in the room. 

 Dal Roti

Dinner at Dal Roti was quite an experience. It is not a fancy restaurant, albeit a home converted into a restaurant. Ramesh, owner was the one taking everyone's orders, greeting familiar faces, and kept the energy of the place quite lively. Our orders were brought to our table within few minutes and food was divine. North Indian Khana at its best i must say! I overheard Ramesh talking to a group of people in the table next to ours, recommending dishes, and reprimanding the ladies for ordering the same dish they had the previous night.. :) How many places remember us, leave alone what we ordered?..

As the next day dawned, we were up and ready - as we had planned quite a bit of sight seeing before heading to the airport. Once again, a cab was booked and waiting for us! 

Ratings:

Service: Good courteous staff

Ambience: Good, clean rooms and loo

Food: We had breakfast twice- which was simple yet delicious, though not too many options

Location: Napier House
1/275, Napier Lane, Napier Street,
Fort Kochi, Kerala
India - 682 001

Tel	: +91 484 2215715
Mobile	: +91- 9495959985
Fax	: +91-484-2216296
E-mail	: reservations@brammahotels.com

Website                     : http://www.napierhouse.com/

If you are not looking for over the top fancy, and are happy staying in a comfortable place, then Napier house is just right for you!

Skywatch Friday... Chariot of the Lord

As i walked past the majestic Chariot in Valluvar Kottam, i wondered if this was the vehicle of the Lords.. Did they have a million people to pull the chariot and how often did they ride in it?

Valluvar Kottam is  a modern landmark in Chennai, that was built in honor of the classical Tamil poet- Saint Thiruvalluvar. Constructed in 1976, Valluvar kottam is made of long corridors, within which the 133 chapters of the Thirukkural have been inscribed.  The place is built like a Temple chariot, which is a replica of the chariot in Thiruvarur temple.

 

Against the evening sun, and lovely breeze, the beautiful structure seemed to sway.... I wished i had carried my camera along, alas, i had to make do with my Blackberry 8520 phone!

 

 

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Luxury

To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.” – Bill Bryson

Yellow flowers in Blue hills

Walking down the road enjoying the cool breeze brushing against my face, i walked aimlessly till i reached the gates of the Botanical Gardens in Ooty. Took my own sweet time exploring the gardens, the green house and the various trees inside the park. 

There were plants big and small, trees new and old; not to forget the hoards of people lazing on the lawns and enjoying a family picnic... The weather was perfect for walking, and my camera was begging me to take some shots... 

As i was exiting the park, a lady came towards me holding a bunch of the prettiest looking flowers. They were yellow, small and cute. But, i wasnt sure if they were real flower or fake, so i put my hand out and touched them. The petals felt like paper, but the lady assured me they were real flowers, and blossomed only in Ooty with a long lifespan.... I was tempted to buy a bunch, but since i had just landed in Ooty, i decided to come back for them later. 

I walked away smiling to myself thinking :Yellow flowers in the Blue hills[Nilgiris]...

[Skywatch Friday] Prayer to the skies

While in Kerala, we drove down to this Palace town called Thirupunithura.. A town that has over 45palaces, where they were referred to as Palace 1, 2, or palace 13... We did visit one palace, said to be the oldest in the area, nearly 250yrs old called the Bungalow Palace.... As we walked around the town, we spotted this famous temple- Shri Poornathrayeesha Temple, Lord Vishnu's temple in the form of Santhanagopala Murthy. It is also the temple for the Royal Family ...

This is one wall that surrounds the temple.. The architecture, the colours, and the entire layout was beautiful... 

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Pulicat, Land of Flamingos

It was a warm Saturday morning when i was on the road to Pulicat... This destination had been evading us for a while and finally, we were heading there... :) 

Along the way, there were multiple stops where we did some bird watching and ofcourse breakfast...We spotted quite a few birds- 

1.Indian Roller

2.Common Kingfisher

3.White breasted kingfisher

4.Pied kingfisher

5.Blue Tailed Beeeater

6. Green Beeeater

7.Pied cuckoo

8.Asian koel – male and female

9.Rose ringed parakeet

10.blue rocked pigeon and so much more.....

Painted storks in the fields along the way

After being on the road for what seemed like hours, we finally saw the lake in sight.. The lake was serene and calm, with colorful boats dancing to the wind.. There were pits where the locals stored Jelly fish, Prawn and others alike, which were then exported..

A bit of haggling with the boatmen and we were on a boat ready to set sail into the lake... I thought i saw some flamingos in a distance and we decided to explore the area further. 

Two men sailing in the lake, totally relaxed..

The boatmen insisted it was not possible to get closer to them as the water was very shallow and the boat could get caught in the slush. Few minutes later one of the boat men was in the water pushing the boat along, taking us closer to the Flamingos. What a sight those pink birds were..

Excited and kicked to the core, i could not remain quiet... Kept clicking pictures and gasping at how gorgeous they were.. It was like watching a bunch of school kids at prayer, standing still, being silent.. And every now and then, one of the birds would flap its bright pink wings, or walk around to another side.. Moments later, we saw one bird take flight and the rest of them followed suit.. Wow, what a sight it was! Awesome.. breath taking.. magnificient.. beautiful... I can go on and on, but words fail to describe the sight..

. 

Sitting still, we watched them fly above our heads, to the far side and settle down in another part of the lake. Flamingos incidentally park themselves in shallow marsh lands only, and they seem to stick with the group...  We returned to the shore and made our way back to the car, totally lost in those birds and what we had seen...

What a day it had been!! The blazing heat was forgotten and our fatigue had vanished into thin air.... 

Note:: Pulicat is a small town in the Tiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu state. The town is about 60 kilometres from Chennai and the lake sits in both Tamil Nadu & Andhra Pradesh. Pulicat lake is basically the backwaters of Bay of Bengal, and is known for the wide variety of birds that visit here.