Allô Chatrath

I visited Sehr (Shehr ?) Ki Masjid (City Mosque) Champaner-Pavgarh Archeological Park, Gujarat, India in February 2020. It was constructed in 15th-16th Century AD as a private mosque for the royal family.  More photographs+ detailed write up would follow shortly on https:// allochatrath.blogspot.com

  Borobudur Temple Compound, Indonesia.  The Borobudur Temple Compound is one of the greatest Buddhist monuments in the world, and was built in the 8th and 9th centuries AD during the reign of the Syailendra Dynasty. The monument is located in the Kedu Valley, in the southern part of Central Java, at the centre of the island of Java, Indonesia. I had the privilege of visiting it in December 2015.  A detailed write up with more photos would follow on this blog.

Respectful salute to Naib Subedar Rajwinder Singh and Sepoy Prashant Sharma who sacrificed their lives safe guarding the defence of India.  JAI HIND

  Music is an important part of the heritage of cultural history of India. The histories of both folk and classical Indian music are very rich. We present a flavor of Indian classical music sung by Sniti Misra. Please click at the following link to listen to her: https://youtu.be/iPMu48KngcA She   is a trained vocalist in Hindusthani classical music who appeared for the first time in Zee TV musical reality show, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Singing Superstar. She belongs to Bolangir district of Odisha, India.    Now a little backgrounder of classical music in India. Post 13th Century,one notices two different styles Indian Classical Music . In North India, Persian and Mughal influence began creating its place very intensely with Amir Khusro.Tansen and his contemporary musicians mostly performed in Dhrupad sort and later Khayal singing was promoted by Sadarang and Adarang.On the other hand, Carnatic Music was evolved mainly by Shyama Shastri, Tyagraja, Muthuswamy Di...

Barichara Cemetery in Colombia is considered to be one of the patrimonies of the country. I visited this cemetery in 2017. A photo article on it coming soon on this blog.

Indicative map of France showing the location of Rouen.  I was lucky to visit Saint-Ouen Abbey Church , referred in French as Abbatiale Saint-Ouen , in France, last month. It is a large Gothic   Roman Catholic   church situated in Rouen, France.   The abbey is famous for both its architecture and its large, unaltered Cavaille’-Coll organ. Sadly when I visited this stunning monument it was closed and I could not see its interiors and the famous Organ.   Built on a similar scale to nearby Rouen Cathedral, it is, along with the Church of St. Maclou, one of the principal Gothic monuments of Rouen. Gargoyles: You are invited to see my earlier photo article on the gargoyles of Cathedral of Milano, Italy by clicking at the following link: http://www.fiftyplustravels.com/?p=8498

                          “Carving featuring an ‘alien’ (?) at Dholbaha, Hoshiarpur, India” by K.J.S.Chatrath

I went to Hemkund Sahib last time in 2012. That was my fourth and the last visit to Hemkund Sahib.  Now I am too old to take that strenuous journey especially when I do not have the backing of inner faith- I am an atheist. However that does not stop me from respectfully visiting the religious places of various religions. Hemkund Sahib is a Sikh place of worship and pilgrimage site in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, India. It is devoted to Guru Gobind Singh (1666–1708), the tenth Sikh Guru, and finds mention in Dasam Granth , a work dictated by the Tenth Guru himself. Hemkund is the breathtaking Lokpal lake located at an altitude of  feet above sea level.     The lake or kund or the sarovar. There are seven mountains around it. They all get snow and then the snow melts and water comes in to this sarovar. The reflection of those seven snow clad mountains in the sarovar is a memorable sight. On the day of my visit there was no snow left on this m...

 I visited the National Historical Museum of Vietnam in December 2019. While moving around the Museum, I was attracted by this colourful canon.     Dong Ky firecrackers festival is held annually on the 4th of January, Lunar Calendar to welcome the king after his winning in battles in Dong Ky Wood Carving Village, Tu Son, Bac Ninh, Vietnam. A large carved wooden canon painted crimson and gilded is the main symbol of the ‘Festival of Canons in Dong Ky’. This festival is recognized as the national intangible cultural heritage of Vietnam. The model canon is made by craftsmen from Dong Ky ward, Tu Son town, Bac Ninh province. It is decorated with dragon, unicorn, turtle and phoenix designs.     Dong Ky Village used to have a contest for making and firing cannons. According to a legend, the tradition was a commemoration of General Thien Cuong who led the army and began a fight against invaders by firing a cannon on the fourth of the first lu...

I am lucky to have become a full member of the India International Centre, New Delhi over two decades back. This place has an excellent academic ambience, organises great programmes and has accomodation for short stay. It has a bar and is also popular for its food. A few months back I went there around dinner time and ordered a vegetarian 'thali. What arrived was very colourful, good looking and sumptuous. But sadly it was absolutely bland. No spices, no chillies and very little salt soeemed to have been used.  On top of that the catering staff were chatting loudly all the time creating avoidable din. I finished my food with some effort. May be those looking after kitchen think that all aged members, and there are quite a few, love bland food. No, they do not. Would be grateful if IIC introduces something like a 'Spicy Thali'.