Nandi Hills & Lepakshi

   
     An urge to travel, connect with new people, learn and enhance my photography skills led me to an awesome group that organizes short photography tours in and around the city.

I barely knew anybody in the group except for exchanging pleasantries with a few of them at a recent photography exhibition in Bangalore. With a wee bit of apprehension and loads of excitement, I joined them on a day's trip to the Nandi Hills & Lepakshi and to my surprise it seemed like I have known all of them from time immemorial. That's the beauty of sharing a common interest/passion and the need to just let your hair down and have some fun.

NANDI HILLS - BANGALORE
Nandi Hills has always been one of the favorite weekend getaways for Bangaloreans; especially for the photographers - for being more than a perfect surreal nature's abode.

Early morning walk

How to get there:
Located within 70 kms from Bangalore, one can easily get there by bikes & cars exiting from the North of Bangalore. There are also public transport buses plying from Bangalore's central bus station - Kempegowda Bus station in the mornings & evenings for a charge of Rs. 50. Beware there are no buses back to Bangalore after 5PM.
Quick Info:
The gates of the Nandi Hills are open to public only between 6.00 PM to 6.00PM and they charge you Rs.10 as the entry ticket.
There is only one Hotel Mayura Pine Top Restaurant located at the top of the hill to eat and lodge (first come basis lodging with only three rooms). Of course, you can choose to get down the hill and find places to eat/stay away from the hills.

Crossing about 40 curves (some of them very steep) as we got to the top of the hills at around 6.30 am, we were amazed to be greeted by thick blanket of clouds veiling the hill and the fort. What followed were myriad of images captured by the enthusiastic group ranging from Landscapes to Macros, HDR's to Pano's, Portraits to Groupies, Flora & Fauna, Birds, Monkeys, Insects and virtually everything. Nandi Hills offers plenty of photographic opportunities I did not even imagine. At about 1400+ mtrs above sea level, strolling around the lush green hilly area, breathing the chill healthy air was such a welcome break from the madness of the city life.

Bamboo Homes

It is believed that the hills got its name because it's shape resembles a sleeping bull. There are other stories as well one of them being that the ruler Tippu Sultan built a fort around this hill and named it Nandi Durg. The Tippu's drop point on the hill offers an awe-inspiring view of the valley; so splendid that my camera could obviously do no justice to it. The upside-down bamboo houses with awesome photographic frames are a new addition enthralling the visitors.

The splendid view of the hill and the valley

After a quick breakfast at the Hotel Mayura Pine Top Restaurant located at the top (the only hotel atop the Hills to eat and lodge), we went on a short trek inside the Nellikai Basavanna Temple area before heading out to the Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple located in the vicinity of 20 kms from the hill. One of the intellect group member KR enlightened us on the history of the temple that dates back to the 9th Century when it was built, extended and preserved over a period of time by the Cholas, Gangas and the Hoysalas and was finally strengthened by the Vijayanagara rulers during the 13th Century. The temple pond surrounded by stone steps all around is another amazing view you should not miss. The exquisite ancient architecture makes it easily one of the lovely locations for pre-wedding photo shoots and portraiture. I got one of my portraits clicked too ;-)

LEPAKSHI - ANDHRA PRADESH
How to get there: We started for Lepakshi at 12.30 pm IST from Nandi Hills to arrive at the destination in 90 minutes (70kms) driving past the Bangalore-Hyderabad NH7 highway.

Exhausted and hungry, we gorged on the yummy food two super cute girls D & P in the group had packed for all of us. The rotis, the variety of yummy sabzis and cool-drinks along with the cookies were so yum and much-needed, we cannot thank them both enough.

Lepakshi is a small village in the state of Andhra Pradesh dedicated to temples. The day was as hot as mercury and we had a tough time walking bare-foot inside the gigantic Veerabhadra Temple that dates back to the Vijayanagara empire in the 16th century in the history of South India.

The striking pillars

The striking features of this temple are the intricate pillars carved out of rocky stones bordering the temple from all the sides with perfect amount of light enough to make the pictures look stunning. The most interesting one is the 'Hanging Pillar' attached to the ceiling but not to the floor. Yes, a pillar in a suspended state. It is believed that the British were fascinated by the pillar and in an attempt to run some experiments to uncover the secret to this genius engineering that they caused the pillar and some of the other pillars to tilt in one direction of the other. I was so amazed at the sight of this pillar that I sat leaning against it for more than a few minutes marveling this genius and admiring the mural paintings on the ceilings.

The Hanging Pillar Photo Courtesy: Adit Lal 

The sculptures & paintings of deities, dancers, musicians, animals and stories from Mahabharat and Ramayan adorning this ancient temple is another interesting feature you will not miss. Unfortunately, photography is restricted inside the worship place that houses the deities including Veerabhadra, Shiva, Parvathi, and the goddess Kali with paintings of the Shiva-Parvathi kalyanam on the ceiling that are appearing to fade off.

Mural Paintings on the Ceiling

Sculpture of a deity

The open air kalyana mandapam is a beautiful hall surrounded by off-white pillars. We had a humorous modelling-cum photoshoot here that will add to some of the lovely memories of the trip.

Kalyana Mandapam

As we headed towards the outer enclosure, we came across a huge tree offering shelter from the scorching heat of the sun. Amazed at the central location of the tree, most of us climbed up to get a funny group picture. It seemed like as though the monkeys around the place were not enough that we had to climb up the tree too. Fun times.

The last and one of the main attractions was the multi-hooded Nagalinga standing tall with stories that the seven headed snake was carved out of a single piece of stone within moments even before the lunch was made ready that day.

NagaLinga

The best time to visit Lepakshi is early morning when you can avoid the scorching sun. We bore the brunt of the sun but nothing can hold a candle to the fun, memories, bonding, captures and the learning we took back with us. And as an icing on the cake to this incredible journey, the gorgeous sky adorned by the multi-colored clouds smiled at us inviting us to freeze the moment.

The gorgeous Sky clicked with my mobile phone

For more photos from the trip - please visit my Flickr Photostream:
Nandi Hills
Lepakshi 

Monsoon Memories

Give wings to your thoughts this monsoon - If I remember, this was a blogging contest at work a few years ago and a curious me wanting to be on top of every contest did not wanted to miss this opportunity as well. And now looking back - it seems like I was over-enthused but nevertheless ;-)

Why this now? As I began gathering memories of 'the office' with the ensuing D day at work - I had to save this post at some place before it would be discarded for good. So here it is.

Monsoon Memories
"The very thought of monsoon makes me nostalgic. I love this season more than any. I mean who does not enjoy watching rain from your balcony with hot coffee, hot bajjis and hot masala bhutta? (ok, not always). 
I can watch it rain eternally and aimlessly often tempted enough to feel the droplets falling right on my face from heaven and the scent of rain mesmerizing enough to not to ignore.

 As a kid, I remember making paper boats and sailing them in the rain puddle formed outside the house. All the neighborhood kids would make their little boats and compete with each other and the last sinking boat will be declared the winner. Innocent were we? Wish I could get back to doing something like that now. I still remember our departure from a trip to Ooty last year with friends. I wished for rains throughout the trip but was only disappointed. And when we started for Bangalore in the late afternoon, I saw my wish coming true. Watching the downpour in the ghat area was simply spectacular. We asked the driver to stop the bus and went running down the ghats. My passion for photography made me take some photos of the sight. We then resumed our journey but hold on, for our bus broke down - a blessing in disguise and we became kids again.

Come to talk about an experience I will never forget. This happened a few years ago - there was this job interview I was called for and I was very determined to bag the job. Thanks to the heavy downpour and the wet roads causing heavy traffic jam, I ended up reaching the venue late by almost 2 hours and almost completely drenched. As expected, I was asked to return the next day for it was too late. One can imagine how much I hated rains that day. Call it good luck, I got a call that same evening for an interview with a reputed organization and the rest is history. Yes, I am here in one of the best organizations I could have ever imagined, meeting some smart people, mentors, colleagues, and some lovely people who are friends for life now "


Sweet innit? Now how much of that is true and who won the contest you ain't not know ;-)

Social Media Icons

     Ahoy!! I now have the social media icons up on my blog, finally! Check out my new 'KEEP IN TOUCH' section.

It usually is a struggle especially when the HTML codes are greek and latin to you! I am glad I bumped into My Favourite Things for a real-quick tutorial. It was very simple - all I had to do was to zero in on the images of each of the icons from photobucket.com. Copy the HTML code from here and link em to my social media profiles & photobucket images using 'Add a gadget' from the blog layout and tadaa! I thought I'd share this for the uninitiated.

I like how my blog's growing by the day :-)

NotAMinuteToSpare

     And my crazy ass-schedule days are back with NotAMinuteToSpare! I wonder what will happen of me if and when I will have nothing to do. Duh, that will never happen - there is so much to do, I will be on my toes forever.

In the midst of my super hectic schedule, I happened to stumble upon an instagram profile of a certain photog - Rose, a creative director at an ad agency in Toronto. The profile's sole and unique aim is to portray a splash of colors from different walks of life captured beautifully by Rose - all on her iPhone! Clearly, an excellent example of how you do not need the fancy high-end cameras to bring beautiful and vibrant perspectives to life. I love the attention to the details that breaks the monotony in an otherwise vibrant splash of colors that can prove to be blinding. Do check out the link http://instagram.com/gummyting to see it for yourself.

In the meantime, I have been dying to complete a DIY project themed around monsoon - if only it rains when I am not at work/stuck in the middle of a stagnant road traffic - sigh. If you're lucky enough, you'd see a post on it before the rains disappear this year ;-)

There's always a million reasons NOT to do something

"There's always a million reasons NOT to do something". How true! Little did the makers of 'The Office' and the fictional character Jan Levenson realize that the line could strike a chord with many people in real life. Nevertheless. I wish I never had to use any of them ever.

Meanwhile, the personal to-do list just got BIGGER and exciting and the impatient me wants to do all of it like right 'now'. How I wish there were 48 hrs in a day for the obvious. I can't wait.

Ramadan as I have known it

There is a profound silence. A far-reaching one. Often interrupted by the murmuring of the Qur'an by my mother as she flips each page of the holy book within seconds. I sit at my study immersed in this silence and then there is a sudden gush of wind on a rather cloudy day, sending the windows and the door flip open and close so hard that it breaks this moment of silence. I now hear the leaves of the trees sway from one direction to another as though dancing uniformly to the tune of music only they can hear. The curtains too want to tap a feet and they do. For once, there is no activity in the kitchen at this time of the day. The silence persists. The clouds hover covering the scarce bright sky, filling the expanse with darkness as the weather braces itself to drizzle. As much as I love the noise of the hustle bustle of the city, I enjoy my moments of solitude too - as though inviting me to make the most of it for it will be gone soon. I delve into this moment mesmerized enough to let my thoughts flow. So while we are at it, I am attempting a post on this holy season - Ramadan.

Growing up, Ramadan was always referred to as Ramzan. Even before I could realize it became 'Ramadan'. The influence of Arab culture and obsession of doing it the Arab way seems to have dawned Bangaloreans; and unknowingly I seem to have made a choice too.

Ramadan is one of the two major religious celebrations for Muslims all over the world. The second one being Eid'ul adha that takes place at the end of the annual pilgrimage season to Mecca (Hajj). Ramadan is the 9th month of the Islamic calendar - the month when the holy Qur'an was revealed to Prophet Muhammad, the messenger of Allah. It is also the month when the Muslims are required to observe Fasting (one of the 5 pillars of Islam) - refrain from eating, drinking and smoking from sunrise to sunset. It also includes refraining from any kind of sexual relations. An individual is expected to do his best to practice self-control from the worldly desires, forgive, be empathetic and generous to the needy in form of charity.

Personally, observing fasting helps discover the spiritual me. I am usually lost in the rat race of life all through the year and Ramadan comes as that essential reminder to stop, get a perspective on life, to endure and feel what it is like to be deprived of food, reflect upon the disparity in the society with a reminder to do charity. I find myself to be more calm and peaceful with a strong urge for a self-improvement and introspection. I also find myself drawing inspiration from the practical lessons in the holy Qur'an.

As kids, we used to be thrilled with the onset of the holy month as it also meant we would get new clothes and money on the day of Eid from the elderly. Nothing can hold a candle to the sweet memories of childhood.

It all begins with the sighting of the new moon. In this city, lately we always find ourselves sitting on the fence at the brink of the evening wondering if the moon was sighted, whether we could start fasting the following day or not. And finally as the news is broken by the Imam of the mosque nearby, we look forward to waking up before the sunset to eat (Suhoor) and offer early morning prayers before we go about for the rest of the day. Mother wakes up even before the world to keep fresh and piping hot food ready for us. A thankless effort. A big shout-out to all the super moms and women for this!!

The fasting ends with sunset when we thank God for the peaceful fast and break the fast (Iftar) with a date, fresh fruits, juice and drinking water. South India is also well known for different varieties of porridge - a traditional must-have for Iftar. One of it is called Iftar Aash (made of broken rice, dal, minced meat and coconut). Haleem is another extravagant version of porridge - a mixture of broken wheat, pulses, meat, curd, and spices cooked for hours.

Without any intention to ramble much about the delicacies knowing fully how difficult it is to abstain from thinking of food, I peer at the window. It begins to drizzle, and the deep silence is interrupted by the sound of the droplets falling on the surface of the ground, metal, trees and everything else in the open even as the sweet smell of the rain lingers tempting me to step away from my study out in the open to savor it. Contented as I sign off, the sound of the Azaan recedes in every direction of the wind - loud and clear. A call for the prayer.

For the love of Mashable

(Click on the picture to enlargen it)

As an avid follower of Mashable, this blog post was mandatory!! (albeit a bit late)

My obsession with Mashable began about 5 years ago when it was (it still is) the leading 'niche' blog for Social Media and Technology news, which has now grown into a full-fledged news site in the past couple of years. There were debates and criticisms around how Mashable is losing it's originality and is shifting focus in a desperate attempt to garner more followers, but in the process is losing some subject matter experts who had turned to Mashable for one-stop shop Tech news. But lets give it to them, they are a business who very well know how to keep it on the top of the game with a huge base of followers worldwide (the stats in the picture above speaks for itself). Also, news on a wide variety of other topics is an icing on the cake for me. They play it really well and it reflects in how every post goes viral within minutes of posting.

What I love about Mashable:

1. They keep it really simple. Be it in the design and layout of the site, the colors used in the website, ease of navigation and sharing, the fact-based crisp and to-the-point content that they bring to the people in a language that everyone understands.

2. Social Media Social Media and more Social Media plus Tech news. It is my one-stop shop for valuable and up-to-date Tech Social media news ever since I have developed a keen interest in this arena. No single day passes without having atleast glanced through the site. My only other addiction after green-tea. So much so that I could not help browse the app at a cousin's boring wedding recently (I am hoping he does not read my blog :-))

3. The new sections including Business (Advertising & Marketing to be specific), Entertainment, Lifestyle and Watercooler (enlightens one on new trends/tricks of the business world, lifestyle, travel, oh and also the memes and comic sections that I usually look out for).

4. The articles that have a memorable effect like the 'Top 10 reasons for...', '12 best..', '10 gadgets... ', and some of the whacky, bizarre and hilarious pieces of stories you will never forget.

5. Lastly, one of my favorite sections is the weekly mashable photo challenge that invites readers from worldwide to submit theme based entries and a guest curator will judge the top 10-20 best photos that will be featured on Mashable. I had two of my mashable moments from my various attempts at making it to the top 10.

• One of the 9 stunning shots taken after dark  9Jul'13
• One of the 16 Gorgeous photos of gold  9 Aug'12

To conclude, I'd only say - More power to them!! 
                            With love, Mashable fan-girl :-)

Bangalore in 360 Degrees

     Ever seen Bangalore come alive in various unexpected angles reflecting creative & meaningful perspectives hidden within the frames for you to explore?  Look no further - just dive into the Bangalore 360° - A Photo Carnival to take a whirlwind tour of the vibrant city Namma Bengaluru all under one roof.

To celebrate it's 5th Anniversary, Bangalore photowalk community is hosting this rare level of display of some of the best photographs of the city captured by it's members in the last 5 years at the Rangoli Metro Art Centre - M.G Road from 5th Jul till 14th July 2013. Rangoli Metro Art Centre is a novel gallery in town debuting with this photo carnival too. This sure is huge for us!!

What can you expect from this carnival? A picture speaks 1000 words they say and when you have plenty such pictures offering insights into the city's heritage, people, culture, nature, streets, cityscape, architecture and all things that make the city of Bangalore, need I say more?!

Being a proud Bangalorean and a member of the photowalk community myself, I could not wait to witness and be part of this historical moment - yes one of my captures is on display too! Growing up in the city, I have always been fascinated by the transformation it has witnessed (although not at the expected pace); be it in the diversity of people, the culture, infrastructure, urbanization and it's remarkable presence in the IT arena so much so that the garden city once known as the pensioner's paradise has now emerged as the country's IT hub and acclaimed as the Silicon valley of India. This is also the theme of my capture displayed in the exhibition. We have miles to go before some of the basic problems facing Bangalore can be filed off. For now, grab this opportunity to cherish some of the awesome images of the city - I had a wonderful time at the gallery exploring the city like never before, not to mention meeting & interacting with some amazing photographers and the organizers of the exhibition.

So what are you waiting for?

Simple pleasures of life

Different little things mean different to different people differently in different little ways. That makes it 5 differents and 2 littles? The idea is not to confuse you. I am just fighting writer's block but so want to ramble. Lately, I am having the hardest time putting my thoughts together and so chose a simple topic - Simple pleasures of life that I and most of you cherish everyday. In no particular order, here they go:

1. Waking up to a pleasant weekend morning and making spontaneous plans for the rest of the day

2. Watching the moon travel with you from work to home

3. A cuppa green tea

4. Wearing a favorite outfit to work and look forward to being complimented ;-)

5. Chopping off an item from the to-do list/bucket list

6. Hearing the right song at the right moment co-incidentally

7. Having a good laugh with friends

8. A good dream

9. Visiting the adorable cats at the Magazine Store

10. When someone appreciates your creativity

11. Watching it rain; and the smell of the rain

12. Having such a good time with someone that will make you lose track of time

13. Hot sweet corn soup on a cold day

14. Hazelnut Cappuccino and a walk down the lane

15. The first sip of water after finishing a gooseberry

16. Reading a good book on a rainy day

17. The Blue Sky lifting your mood up

17. Long drives

18. A good hair cut

19. A good movie

20. Ice-creams

21. Hugs

22. Pampering yourself at the saloon

23. The planning of a vacation and all the excitement around it. And the vacation in itself!!

24. Clothes and shoes that allow you to be comfortable yet stylish

25. Receiving a text/buzz from someone you were just thinking about

26. Cooking a meal for the family and the huge relief when everyone/most of them like it

27. Retail Therapy

28. A lunch outside especially on a friday

29. The very fact that it is friday

30. Smiling to yourself when you remember something funny/pleasant/silly

31. Reminiscing good old memories through the pictures

32. When your favorite store has a sale :D

33. Completing a DIY project

34. When you try a new recipe and the dish turns out delicious

35. The season of Ramadan

36. The Christmas season

37. A good Yoga session to start your day with.

38. Staring aimlessly at the city skylines and the architecture

39. Sunsets

40. Getting a hair massage

41. Watching the episodes of Friends/Big Bang Theory/How I met your mother/ repeatedly when you just want to laze around at home

42. Dipping your feet in the water by the beach/swimming pool

43. Finding the perfect gift for someone

44. When you have to use a public toilet and finding it to be really clean and hygienic

45. Yummy masala chats in the evening

46. When a li'l kiddo tries to copy you

47. City lights at night

48. Finding out that someone does the same weird things that you do

49. The feel-good factor on the days when you wear your eye-make up :D

50. Taking a perfect picture

51. Scented candles

52. People who smell good

53. The look of a room after you clean it

54. When the week goes by really fast

55. When someone tells that you have a lovely smile

56. When you and your friend say the same thing at the same time - has happened like a zillion of times

57. Being in a good mood for no particular reason

58. When the cricket team you're rooting for - wins

59. Gossiping with the best friends

60. The feeling of being loved and cared for

61. Driving on an empty road

62. The planning of events at work/home

63. Volunteering at events

64. The great feeling when you're rewarded for your creativity

65. When your dreams come true

66. When you don't have to wear your spectacles

67. Reading the Sunday morning newspaper in leisure

68. Sleeping on the cold side of the pillow

69. Snapping a picture at the right moment

70. Getting lost in a book store

71. Going on a photowalk

72. Stumbling upon an interesting blog and reading ALL the posts like there is no tomorrow

73. The lots of family time

74. The twitter/FB time when you're commuting to and from work everyday

75. Making a fulfilling conversation

76. When you hear a very old song and you're surprised at yourself remembering every line of it

77. Reading what your zodiac sign has in store for you on new year

78. When you get a window seat while traveling

79. The chole baturas, the masala dosas and the pizzas

80. The moti choor laddus, the kaju barfis, the pastries and the brownies

81. Biryani, the chicken kababs and the yummy sea food

82. The cooking and clicking

83. Stumbling upon the right quote at the right time

84. The water cooler moments at work

85. Moonlight - there's surely something about the moonlight

86. The feeling of being blessed

87. Coming back from a long and tiring day to hot and home-cooked food

88. The saving up of money throughout to splurge on that one big thing

89. Packing

90. Making new year resolutions and accomplishing them successfully

91. Exploring markets, fairs and exhibitions

92. Spring season and plenty of colorful Tabebuia blooming in the city

93. Catching some new movie releases at the cheapest yet happening theatre in the centre of the city

94. The Baristas and the Mc'Ds'

95. The amazing feeling of how internet and technology keeps you informed and connected

96. Catching up with the best friend by squeezing time from your busy work schedule

97. Catching up with the good old friends who fly down and make time just to meet you

98. Keeping yourself organized

99. Getting really excited about every little thing in life and believing that's what makes life interesting

100.I can go on and on but let me stop here for now - rounding this list off to 100! Phew!! I am happy! :o)