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Tuesday 20 April 2010

The second Stone (or Iron) Age village and sand-dune sunset

Impressions of India: 18
I’m currently travelling for 3 months in India, through Goa, Kerala and Rajasthan, with a pretty hot and hectic schedule of boutique hotel reviews. The galleries below are my online photojournalist diary of scenes caught, people met and things found along the way. I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I did and am still.

Please do take a moment to log and/or e-mail me your reactions and comments and, if you're on Facebook, attend/join my Indian Adventures photo-blog cyber-event there, or become a Follower, due right on this page? The more people I know are reading and enjoying it, the more fuel it adds to my fire, so all forms of encouragement and support will be gratefully received.


A traditional camel cart, off-duty.

To my Western eyes, used to the squared-off lines of so many of our buildings, these round, thatched mud huts look very picturesque, and it's sad to see them steadily being replaced (as in The Serai's local village), by brick boxes. But these age-old ones probably pay a heavy toll during the monsoon rains, if and when they come. 
No dyed-in baby-girl eyebrows here, just heavy khol eye-liner and jewellery.
This lady was bashing stones to turn them into a powder. It would then be mixed with dung and water and pasted over the remaining rough area to make a bonded smooth, hard surface like the one in front of her. 
Then we were off across the sand, which Singh negotiated very expertly, grinding through gears and flooring the accelerator up the soft slopes, to catch the sunset over the dunes.

This gentleman and a young boy hopped aboard along the way and joined us for the sundown. I strongly suspect that the wonderfully-bright materials worn by desert dwellers have a very practical purpose. You can see them for miles across the pale sand, which probably ensures rescue arrives a lot quicker if anyone's lost/dehydrated/in trouble, though a German traveller I met likes to think it's more romantic - that they're cheering themselves up in the face of harsh conditions. 


On the way home, as it started to get dark, Singh offered to let me drive the jeep. I accepted, slightly nervously, but only on condition he moved to the passenger seat rather than sharing my driver's one.

Posts still to come before we're up-to-date: 
The national park ruins of a village suddenly abandonned 300 years ago
Magical Jaisalmer Fort
Jodhpur to Jaipur

12 comments:

  1. amazing how you are having these wonderful journies and locations! great photos again...

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  2. Gareth I Davies said:

    Excellent images, nice work!

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  3. Emma Gabbertas said...

    Absolutely amazing!

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  4. Jenny Evans said...

    Just looked at the photos of the musicians and bus journey, reminding me of the real sense of peace that many people there have in their lives. Loved the ones of the musicians so entranced by the music they're making.

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  5. Hazel Gardiner said...

    The photos really are amazing - India is just such an incredible country.
    I visited India with Linz many years ago, and was astounded by it. I really liked the people. I know there are huge problems there, but everyone seemed somehow so fully alive, and so humane (that probably sounds slightly odd - particularly when there is often inhumanity evident - but I can't think of a better way to put it). This is not your first trip I think? Great idea to have a blog about your time there.

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  6. Samantha Bromley said...

    I am really enjoying ur india adventures blog, such beautiful pictures and ur commentary is great. It looks like ur having a wonderful time.

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  7. Andrew Scott-Bolton said...

    I love the blog, the pics are great, particularly the train sequence, really takes me back. Keep it up and keep posting. Shanti Om sister, as they say out there!

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  8. Sarah Billson said...

    Your photographs are absolutely fabulous, I am very envious of your trip as I would love to visit India one day.

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  9. Miriam King said...

    Beautiful and vibrant.....

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  10. Penny Mavor said...

    Cooking with gas indeed. Brava bella. Keep working your magic.

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  11. Samantha Bromley said...

    Hi Cathy

    Am really enjoying your blog, was really shocked to see all the desert pics, i didnt realise that existed in india!

    Sad to hear u keep getting ill, such an amazing experience that you cant enjoy as much as u'd like to. Hope u r better now though.

    Would be lovely to see you wen u get back

    Take care and speak soon

    Sam xx

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  12. Hi hun
    so he wanted to share the drivers seat with u, eh?
    lol cheeky man :)
    i really liked the pics of the mother bashing rocks, she has the cutest baby.
    mo xxxx

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