Saturday, January 9, 2010

Winter Wonderland

I returned to Canada for the Christmas holidays, spending time in Toronto, Saskatoon, Edmonton, and my mom's farm just outside of Westlock, Alberta.

Westlock decorates its main streets.



Many people in my home town like to decorate their homes with lights for Christmas.



Fortunately, Mother Nature decorated our farm with hoarfrost while I was out there.





This is a playhouse that my brother Gary built for his children when they were younger.



This is our driveway. I especially like the spruce tree. I can remember my father planting that tree many years ago, when it was only about six feet tall.



This is the view from my bedroom window.



The temperature stayed between -20 and -10 Celsius while I was out there. After months in the plus 30 temperatures of Chennai, I feel that I adapted reasonably well to the change: I had plenty of sweaters, socks and long underwear to keep me warm. One thing that I'll have fun explaining to friends back in Chennai is the northern luxury of heated car seats. I'm sure I can describe the technology, but I have no idea how I'll be able to convey how much we appreciate it.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

A Stay in the Desert

I stayed at Manvar Desert Resort and Camp from December 12 - 14, 2009. It's located about a 90 minute drive from Jodhpur, on the road to Jaisalmer.

For my first night I stayed in a tent at the camp. For most Canadians, the words "tent" and "camp" are synonymous with "roughing it." Manvar was the exact opposite.












My tent included a private three-piece bathroom with hot and cold running water, and to keep me warm during the cold desert nights, resort staff turned on an electric heater and put a hot water bottle in my bed.

Some of my Canadian camping friends may wonder if I've now been spoiled for anything else. Relax! I love camping in Canada. However, I admit that the hot water bottle is a luxury that I may just permit myself the next time I'm in a tent.

The camp is about 7 kilometres from the resort and highway; it was one of the most quiet and relaxing places I visited in all of India. The location has a mix of small farms and natural areas. Just outside the camp I saw my first peacock in the wild.










In the early evening, people from the area entertained us with music and dancing, which I really enjoyed. Towards the end they invited us to join in the dancing too; sorry, there is no video of me.



In the morning I went for a camel ride for a couple hours with my guide.



















I saw the sunrise over the desert.










We were able to get really close to an eagle.










The camel was very calm. He only seemed to assert himself when he wanted to stop for a bite to eat.










Later that morning, I went for a ride in a jeep.










We stopped to visit a few places. This is the local blacksmith. In front of his forge, you can see some axe heads, and a tray with smaller items like pipes, spoons and bells, which tourists such as me are more likely to purchase. The bicycle wheel in the background is used to power bellows for the forge.










We also stopped at a farm. These small structures are for chickens. The building material is cow dung mixed with straw. In the arid desert, it is simple and cheap to make and maintain.










Goats are also well-adapted to a desert environment. This young guy reminded me of when I was growing up on our farm, with goats of our own.










Farmers also raise sheep.










Some people keeps dogs too. They can help protect the livestock from foxes. And a litter of puppies is always entertaining.










These are some of the different types of food grown in the area. The white cob-like vegetable is millet. I can't remember what the other ones are.










We also saw many of these deer-like wild animals in the desert.










I moved from the camp to the resort for the second part of my stay. The resort was very comfortable too, and although it was just off the highway, it was still fairly quiet.



Irrigation plays a big role in the lushness one sees here.





Bird life was abundant.








The cat kept a close eye on the comings and goings of the birds.


Sunday, January 3, 2010

Lifestyles of the Rich and Royal

I visited a number of forts and palaces in North India, and took many pictures.  The architectural detail can be amazing - please double click any of the photos below for a closer view of the artistry.



Fatehpur Sikri, or the City of Victory, was built by the emperor Akbar starting in 1571, near the city of Agra.  It served as the capital of the Mughal empire until 1585, when it was abandoned.  It is believed that the water supply was not reliable enough to support the residents.  The well-preserved buildings were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986.










Musicians would perform for the court on the platform in the middle of this pool, with the water acting as a natural amplifier.










Nobles might play a game of parchesi, with dancing women moving from space to space.













Wine was also known within the palace walls.













Intricate bas reliefs decorate the living quarters.  Religious sensibilities, in a state of flux during and after the rule of Akbar, influenced design.  He encouraged religious moderation and tolerance, by hosting theological debates and through the example of his own interfaith marriages. 

The panel immediately below, with plants as its subject, has been preserved, but in the panel further below, the faces of the animals have been excised, in deference to certain Muslim beliefs prohibiting the depiction of faces in art.



















My understanding of the prohibition comes from one of the students I tutored in Toronto a few years ago.  The belief is that while angels make the bodies of animals and people, God Himself makes the faces.  One must take care to never do anything that could show disrespect towards God's work.  Any human attempt to represent the work of God could only fall short. 

As part of the complex, Akbar built one of the largest mosques in India.  This is the main entrance to the mosque.










This is a view of the other side of the main entrance, as seen across the central courtyard.  Graves are visible in the foreground.













This is one of the most beautiful arcades I saw in India.














The Agra Fort has been in existence from at least the 11th century C.E.  The Mughul emperor Akbar assumed control of the fort in the 16th century and began to rebuild the ruined brick structure using red sandstone.  This phase of work began in 1565 and ended in 1573.











Akbar's grandson Shah Jahan, builder of the Taj Mahal, continued to make additions to Agra Fort.  Eschewing the cheaper red sandstone favoured by his grandfather, Shah Jahan built palaces of white marble inside the fort, carved with bas reliefs and inlaid with gold and semi precious stones, much like the Taj Mahal.























Shah Jahan dreamed big dreams, and appeared to have an inexhaustible supply of them, although his empire did not have an inexhaustible supply of money to build them.  This was probably one of the concerns of Aurangzeb, the third son of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal.  In a nasty battle of succession with his family, he imprisoned his father in the Agra Fort for the last seven years of his life, from 1657 to 1664.  As Aurangzeb went on to rule the Mughal empire, his father would gaze out of his sumptuous prison at his beloved Taj Mahal, with thoughts we can only imagine.












Amber Fort, Jaipur

The Amber Fort has existed since the 10th century C.E.  It was ruled by the Kachwaha clan of Rajputs from about 1037 to 1727, when Sawai Jai Singh II moved his capital to the newly created town named after him, Jaipur. 










The fort formed a central part of a vast network of sandstone walls protecting the town of Amber.










This section of the palace was richly painted centuries ago.  The colours remain vivid, both on the exterior and the interior.




Another part of the complex is known as the Palace of Mirrors.


Thousands of tiny mirrors cover the walls of this stunning suite of rooms.  It is said that a single candle could light the interior at night, and that the mirrors would shine like a starlit sky.



This part of the palace also has some rare examples of Hindu stained glass.  I met an artist at the site who specializes in restoring it, Pushpendra Singh Rathore


During the heat of the summer, royal residents of the palace could relax in a shaded pavilion.  A stream of water would flow down a ridged incline then through a channel in the floor, creating a soothing sound and a cooler ambient temperature, before it continued through to a lush garden.












In the arid hills of Rajasthan, obtaining steady supplies of water required planning and work.  Water would be pumped into cisterns using draft animals as the source of power.  The Amber Fort made use of a Persian Water Wheel, or Rehat, to draw water from cisterns for further distribution.  Earthenware jugs were attached to a looped pair of ropes.  The jugs would descend into the cistern to fill and as they were brought back up over the top, would empty their contents into the appropriate channels. 












The ropes moved on an axle, powered by a shaft, which in turn was powered by ...


... slave labour, supplied by whichever people had been conquered by the ruler of the time.  










Feeding everyone in the fort would be a huge daily task, with cooking pots up for the challenge.