Kempegowda Tower @Hudson Circle

The ‘Kempegowda Tower’ was planned by the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike in 2004, as part of the annual Kempegowda Day celebrations. The BMP which has the Kempegowda tower as its logo was constructed to restore the cultural heritage of Bangalore, giving it a touch of modernity. The tower, 60ft in height was built with Sagarahalli Granite, the same stone used in the construction of Vikasa Soudha.

Bangalore is nearly 500 years old and has grown from a small time settlement when Kempe Gowda, the architect of Bangalore, built a mud fort in 1537 and his son marked the city boundaries by erecting four watch towers. These four towers credited to have founded Bangalore, are in Lalbagh, Kempambudhi tank, Mekhri Circle and Ulsoor. Still unknown a fact to most Bangaloreans is that historians refer to four more towers as the City’s boundaries at Gavi Gangadhareswara, Nanjamba Agrahara, Basavanna Temple and near Binny Mills. These have not yet been traced!

 

Seasons greeting's with Clay magic....

A beautiful clay mask wall hanging cought my attention from aroadside seller, like the mould and specially the expressions on the face....

India offers a great variety of arts and craft with diff materials and from various regions it is worth to revisit this vast ocean of creativity, here is a consolidated list for your reference.....

 

Rat Snake Rasting in Clay-enclave@bannerghatta

A Rat snake resting in a clay pot at a snake park inside Bannerghatta National Park.

Bannerghatta National Park is situated 22 km south of Bangalore. The journey to the park takes nearly half an hour from the city. The hilly place is the home for one of the rich natural, zoological reserves. The 25,000 acre (101 km²) zoological park makes this a major tourist attraction of Bangalore. Refer....

 

Morning Walks….

Yet another rewarding experience here in Bangalore is a morning walk, Fresh air and dust free atmosphere, it is the only time the roads are not crowded and you can enjoy a peaceful walk. The weather is pleasant and comfortable with some add on winter wear and yes a company of your dog what more does life needs to offer!!

As one walks, worries and anxieties fade away. The feet stride out in a joyful rhythm. The sheer delight of movement is enough to refresh us for the rest of the day. The dewdrops on the green grass and leaves of plants look like pearls. The flowers laden with dew merrily wave their heads and spread their fragrance and colors everywhere. The birds sing cheerfully. An early walker feasts his eyes and ears on such sights and sounds. More…

Bangalore Walk, is yet another initiative to talk about here…one must try the Green Heritage Walks they offer…

 

Betheham@Bangalore...

Jesus birth, this beutiful creation of nativity, Adoration of the Shepherds was major attraction for shoppers in a local mall.
The remembrance, representation and re-enactment of the Nativity scene are at the heart of the Christian celebration of Christmas, the name "Christmas" for the festival signifying the Christian belief that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ promised in the Old Testament of the Bible. Refer...

 

Shopping @X'mas 06....

here are few glimpses of bangaloreans spending time in Garuda Mall, there was a live orchestra by overseas performers ...crowd was cheering and excited...

Children have a ball near a chocolate fountain in Garuda Mall Y'day evening... from toddlers to adults there was a lot to relish the magical moments of shopping and sharing the joy...


The crazy bets like this merc made almost everyone buy goodies loaded throughout the stores in the mall..


The decor & display was nice and elegent...

 

Merry X'mas....

Yet again the magical spell of goodies is back and happening, the city cheers with food, frolic and fun . Children are having fun with Shopper Santa's and his gifts... few Santa's are made to sell the unsellables ..


Perhaps for the rest of the world the life moves on with this as an opportunity to make a living...Ultimately the city moves on to greet a new year, wishing a better tomorrow for all...

Have a safe, peaceful and happy Christmas...

 

Tree of hope, excitement and fun...

Well decked chrismas tree displayed at the entrance of a mall, welcoming customers to all the fun and frolic of festiv buying...

A Christmas tree or Tannenbaum is one of the most popular traditions associated with the celebration of Christmas. There is some debate as to whether artificial or real trees are better for the natural environment. Artificial trees are usually made out of PVC, a toxic material which is often stabilized with lead. Refer...

Traditionally, Christmas trees were not brought in and decorated until Christmas Eve (24 December), and then removed the day after twelfth night (i.e., 6 January); to have a tree up before or after these dates was even considered bad luck. Modern commercialisation of Christmas has resulted in trees being put up much earlier; in shops often as early as late October ....

 

Purple Magic....

As the winter sets up in the city, Bangalore is wearing Purple!!

Strategic plantation of flowering trees by king Krishnadevraya in the city years ago and maintained by the current civic authorities. Its a pleasant experience to enjoy the blooms and the diff colors for every season.... the garden city wears purple's, yellow's, red's and many more as season's collections!!

Dupatta's @ Commercial Steet...

Essentially, the Dupatta is often treated as an accessory in current urban fashion. Nevertheless, the dupatta remains an integral part of Indian clothing also known as orhni or odhani . Here is large collection of Dupatta's near Commercial street....

From traditional veil to the fashionable scarf the dupatta has come a long way. The sheer magic of this attractive accessory gives that perfect finishing touch to Indian dresses and western styles. The orhni or odhani literally means a covering. A diaphanous veil, it is used as a covering for the brest, back, shoulders and head. Refer....

 

Gilli Danda…

Another incident bringing back my childhood memories, peeking out of my office backyard, I observed few of my colleagues were indulging in Gilli Danda , an amateur sport, similar to cricket, that is popular among youth in rural India.

The game is played with Gilli – Danda and a pillow, small pit shaped like a "banana" made in the ground. “Gilli" - A small wooden cylindrical shaped piece of about one inch diameter and 4-5 inches long is sharpened like a lead pencil from both sides. The "Danda" is a wooden rule or stick similar to that used by teachers in the school. The length of the rule is about feet and half long.

Indeed a great indian game played for centuries engaging the mass... interesting isn't it?

The Cycle Repair Shop....

He is busy all the day, repairing cycles, welding the broken parts, changing them and helping kids with inflated tyres... I remember in my childhood I used to spend hours at such shops to get my cycle repairs done..

 

Windows…err, not the microsoft!!

Having windows and not making them crash...get yourself a solid one!!

Construction of houses undoubtedly generated large employments and also have enriched craftsman and carpenters to creativity… the photo signifies carpenter pushing the steel rods in a wooden window frame traditionally used in Indian structures such as this …

Entire activity of making of all the doors and windows happens on the construction site where they stay and transform wood and steel into strong and customized woodwork…

 

Childs Play..

With cities getting dense and eating up playgrounds and open spaces, the basic need for every child “to play” is silently getting killed; rare occasions like these make me feel good. The civic authorities here have kept many open spaces but almost all of them are converted into gardens having jogging tracks and do not provide open playgrounds, as the fun of playing in open is unlimited….playgrounds available are under the sports complexes and are more formal and systematicaly used for international games and events... children are left to play on streets....
Sadly, more we get organized, the random playing and exercising options are getting out of our lifestyles and we get addicted to machines for the basis body and muscle maintenance.

 

Will, will find the way!

Bangalore is growing, the pace is faster than the average city ever grown or know to this metro, the traffic has increased multifold to properly plan and ease the commuters, the interconnections for major business area’s and residential areas use the highways which are also crowded.
Here are some enthusiast bikers finding their way for interconnecting through a via duct created for storm/rain water underpass of the southern railways near K.R Puram Station…

 

Life of a software engineer ....

When I look at this photo carefully, I can imagine this represents life of a software engineer in Bangalore… two shirts, a towel, pair of sox, undergarments etc.. the vary essentials of a single living alone.

Most of the working force comprise of singles or forced singles ( those who has family away from city and uncertainty in jobs make them force to stay alone here…) they take shelter in PG (Paying-Guest) accommodations or share the rooms with few others.. thus such photo’s are quite interesting despite being common as they do only tell us the story of what the life could be for staying single ….

 

Job listing's on fence...

Opportunities are endless, outside of an industrial estate job lisitng's are displayed on the fence near the gate. An industrial estate typically houses many small or medium sized operators who work with companies to take small portions of mechanical or electraical jobs on contracts, they often need semi-technical staff and what best way to put up an enquiry without spending on newspaper ....
Many unemployed workers do regularly visit this location in want of jobs and they do find one that fits their skills, compentencies and their utlimate need ..the money!

 

Coffee on Wheels

Selling coffee to make a living, a common proposition for many in the city, moving around bust markets, streets these mobile entrepreneurs offer refreshing coffee…the container fixed at the back of the cycle is designed to keep the beverages hot and provide good opportunity for the seller to venture far away places to ensure the sell…..

 

Promoting Primary Education...

A Painted wall of a govt school illustrated a education drive in semi-urbal area...

The Constitution of India reiterates that the ‘State shall endeavour to provide early childhood care and education to all children until they complete the age of six years’. Despite these proclamations, a quick look at the situation in India and Karnataka shows that there is no comprehensive approach to child care.

Bringing up children has been considered the ‘private responsibility’ of the family in India. With industrialisation, migration, urbanisation and the decline of joint families, child care is increasingly becoming a pressing need. For families from the lower socio-economic classes, work is the only way to ensure survival, and leaving work in order to look after children is not an option. Children are left behind, sometimes in child care services, and more often to fend for themselves. Refer...

The beginning of modern education could be traced to the establishment of Free English School at Mysore in 1833 by the palace of Mysore (for the erstwhile Mysore area); of the two Marathi Vernacular schools at Dharwad and Hubli in 1826 by the Bombay Native School and School Book Society respectively (for the Belgaum area); of schools in Mangalore. More..

 

Affordable meals @Roadside...

When you drive cross few by lanes and parking lots, you may observe these stalls offering the vary basic and affordable @ Rs.10 meals. These services are vital for those who can't afford to spend Rs.50 for a meal in city. The crowd which mostly eat here are auto drivers, rent-a-car drivers and security gurads or even the villagers who come to the city for work...

unique to this city this service provides home cooked rice, lentils and/or spicy rasam / sambar. For those who can afford a bit to indulge the tastebuds there are boiled eggs and even non-veg curries ready to offer...

Going to the School...

You call it Monday Mania, first day of week and the first task for the day is school...I remember I used to hate monday morning's in my school days due to this... ( I guess sometimes feeling returns till date for most of us while going to office on early Monday!!) ...

Have a great week!!

Toy Army....

while standing outside cauvery arts & crafts showroom @ Mg.Road, my attention was caught by this toy army, the display of various channapatna lacquerware toys... the wooden crafts with natural dyes is worth a buy....