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Passage to India – Toy Train II
There are books on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway that you should be reading and a BBC documentary that you should be watching. But here you are on my blog. Silly you! Part II contains numerous things that didn’t fit into … Continue reading
Passage to India – The Toy Train
Darjeeling – the name conjures up so much. Tea surely comes to mind since it is the most famous of its products and sold all over the world. I’ve drunk my share of the tea since I’ve been here. It’s … Continue reading
Passage to India – Morning Rituals
The morning bathing in the Hooghly, a branch of the Ganga, is an important ritual. Never mind the trash. The river is all important and takes care of all. Meanwhile in a quieter part of the ghat, a worshipper … Continue reading
Passage to India – In the Kolkata Flower Market
A friend wrote that she thought I had been enhancing the colors in my images. I’m sure it looks that way sometimes but in fact the colors here are so vibrant that I usually have to work to keep them … Continue reading
Passage to India – The Charnel Ground
I went to the cremation ground in Puri today. I was deeply moved and it helped me to reflect on our own lives and deaths. I’ll only show one photograph because it seemed that my taking lots of photographs was … Continue reading
Passage to India – A Short and Sad Life
I see the street dogs and the beach dogs here and I am saddened because I know they will have a short life. Except for a few families who treasure their dogs, most of the strays are ignored or poorly … Continue reading
Passage to India – Thoughts on Pondicherry
Pondicherry (Puducherry) has a distinct French colonial flavor. A settlement was established by the French as early as 1674 although the place was taken by the British twice after they came to dominate India. The French finally turned the Puducherry area … Continue reading
Posted in Color, French, India
Tagged Bay of Bengal, Colonialism, India, Monsoon, Pondicherry, Street Dogs, Tamil Nadu
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Passage to India – The Ooty Train, Part II
The 1st Class coach was the oldest in the three-car set but was placed at the head of the train. The Inspector must have taken pity on me, or smelled a railfan, and assigned me the seat in the very … Continue reading
Passage to India – The Ooty Train, Part I
This is unashamedly for my railway friends, but you’re welcome to read it too. From the hot plains of Tamil Nadu to the “hills” the Ooty train rises to over 7000′ on a spectacularly built rack railway. Properly called the … Continue reading
Posted in India, Rack railway, Railroad, Railway
Tagged Nilgiri Hills Railway, rack railway
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Passage to India – Colors Part One
Since there are so many books on India that relate to cultural differences, I’ll not go into much of that here. I’d like to comment however on the things that strike me personally as unusual or significantly different. One surely notices the vibrant colors, … Continue reading