We travel to see places – temples, forts, beaches, resorts…but what really makes a trip memorable are the people we meet. Anuradha shares her experience of travelling to a new destination and coming across interesting strangers…

I usually avoided photographing people, since I felt I might be invading their privacy, but of late, I have learnt to take their permission and click away. Here are some of my attempts from my last few trips….

There are those who are used to people photographing them – like this policeman at Pondicherry who helped us find the place we were looking for, and then cheerfully posed for us…. He said that people regularly asked him to pose, for he wore the Kepi – the trademark red hat, a reminder of the French influence in the area.

And then there were these men at Mount Abu, dressed in traditional Rajasthani attire, pushing a trolley, which they used to ferry both, luggage and people. But more importantly, they were there to give the kids a joyride. They hounded us from the minute we arrived, but turned back with a smile when we refused, and didn’t mind when I clicked them!

There are those who make the most of the tourist boom, whose golden tongue keeps us enthralled!
Our guide at Sajjangarh Fort was one of these…. He spoke with an enthusiasm rarely seen among guides, told us so many stories (for once, quite accurate, historically!) and when I told him to start his own blog/website, told me that he was completely satisfied with his life and the money he made, and didn’t really want anything more! He is truly the most contented person I have ever met!

Another is a young boy, probably in his teens, yet he works magic with his hands – or rather, his ‘sleight of hand’! when he called us, saying that he would show us some magic tricks, I was skeptical, but he kept us laughing as he worked his magic, and even my son, who can never sit still, and who has a shorter attention span than anyone else, couldn’t take his eyes off! As we took his photograph, he blithely told us that his magic tricks are on youtube!

Finally, there are those who are the true wanderers – those whose souls cannot rest in one place… such as this old man we met at Anegundi (Hampi). He has lived in 4 states in India, travelled all over the country, and visited so many places I have only dreamt about! He spends 6 months in an ashram, helping the less fortunate, and spends the rest of the year satisfying his wanderlust!

After meeting him, I can’t think of calling myself a traveller!

The simple things in life are what we tend to overlook while going about our busy schedules. Sometimes, it pays to pause and observe those around us. Which is exactly what Gopal has done, and here he is sharing the experience ….

It’s all in a day’s work for postmen to stamp and deliver letters from all over the world, but what would you call a postman who delivered messages from a different millennium?

The archaeologists came and left, but one person was a constant fixture as the wonderful city that we now call Dholavira slowly revealed itself to the world – the postmaster. He took a keen interest in the things that have been excavated here and like Ekalvya, he observed and learnt the science of archaeology from the ASI officials.

 

 

The most unique aspect of Dholavira city are the reservoirs. The city is surrounded by massive reservoirs that stored rain water from a seasonal stream. Built in the precision Indus Valley Civilisation fashion, the water supported a trading city that was connected to the rest of the world when what is now the Great Rann of Kutch had easy access to the sea.

 

 

Today, this retired postmaster is a daily visitor in this ghost city that is left in the hands of a couple of temporary casual workers who once assisted the archaeology teams. And if you happen to go to Dholavira, you now know who could be your best guide.

Ask for the Postmaster Kaka.

Every city has a charm of its own, hidden in the narrow lanes or out in the landmark buildings. Swathi from Bangalore who had been on a visit to Hyderabad for a wedding shares some fond memories she brought back from the beautiful city of pearls and how she fell in Love with Hyderabad! She has just finished engineering  and loves travelling & photography.

“I love Hyderabad” I exclaim to all and sundry whenever I get the chance. This is usually followed by a “oh, when were you there?” to which I gather a straight face and reply “never.”. Correction: Used to reply. Not anymore. Sometimes, you love a country, a city so much from the bottom of your heart for no rhyme or reason. I have always been fiercely passionate about Hyderabad and Sri Lanka. Quite recently, I had a chance to visit the former, albeit with very less time and a wedding to attend.

So my sister and I took the Airavat, which was such a agony with practically no leg-room. And arrive did we at Hyderabad, after haggling with the auto drivers and reaching the hosts’, we planned to visit The Nehru Zoo Park. I expected this to be another Bannerghatta National Park, bored and ready to face the stare of the caged animals. But, no. The Zoo Park is a pleasant surprise. It is well-maintained and you can rent bicycles to go around the park, which is quite huge.

It was already afternoon and we were quite hungry, so we were rested a bit and waited for our friends to arrive to go out for lunch. And I would be Captain Obvious if I said we had Biryani for lunch. But of course, we did. Since we had some time before getting ready for the wedding, we planned to visit the Qutub Shahi Tombs. Our friend is quite the expert when it comes to the history of Hyderabad, so we had quite a lot to take home- History lessons and photography sessions.

The whole thing is so beautiful that the Golconda Fort can be seen from the tombs. As much as I wanted to go to the Golconda, we didn’t have time. The tombs was a wonderful experience- the wind in my hair, the company of friends, the architecture, the pleasant afternoon.

We headed back home and the wedding festivities were in order. Being a Telugite myself, I didn’t know there were such elaborate pre-wedding rituals. I am a bit of culture-hoard, so I loved it all.

All said and done, there is nothing like coming home to your warm pillow.

Every day is a brand new day, one that lures people into making the most of it and exploring their lives through. Aarti Krishnakumar, a freelance writer from Chennai shares some of her fond memories from her travels across the country….

“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.”
~ Carl Bard

While in Kerala, we visited the Krishnapuram Palace in Kayamkulam. The palace is a replica of the Padmanabapuram palace in Trivandrum. As the sun was beating down on us, i managed to capture a shot of the Palace from beyond the pond, catching the reflection of the palace in the waters…

Krishnapuram Palace, Kayamkulam

As the road wound around the cliff, the ocean below lashed against the mountain as if trying to grab our attention. We looked down to see the mountain covered in plants and moss, amidst which a flight of stairs caught our eye. We decided to sneak away and walk it down to get a closer look at the ocean… What a sight it was.. Totally worth the risk!

Varkala Beach, Kerala

After the long walk on a hot summer day, we had finally reached… Auroville, few kms ahead of Pondicherry! The place was infamous for the Matri Mandir and various boutiques in the center of the place.. These days, they dont allow visitors to enter the Matri Mandir without prior permission. So, we picked up our tickets, and walked the 1.5kms to the view point and soaked in the place with several others vying for a piece of the place..

Matri Mandir, Auroville, Pondicherry

Time to say Good bye.. Until next time.. I wonder where the road takes me next..!!

Holiday ….Celebrate ……

If we took a holiday Took some time to celebrate
Just one day out of life, It would be, it would be so nice

Everybody spread the word We’re gonna have a celebration
All across the world In every nation
It’s time for the good times Forget about the bad times, oh yeah
One day to come together To release the pressure
We need a holiday.. sang Madonna

A sample page

Ah, what fun the Holidays were.

Alas, the summer holidays are over and it is time to head back to College. The days that were once filled with fun and excitment are over and now, the days be dominated by books, lectures and exams. Movies, going on long drives, parties that went late into the night and ofcourse the hours of chilling out with friends and cousins was how you spent your 2 months of holidays. The thrill while exploring the few hidden nooks in your home town, the precious moments chatting with your grandparents are all today treasured in the form of photographs.

Take your pick…

Its good thing your aunt gifted you Snapfish’s photobook. With these photobooks, you can collate all the photographs into different categories and sort them out. A wonderful tool to not only preserve them , but relive the days whenver you are hit with a pang of nostalgia or miss your extended family.

Options to choose from

Add little quirky notes to the photographs, put in the date or the location where the photograph was taken and so much more on these Photobooks.

Such a cool and easy way of rewinding time!

It is time to bring down the curtain on the Monsoon Photography contest.. Thank you all for a wonderful and overwhelming response!

Congratulations to the Winners and a big heartfelt Thank you for all the others who contributed! It truly was difficult picking out winners…

Here are the winning photographs and the photographers [in no particular order] –

1. Ashish Mantri

2.Saurabh Raj Sharan

3.Sarika Jain

Please do “Like” Snapfish India’s Facebook page to keep updated on news, tips, and other activities..

The day dawns with the mind drawing up a list of things to be done, and chores to be completed. Along the way, at times we fail to notice the little interesting things that cross our paths.  Kolkata based Sukanto Mukherjee says, “As I go through the day, I watch lives change, I  watch how people sprint from one shelter to the other, how umbrellas light up the sky in vibrant colours.” He is an avid photographer  and today shares a few shots from Kolkatta with us.

This one was shot in a Kolkata suburb on a morning. As is their nature, squirrels are forever on the move, and it is very seldom that they wait to ponder over things. This  was one such rare moment, where this little one was looking at the tree bark, and thinking how fast it could climb it maybe! Or maybe he was wondering if there was shade to keep him dry and warm…

This puppy is part of a litter that was abandoned near my house a few days ago. While most of them were playing around, this one chose to spend the day in solitude, or laziness maybe. It did not even show any interest in picking up the bread crumbs that the neighbourhood boys had been feeding to its brothers and sisters. Or maybe, the poor thing was missing its mother, who had left it for some unknown cause.

Like humans, these creatures too seek a nice cozy place as the skies explode!!