A Wandering Mind

The year is almost gone , and its time to look back and remember all the wonderful things that made this year so special. The year was an especially good one for travel, though not as much for writing! I managed to travel almost every month, and, as a result, have a huge backlog of places and stories to write about!!! Leaving that aside for the monent, I will be posting a photo a day from one of my (many) trips this year.... in the order in which I took them. I begin with my first trip of the year.. in January, to one of my favourite destinations... Sringeri.

In October 2011, we visited Sringeri , Udupi and Kollur . It was a memorable trip with tightropeartists and rainbows giving us a respite from the temple visits . We were really looking forward to the last leg of our trip, which took us to Shimoga and then to the River Tern Lodge. However, we still had much to experience before we reached Shimoga! We had decided to use public transport as much as possible during the trip, so we stuck to KSRTC and private buses which ran on the hills. We had no problem finding convenient buses , and to my surprise, almost always managed to find seats too. The people were helpful, and with a mixture of Tamil and Hindi, we managed to travel from one place to another with the least amount of trouble. The people at the bus stands, as well as the driver and conductor were polite and helpful, and nowhere was it more apparent than on the last part of our journey, from Sringeri to Shimoga.

In October 2011, we spent the Diwali vacation in and around Sringeri . Refreshed and rejuventated by the peaceful and serene environs of the Sringeri Sharada Peetham, we visited a number of temples around Sringeri , and then headed off for a quick visit to Kollur and Udupi . Continuing with the story............ It had been drizzling while we were in the temple, but the rain seemed to take a break as we emerged. As we hurried to the bus stand before the rain started again, our attention was caught by these huge mannequins at the entrance to the temple hall. A faded poster informed us that they had stood welcome for a Yakshagana performance a few weeks earlier...

Sringeri is a small village with the Ashram dominating it. However, the area is steeped in ancient history and mythology. Sringeri gets its name from the sage Rishyasringa, who resided in these forests. In fact, the roots of this holy place go back even further, to the sage’s father, the sage Vibhandaka, who meditated here. Spire of the Sringeswara Temple

This time, last year , we were at Sringeri. The Diwali vacations were on, and we were there for a purpose – arranging Samhith’s Upanayanam or Thread ceremony. It seems odd to think that a year has flown by, and I would much rather be there again at this time of the year!!

An old man sat by the side of the path, as I entered the office. He smiled at me, and I smiled back. He was forgotten at once, immersed as I was in the work I had come for. A few minutes later, I was interrupted by my excited son, Samhith, who wanted my camera. Eager to be rid of him so I could talk, I gave him my camera, not even bothered about what he wanted to click. When I came out at last, my work done, I found him busy clicking while the old man smiled at him! “Amma, look!” cried Samhith. “I took a photo of this thatha (grandfather) MYSELF!!”. His pride at his achievement was infectious, and I looked at the photo, ready with my words of praise. Here is the photo he clicked that day.....

Summer's here in no uncertain terms for its just too hot to manage, and the fan is just not enough! I went out to pick Samhith up from school, and the heat was too much to bear... Some people wore sunglasses and sleeveless kurtis, but perspired in the heat... some waited in the comfort of their AC cars,blocking the road and being a nuisance to others..... the kids came out from the cool comfort of the classroom to the glaring midday heat.... happy that the exams were over, but the heat getting to them, tiring them out within minutes...... Faced with such heat , we wished for rain.... hoping for an early and a good monsoon... we are already facing a water shortage this year... and if this heat continues, things can only get worse. In such a scenario, it is difficult to be cheerful and optimistic, so I tried to improve my mood by looking at some of my pics from the monsoon.... Here are a couple of photos taken at Sringeri in August 2009 .  The clouds make me wish they were right ...

A ray of sunshine in the middle of a rainy day – that’s just what a short holiday in the middle of busy school days feels like, and that is just the treat we gave ourselves when we decided to pack our bags and spend the weekend at Sringeri, where my in-laws are now enjoying a well earned vacation. Two factors helped us out – the first being that Friday wasn’t a regular school day – it was open day, which, as Samhith says, means that it school for me and a holiday for him!!!! for a change, it is I who has to listen to all the complaints his teacher has – there usually aren’t much, but this time……well, let me keep that private for now…… anyway, the open day meant that we could leave for the Matsyagandha Express, the most convenient train for us, and here is where we were lucky again – we actually managed to get tickets in the 3AC coach at such short notice!!!! Such a lot of good luck made me wonder if the whole trip would be as easy, or… would there be a catch somewhere????? And yes,...