Royal Journey

I had the constant grouse about my New Year eve being never any different, spent at the same place year after year, though in the always so refreshing company of friends and families. Thankfully this one was different; as I welcomed 2010 in the majestic, erstwhile princely, place of Jodhpur, which falls in the state of Rajasthan. Rajasthan is a state I have come to love for all its rich history, majestic splendor and palatial opulence. It was a seven day trip starting from beautiful Bikaner, followed by sandy Jaisalmer, and then the royal Jodhpur. Bikaner, the first stop on this tryst with royal Rajasthan, is in middle of the Thar Desert and has now a touch of modernity coexisting with the huge and magnificent forts and palaces along with ancient temples and traditions. The star attraction is the magnificent fort of Bikaner, or Junagarh fort as it is called. It is a huge man made marvel in the heart of the city built in 15th century by ‘Raja Rai’, one of the most able and trusted Generals of Mughal Emperor Akbar. Rajasthan is truly a royal state having been ruled by the Rajputs, who were avid fort builders, and their fetish for architectural opulence still stands in most of the tourist places of Rajasthan. It has, with all the trappings of luxury and grandeur, an architectural similarity to the Amer fort in Jaipur, which I visited last year. The overall beauty of the palace is astonishing but it was this mix of devotion and indulgence, the ‘Jhula’ or swing for the lord Krishna and his beloved Radha, that particularly caught my eye; it is a testimony to the richness and lavishness of the bygone times. The bedroom left me gaping with awe. The elaborate carvings and embellishments, and the whole ambience cannot be measured in monetary terms; it is an invaluable creation. The walls were coated with pure Gold and precious jewels studded the designs and paintings. Another common aspect of the Rajasthan forts is the beautifully geometric gardens. The design style has been influenced by the Mughals, who left a great impact on Indian culture. But Bikaner is much more than the fort and the palaces. It houses National Camel research centre, which has an incredible variety of Indian camels. The innocent eyed ship of desert is a remarkable animal and the information on this board left me with tremendous respect for the unique adaptability of this animal to the desert environment (Click on the photo to enlarge and read the board). The handicrafts and hand woven Durries (rugs) are a specialty of Bikaner. Hand weaving is becoming an endangered Art on account of the economic hardships which these exceptionally skilled but poor artisans have to face. Thanks to tourism the Government has woken up to the plight of these people and several steps are on to showcase their skills at an international platform. Nothing managed to hook my little one... ...as much as this famous temple -‘the Karni Devi Mandir’, and not at all for its religious value, but for completely bizarre, unforeseen and, almost literally, biting reason. The temple, a much revered one, is home to scores…err no, hundreds…no, thousands of Rats…in fact around 20,000, as the guide told me! There are Rats everywhere. They run with gay abandon, unconcerned and unaffected by the thronging devotees. The rats have become the most attractive aspect of the temple…it does sound paradoxical though. The temple was built in the 15th century and it is said that local mystic, and demigoddess, ‘Karni Mata’ had forecasted that none of her family members will ever die and will continue to live on as rats in the premises of this temple. We all have customs, traditions, folklores; sometimes irrational, sometimes strange, and sometimes downright bizarre. But despite their lack of logic, they add richness to our life. They are a great bonding force. Just imagine a life totally ruled by logic – mathematical, insipid and robotic – and the need for some irrationality is immediately felt.

Foggy thoughts....

Why can’t I feel Global warming? It has become a fad to discuss environment and Global warming. The movers and shakers of this world have held a meet in Copenhagen for the same; hopefully, something concrete will come out from all these efforts. But, ironically all the perils of Global warming are being discussed when we shiver in the severest winter seen since a long time. The minimum temperature had touched 0 degrees C on the New Year day – something totally unprecedented and hence a hot topic of discussion – and it has been almost a fortnight since Sun shone properly. A hazy landscape enveloped in a dense fog greets the eyes every morning. On New Year I vacationed in the warm cozy desert cities of Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Bikaner, the weather there was quite warm in the day and a little cool in the night, but nothing prepared me for the blast of cold air that greeted me as I got down at the Saharanpur Station in the morning. Needless to add that by the time I got back, my beloved plants had wilted into submission to the cruelty of early January weather. Icy winds are lashing outdoors and Sun has taken a sabbatical behind the clouds; the warmth of the heating system is helping thaw the body frozen from an outdoor errand. I guess I will have to surf some blogs from the south of equator to give that additional warmth!

Coleus in my Garden

I guess I will have to concede defeat there – Regular blogging is not easy. I got irregular with posting a number of times in the past, but now becoming irregular has become a regular feature and I feel that regular blogging is not a choice one makes, it’s in the genes. Anyway no more tall claims about getting regular now, I will just stay cool about the regularity issue. Thankfully, tending to plants is not a victim of bloggers’ block. One can be lax in her blogging rituals but the plants keep receiving their due attention. Just like a human baby, who with her innocent look ensures that she remains the centre of attraction, nature has made the plants so beautiful that it is well neigh impossible to neglect them. Foliage plants, like this coleus, hold good hopes of giving the look to a garden during the frigid weather, which lasts here for around a month from December end till January last. The leaves in various wonderful shades of the coleus family keep changing their color tone and in a fortnight they will be the ones providing a colorful ambience, when rest everything will wear a denuded forlorn look. Besides, coleus are a typically no fuss plants: just plant the cuttings, water them…rest is managed by Mother Nature. I wanted to have a coleus dominated landscape this winter providing a nice change from the usual chrysanthemum abundance, but was too lazy to do so…maybe next time.

Red and Yellow make the winters mellow!

There is a lull in life. It happens every year; round one festive season – Diwali etc. – is over and there are still few days to Christmas and New Year. Thankfully, garden is not yet reflecting the somber winter mood, there is the loving passionate warm glow of red, and mixed with the cheerfulness of yellow, it has created a perfect mood brightening symphony. The Butterfly Weed (Gosh! They call it a weed!) With admix of red and yellow is the perfect cocktail for the spirits. Chrysanthemums bloom in abundance at this time and I try to ensure that there are plenty of them in various hues and shades of yellow and red. We generally get rains around third to fourth week of December and they do not augur well for the mums, but before the frigidity sets in it’s a mum dominated Gardenscape. Even the butterflies are warmed by their red-yellow soothing glow. Sometimes nature tries its hands at origami, and when it does…this is the result. This beautiful Rose, with its wonderful yellow shading and the papery petals, gives the impression of an exquisitely crafted origami specimen. This small, but not insignificant by any measure, Portulaca loves Sun. A typical tropical plant it closes by late afternoon and blossoms again with sunrise the next day- didn’t approve much of the camera coming between it and the Sun.The Heliconias which are typically tropical were a gift by the nuns of a local convent school, who got the plant from Kerala. The plant has thrived well and is another pretty red-yellow combination in the garden. The exuberance of red with a dash of yellow for the tip gives the Gaillardias a glamorous outing in the wintry outdoors. Amidst the relatively dense foliage, embossed, are the cute red-yellow aromatic clusters of lantana. There is a predominantly red-yellow tone in the garden. The warmth of these colors and the gentle sunshine make winters a fun season, but of course only till this colorful landscape lasts…after that it is going to be all grey-white, and outdoors…Brrrrr!!!

The Buddha Belly

This laughing Buddha was a wedding gift by a dear friend, and since then it has occupied the pride of place in my drawing room. It is always a warm and happy feeling to look at someone with such a merry expression on the face. Moreover, it is quite heartening to see a well fed rotund belly, resting comfortably on a relaxed and happy body in the era crazy for size zero; I am always on the lookout for such realistic inspirations:-) Like this laughing Buddha, which has made the indoors a gay and happy place, its namesake – Buddha belly plant – has added vivacity to the outdoors.Jatropha podagarica or the Buddha belly plant, as it is known because of its wonderful belly, is an eternal favorite of mine. Whenever it found a place in the posts, it has always received an inquisitive comment from the fellow bloggers. I procured the plant from a local nursery for its merrily swollen belly. It flowers all the year round. During winters, though it loses its large lobed leaves but the coral red flowers hold.As the climate gets colder the leaves have started falling off giving the plant a denuded look but the beauty of the belly will remain unaffected. The plant does have great vibes as is evident from the butterflies flocking to it. My daughter loves it for the seedpods that explode launching the seeds several feet away. Ultimately, this is one happy plant which helps brighten up the mood, and for a good luck charm – I occasionally rub its belly too!

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - November 2009

November GBBD is always special as this is the best season here to be outdoors before the frigid December winters envelope the plants in a dense fog, sending them into dormancy or freezing them to death. Although, probably as an adverse effect of global warming, one gets to see blooms in mid December also. These are the plants which grace the garden here in NOVEMBER Portulaca Calliandra or Powder Puff Shrimp plant or Pachystachys lutea Buddha Belly or Jatropha Podagrica Lantana Gaillardia or Blanket Flower PlumeriaWater Lily

In The Night Garden

As autumn nears to an end, the night air has acquired a slight chill. But despite that it is a pleasant feeling to take an evening walk amidst the plants; it is rejuvenating, de-stressing and, thanks to these sweet smelling plants – a perfectly natural, low cost, aromatherapy. It is rather unfortunate that the sense of smell cannot be conveyed through the blog post, but hopefully the night time photos will stimulate some olfactory nerves to give an idea of the soulful aroma of Plumeria pervading the night time air. The sensual delight of a perfumed garden – no allusion to the 15th century scripture – inspires me to have more of these aromatic plants like this Hedychium. During day the Nyctanthes or Parijata presents a lonely sight, but it is with the fall of dusk that the flowers bloom and start exuding their soulful aroma. The sweet faint odor of this Jasmine pervades the evening air and depending on the direction of airflow, its intensity and character keeps changing, keeping the senses active yet very…very relaxed. The most psychedelic of the pack has to be the queen. Queen of the night or Cestrum nocturnum has the strongest presence in my garden among all the aromatic plants. Every life is besieged with a thousand worries and a million anxieties but the time spent with children and plants is a catharsis brought about naturally, silently and effectively.