Hampi, India – The Echoes of Glory

24/10/2016.Reading time 16 minutes.

Hampi, India, and its temples and rock studded landscape make it one of the most atmospheric UNESCO Heritage Sites in the country.

Sacred Waters

14/10/2016.Reading time 3 minutes.

Water – as life giver and as a symbol of purity – is an essential component of religious rituals like baptism and ceremonial cleansing. For a religion that derives its name from a river – Sindhu, from the Indus – water takes on a whole new meaning. No Hindu temple is complete without a pushkarini or temple tank. Many tanks have natural sources beneath […]

An Amble Through A Storied Park – Lodhi Gardens

20/07/2016.Reading time 8 minutes.

If there is one thing I envy Delhi-ites, it is the green oasis of Lodhi Gardens. Over ninety acres of unexpected tranquility to escape the gridlocked delirium of their capital city. The landscaping would be easy enough to replicate elsewhere in India (who am I kidding!). But it is the historic ambience, those omnipresent vestiges of Delhi’s storied past, that make […]

Thanjavur – Reimagining Tamil Traditions At Svatma,

28/04/2016.Reading time 4 minutes.

Loss of diversity, especially in the urban milieu, is inevitable in a globalised world. Pizza will often replace paniyaram. Or cappuccino, filter kaapi. But what does one do when one’s native cultural symbols begin to feel inadequate? Unsophisticated? The Subrahmaniam’s – Chennai based dancer/architect Krithika, and her developer husband, Sumant’s – response to their young son’s disenchantment with things Indian, was to find a way to reintroduce him […]

Kochi – A Boatyard Turned Boutique Hotel

15/03/2016.Reading time 9 minutes.

Brunton Boatyard, a beautiful boutique hotel resurrected from the remains of a Victorian ship building yard, is the perfect place to stay in Fort Kochi, Kerala.

Grief, Pride & Hope In My Submerged City

05/12/2015.Reading time 5 minutes.

Its been eerily silent this past week. I normally revel in the quiet of my neighbourhood, but this is the silence of devastation. Of a city knocked to its knees. I miss the sounds I whined about. Of engines backfiring in the distance. Of the howling of strays or the keening of koels that shake me from my sleep at […]

Chettinad – Painted Clay Horses Of Ayyanar Temples

24/11/2015.Reading time 14 minutes.

Curious about the terracotta horses of Chettinad? Read all about the painted clay horses and the Ayyanar temples where they are traditional offerings.

Chettinad Houses – Mansions Of Merchant Princes

15/11/2015.Reading time 17 minutes.

Curious about the traditional Chettinad houses of Karaikudi? Here’s all you need to travel to Chettinad and explore its food and architecture.

Bespoke Luxury at La Villa Pondicherry

20/07/2015.Reading time 3 minutes.

An unassuming gate, that we drive past twice, opens into a small, leafy courtyard dominated by our restored 19th century ‘manor’ hotel: the former Villa Notre-Dame de la Garde, one time residence of the principal of the French school opposite. Now re-christened La Villa. We find the sparingly restored facade charming. We are relieved to discover, however, that the distressed charm ends at […]

Pondicherry – An Ersatz French Weekend

09/07/2015.Reading time 8 minutes.

Travel had taken a backseat in our lives with the past several weeks being consumed by hospital visits and doctors appointments. Thankfully R is fully recovered from a minor surgical procedure, and a condition I was diagnosed with turned out to be less scary than it initially sounded, but they made for some awfully stressful moments. A final all […]

The Twin Fishes Of Ayodhya

27/06/2015.Reading time 2 minutes.

This story begins with a legend. From a 13th century Korean chronicle – Karak Sam Kuk Yusa – of the emergence of six princes from a clutch of golden eggs, descended from the heavens in a gilded casket wrapped in red silk. The princes miraculously attain adulthood within twelve days. Suro – the eldest – is crowned first king of the Kara dynasty and ruler of Geumgwan […]

Faces Of Jodhpur

26/05/2015.Reading time 2 minutes.

One of my earliest posts on this blog dealt with my fascination for the ‘people of my places‘: “I find people amusing, fascinating, inspiring. When I travel I enjoy sitting in a cafe, looking out onto a busy street and observing random strangers going about their daily lives. It gives me a feel for their culture. A […]