October 2014 – My Favourite Things

3 churches and a basilica: Exploring Bandra’s Christian heritage

Posted on October 30, 2014 by sudhagee

It’s a little before 7 on a muggy Saturday morning in March earlier this year.

At Bandra’s Basilica of Our Lady of The Mount, otherwise known as Mount Mary, the morning service is in progress. The stalls outside the Basilica are already open for business. At that time of the morning, there are hardly any people out on the roads; an occasional rickshaw, car or jogger pass by stopping for a quick prayer before going on their way.

Mount Mary, Churches of Bandra, Mumbai — A jogger stops to say a quick prayer outside Mount Mary

I had wanted to attend the morning service at Mount Mary, but the bus that got me to Bandra from Navi Mumbai got delayed. Not wanting to enter the church midway through a service, I decide to wait at the Oratory of Our Lady of Fatima, which is across the road from Mount Mary.

With me is a friend and together we plan to explore Bandra’s Christian heritage that morning by visiting some its places of worship. I pick up a pamphlet on the history of Mount Mary from one of the stalls outside the Basilica and settle down on the steps of the Oratory to read.

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Diwali markets: Lights, glitter and crowds

Posted on October 24, 2014 by sudhagee

It’s that time of the year again. Diwali’s here (and at the time of publishing this post, almost over).

I don’t like Diwali very much. I hate the firecrackers and noise, the smoke and pollution it brings with it leaving me ill by the time the festivities get over. It’s a time I get all irritable and morose and develop a Scrooge-like persona. Well, not really, but almost.

The only saving grace about Diwali and also the only thing I like about this time of the year is the Diwali market that springs up all over — stalls selling lanterns, clay lamps, sweets, flowers, rangoli powder, clothes … So, every year, the week before Diwali is for walking through the various markets in the city and enjoying the buzz, the colour, the wares on sale and sometimes buying them as well. Like this set of beautiful diyas I bought a few years back.

This year, too, was no different. So amidst stocking up on my anti-allergens and inhalers in readiness for Diwali, I also explored the markets in Chembur, Matunga and Vashi. For the first time, I also took pictures, thanks to my new smartphone with a smarter camera. 🙂

Come, see what fascinated me in the markets and duly captured by my camera phone. 🙂

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Qila-i-Akbari: The red fort of Agra

Posted on October 14, 2014October 14, 2014 by sudhagee

October 2011
It is almost noon when I arrive at Agra Fort tired, dehydrated, sunburned and with the beginnings of a headache.

It has been a long day that began before sunrise by queuing up with what seemed like the rest of world to see the Taj Mahal. Then it was onwards to Sikandra through terrible traffic and road rage incidents to see Akbar’s Mausoleum, and finally back to Agra to visit the I’timad-ud-Daulah.

It is hot and dry and the Fort is quite crowded. I’m exhausted and unable to concentrate on what the guide is saying. After about 15 minutes like this, I give up and decide to leave, with the hope that I’ll get a chance to visit Agra again and walk through the Fort gates once more.

Agra Fort, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Travel, Red Fort of Agra, Akbari Darwaza

That chance comes almost 3 years later. 🙂

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An afternoon, graphic novels and Goodreads

Posted on October 9, 2014October 10, 2014 by sudhagee

It’s a quiet afternoon at home on one of the days of the long Dussera weekend we’ve just had. I am sorting through and rearranging my bookshelves in an attempt to make space for my ever-growing number of books. The first thing I do is to remove all the books from their shelves and separate them genre-wise. Soon, there are piles of books grouped all over the room.

It is a beautiful sight. 🙂

Now comes the difficult part. I need to identify books that I can bear to part with and give away to libraries or to people who want them. Progress is slow, as I get distracted by some of my favourite books among them, often opening them to read passages and lines. It’s like meeting old friends, you know.

The afternoon passes by pleasurably as I move from book pile to book pile, genre to genre. The last pile of books are all Graphic Novels of varying sizes. As I sort and stack them by size and series, I am amazed at just how many of them there are.

“How did it get to be so much? When did it even start?” I ask myself as I stare at the now sorted books in this genre.

Graphic novels, Book collection

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Mumbai Lens: The Junction Box Family

Posted on October 6, 2014October 10, 2014 by sudhagee

There we were — a friend and I — walking along the Central Avenue in Chembur last Sunday animatedly discussing forthcoming travel plans when we met this family.

Street Art, Mumbai Naturally, we stopped to say hello. The Junction Box Family, that was their name, had taken up residence in Chembur earlier this year during the Chembur Festival.