Sunday, July 22

Hungama @ Horsley Hills

Life is driving me nuts! So I pitched in to a weekend trip with my gang in the last minute, blogger gODo inclusive. Awesome fun, it was. I don't know to swim, yet I somehow managed to run down and jump into the pool ;)). Hey, I summoned that much for having no clue about swimming :). (Shhhh! It was only 5 feet deep :D). Time is at premium now :(, so I'll leave with some photos. Btw, for those who can make it, its a lovely retreat when you want to go without any major plans just to chill.

Well there was more fun ;) (the pool was just the tip of the iceberg), but think I'd leave it here for now. Adios amigos.

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Sunday, May 6

CARVA @ Thiruvaiyaaru 2007

One again this year as part of CARVA tradition we set out to Thiruvaiyaaru to the jeeva samadhi of Saint Thyagaraaja to pay musical homage. It was yet another soul filling experience. All this amidst the scotching heat. On the first day we were out visiting nearby temples until lunch. This time the smaller temples in and around thiruvauyaaru, unlike last year when we went for big ones.

Since we were not blessed by rain god, the afternoon went without any plans. Of course no restrictions on road cricket ;), while others beat the heat staying indoors.


Like we did last year, there was Nadaharam on saturday evening followed by vocal recital for all those who wished to.

Nandu & Deepu (darlings of CARVA) were back again with 3 songs this time. One of them (set to kamaas) was my favourite and turned out to be a treat. Amazingly crisp as they reached high pitch. Nandu's mazhalai voice was an added attraction.

As to how good they were, listen and decide for youself ;). But trust me, you wouldn't be even a wee bit disappointed :).


  1. seetApatE nA manasuna (kamaas) powered by ODEO
  2. nAradamuni veDalina (pantuvaraaLi) powered by ODEO
  3. vandanamu raghunandanA (sahaana) powered by ODEO

Unlike last time we had three groups this year. The junior group played -

  1. girirAja suthA (R:bangaaLa) powered by ODEO
  2. thelisi rAma (R: poornachandrika) powered by ODEO
  3. sarasa sAma dAna (R: kaapi naaraayaNi) powered by ODEO
  4. ananda saagara (R: garuDadhvani) powered by ODEO
  5. sara sara samarai (R: kuntala varaaLi) powered by ODEO

And then it was turn for the group to which I belonged. Although our guru had apprehensions that most of the songs were quite well paced and we as to whethere we could keep up, the accompanists came to our rescue and it turned out much better than anticipated ;). Here are the songs we played.

  1. rama bakthi (R: sudda bangaaLa) powered by ODEO
  2. brOva bhAramA (R: bahudaari) powered by ODEO
  3. bhavanuta nA hrdayamuna (R: mOhanam) powered by ODEO
  4. niravadhi sukhada (R: ravi chandrika) powered by ODEO
  5. anaathuDanu gaanu (R: jingala) powered by ODEO

And finally the senior students who played the main section of the event. nagumOmu was the main piece a must listen for carnatic fans. Its a very rare opportunity to listen to our guru play and turned out to be a treat to the ears for one and all. The following were the songs played by the senior students -

  1. raghunAyakA (R: hamsadwani) powered by ODEO
  2. saadinchanE (R: aarabi) powered by ODEO
  3. bAgAyanayya (R: chandrajyOthi) powered by ODEO
  4. marugElarA O rAghavA (R: jayanthashree) powered by ODEO
  5. manasA shrI (R: eesamanOhari) powered by ODEO
  6. nagumOmu ganalEni (R: aabhEri) powered by ODEO
  7. nenaruncinAnu (R: maaLavi) powered by ODEO
  8. gandhamu puyyarugA (R: puNAgavarALi) powered by ODEO
  9. seetha kalyaaNa (R: shankaraabharaNam) powered by ODEO
  10. jO jO rAma (R: reeti gowLa) powered by ODEO

It is yet another memorable experience for us all. Had the sun been more relenting we could have visited more temples. Nevertheless it was loads of fun with so many kids around. The best part of this program is how much it motivates us to play much better than we do ;).

Right now I am just totally lost in this phrase from jO jO rAma - N2 S N2 D2 M1 G2 R1 P M1 G2 R2 S (not sure if I deciphered it correctly, of course with help from lil swarna). Its been running in my mind all evening :) and listened to that song countless times today. Simple, yet so mesmerizing. Sometimes I wish I didn't have to earn for a living :D to enjoy such blissful things in life, but thats far from life. Guess i'll cut it down to this for now. Loads of work to catch up. Do listen and enjoy the music (Click on the title link or here for the entire set) . Adios for now.

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Thursday, February 15

Snapshot Munnar

I'v been really lazy to come up with posts lately. This stuff has been pending since New Year, so am flushing it off :D. Picked some picturesque snaps from my trip to munnar for the New Year. Its taken me 3 days to compile this post. Thats how lazy I have become :).





The speed-boat ride was quite some fun :). I loved the sharp turns that they took. Some of the guyz felt nauseating :(. It was a picturesque and a fun experience. It almost ended up being a photo-shoot destination as we waiting for our turn and the the gang to return.








Our trek down the mountains. For most part it was walking through the mountains, but for the last 1km which had us being on all fours, hanging onto trees once in while. My cousin brother ended up falling, forunately grabbed two trees with both his hands. Said he was seeing dead people (uncle, grandma to start with) for a moment ;)). It wasn't a fatal fall, but could have been hurt real bad and with no one to call for help it was a :-s moment. Thanks to our guide all is well :).
This guy was our guide for the trek. Unfortunately we had no clue about the trek until we reached the spot :( (Top Station). Had we known we would have planned to drop in earlier and well prepared for a nice bath in the falls. We ended up climbing back quickly to beat the sunset. Of course, its an unofficial trek via private property, which the locals offer ;).
This pic shows kurinji flower that blooms once every 12 years for 3/6 months I believe. We were lucky to make the trip right on the occassion and better yet, go on a trek down the mountains to see them cover stretches of the mountains upclose :). We were there towards the end of the season so there weren't as much as they used to be I presume.

Not all that beautiful though. Its got a dirty violet colour. Nevertheless, the fact that they ain't gonna bloom for another 12 years kept our attention for a while. Damn Lucky I say!



The reserve turned out to be quite a bore but for the physical exhaustion and spotting the "Wild Boar" *duh*. We had to walk perpendicular to the slope of the mountain for kms together. Our ankles were on the edge of ending up with a sprain. The walk bestowed us with tons of thorns. Not the big ones. Little soft ones that stick onto your clothes and wouldn't go unless you deligently pull'em out. Do it wrong and they were pulling out strands of the clothing :(. One of my friend had so much on his sock (worn with a slipper) that he just dumped it.
Wild mushrooms! We had to be content with spotting such trivial things. The worse part of this trek into the forest was that were a group of 7 and we couldn't talk but in whispers. The previous days trek had its toll as well. One the bright side we got a nice burn out :), physically.

If you plan to visit the sanctuary, give it a lot more time. Coz our one hour trek only managed to get half was inside and back. Keep a window of 4 hours and you should be lucky to spot the celebrities there ;)) he he.


Thekkady was another blooper. We woke up @ 2am to reach there from munnar. As expected NO WILD ANIMALS! The ride is the ferry was good only for a good view. No way any animal would come out after hearing to the ferries loud noise. They were probably mumbling for having disturbed their peaceful slumber ;)) he he. We were short of time so that's was all we could cover.


Ooooooh yeah! We saw birds. WOW, so much for wild life.





















It was a 4 day trip and we thought we'd dry out of places to watch. Maybe so for honeymoon couples ;)). But if you are hitting as a bunch of bachelors, there is just so much that I'd suggest a week to cover em all in spirit. On the downside u'd get bored of the greens by then. The wild life reserve has tree houses which you can book and stay, yeah away from civilization :). I believe at thekkady too you have such a facility. You wouldn't be able to see the elephants otherwise, unless you are okie with shelling out 300 bucks per head for a ride. We planned just 3 weeks on a small budget before our trip and everything was booked.

There is a lot in and around munnar for more than a few days. But its quite likely, unless you have a big pocket that you get bored in a while. Offbeat places would be the best bet when you are on a budget. And in my experience even though minimal, these turn out to be much more fun. You could cover plenty in a couple of trips to munnar. I'd recommend taking the road route, of course with a gang. Otherwise you are gonna miss quite a bit of nature. Given to the punctuality of the guyz and the super fast driver we missed at mountain top (forgot the name) before entering munnar, where sunrise is said to be absolutely beautiful.

As always the hilight of our trip were the off-beat places. No crowd and just us, it was perfect! So you bachelors out there, hit to this destination and get adventurous with your gang before you get hooked ;). Adios.

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Tuesday, January 2

God's Gift to "Man"kind

Been to Munnar @ God's Own Country (as many know it) for the New Year. Eight of us had a fabulous time. Of course the usual honorary leg pullings, empty stomach treks through the mountains, sleepless new years eve ;) and the guyz fumbling after just a few shots.

It was an absolute blast. It was a 3 day trip (intended as a 4 day tour) with lots of bulbs right from the start ;)). We just went on clicking pix on-and-on that we got bored of it towards the end.

Where do I start and where do I end? It was so eventful and so fraught with bloopers. No promises But I hope to post a travelogue on it soon :). Plenty of photo worth wall-papers. Much more blissful than the "Bliss" wallpaper of XP. I'm still having a hard time believing I clicked some of em ;).

This is my favourite photo (and similar ones) of all ;)), for obvious reasons. Many people might curse me for this, think I am too raw, being uncouth or whatever. But evertime I see these photo I just go LOL =)). After me few more guyz started taking these pics out for revenge >:).

I consider this to be one of the greatest gift from god to Mankind. You'd agree with me if you've been through the sanitary conditions in India as you travel :p. What a pleasure it is - to just call the driver to stop, walk out and take a leak in the wild feeling the chilling open winds of nature ;))on you face. And that too with all your best pals by your side :D.

This is not my favourite pic :p, for obvious reasons. But one I am releasing out'a demand :). Actually, gODo is hell bent, and am just bailing out myself before he gets evil. God save me :-O.

More pics and on Munnar to come shortly ... so stay tuned

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