FAST FOOD

The women construction workers, are part of the daily landscape, as they toil in a seemingly effortless way, carting sand, or balancing bricks on their heads, digging roads and mixing cement, as the building of India carries on inexorably forward.  They are dressed in the sari or its adaptation, toe rings, bangles and bright colours.  They are carted to the building site by open truck and emerge to begin work with their digging basins, which will be supported on their heads by a soft ring.  At the end of the day, some can be seen walking along the road, basins aloft and tiffins (metal compartments which stack together and contain basic food for the day), in hand.  (Her earnings for the day's labour, might just buy her a burger and coke).

As an interesting contrast, the Burger Restaurants are always busy - a Veggie Burger, chips and coke are a symbol of youth, affluence and modernity - a bright new culture.  The food is tasty and relatively cheap, but more importantly, the whole culture of shiny decor, caps, smiles, fast food and music, is appealing - groups of young people come in to chat mostly and be seen together, often ordering one drink and multiple straws !  And recently after a charity fundraiser, the treat provided for local street children, was just this pleasure.

THE LIBRARY

Photocopying is a busy industry in the town - those with little money, who can't buy books or the books are not generally available, photocopy whole books from cover to cover !  I've always admired the patience  of the man standing there and carrying out this task, for a few rupees !  But then the pursuit of education is relentless and single-minded and the photocopying businesses are doing a nice little trade.

The great Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III (1863 - 1939), who shaped Baroda with his unique foresight and generosity, founding the university, a museum, many hospitals, a bank, a park, many palaces, various agricultural and irrigation schemes and important social reforms, to name just a few of his innovations, also founded the first library in Baroda and one of the first in India !

On a trip to the United States, the Maharaja met a library engineer, William Alanson Borden (1853 - 1931) and invited him to Baroda.  Borden arrived in 1910 to begin the task of designing the library.  The two story structure is articulated by a double colonnade on the outside, giving an indication of the function and spatial layout of the building.  But this does not prepare you for the high tech features of the interior !

A wide corridor separates the library from the noisy street outside, rather like that lovely corridor at the Uffizi in Florence and wells of light help to illuminate the inner spaces !  The stack room has 4 floors with long windows angled in such a way as to ensure maximum light - glass floor tiles from Belgium also help to admit light - a bit like walking around in a prism - the original tiles are still in perfect condition!  In fact there is no need for electric lights and the ambient temperature is so cool that fans are unnecessary.  The iron framed stack is supported by roof girders and wall armatures, and can hold nearly 400 000 books, the first 20 000, donated by the Maharaja himself.   (The stack was designed by J. Snead & Co, in the USA).   Furthermore, special trees and shrubs were planted outside, which helped to filter moisture laden air and  ensure dry air for the interior of the library, so that mildew was not a problem !

The Library was opened in 1931 and must have been one of Borden's last projects, as he died in the same year.

TAKING ITS 'KEW'

The Lal Bagh Gardens in Bangalore come as a surprise, in this Capital City of High Tech.  The idea for building a garden, along the lines of the Mughal gardens, popular at the time, came from Hyder Ali, the sultan and ruler of Mysore and the project was duly started in 1760.  It was completed by his son, who imported plants and trees from all over the world, turning it into a botanical garden of great distinction.  It's now known affectionately as the 'Kew Gardens' of India.

It's said that the jewel in the crown, of these magnificent gardens, is 'The Glass House', built by James Cameron, the then Superintendent of the Gardens, to commemorate the visit of Queen Victoria's grandson, Prince Albert Victor, who laid the foundation stone in 1898.

The Glass House was modeled on the Crystal Palace erected in Hyde Park, London, in 1851 to house an International Exhibition, the inspiration of Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, to showcase Britain's industrial successes, amongst other things.  It was designed by Joseph Paxton, on the basis of his experience as a designer of green houses.  It had a massive iron frame, 1851 ft x 454 ft which was entirely filled with glass.  The Exhibition was a great success, drawing visitors in huge numbers.  The following year it was dismantled and relocated to Sydenham, in a park like setting and used for various purposes, but it was burned to the ground one night and entirely destroyed, in 1936.

The Glass House at Lal Bagh, apart from making a gracious centre piece for the gardens, also houses the annual flower show.

KHANDVI

Sheetal had lived in California for the past 17 years, but now she had returned to India, to her home town, to begin life afresh.  It's always surprising to see how quickly Indians adapt and embrace their home culture when they return, as if their experiences in the West, never existed.  They become totally Indian again.  "Our cook is making Khandvi today, so come and watch - it's a favourite Gujarati snack" she told us.

A batter is made using Gram Flour, curd & lemon juice, chillie paste, turmeric and a pinch of hing.  This batter is beaten well and then cooked and constantly stirred until it thickens.

But the next part of the process was the strangest of all !  It was spread onto the kitchen table with a spatular in thin stripes....when cool, she peeled the edges slightly and then cut it into pieces which were rolled tightly into a cigar shape.  The cigars were then cut into short fingers.  Next came the tempering with mustard seeds fried quickly in oil & finally garnished with chopped coriander !

DHOKLA

One of the appetizers served at most parties, from smart affairs to casual, is the much loved Gujarat snack "Dhokla".  It's a vegetarian dish made from fermented gram flour (chickpea),  steamed and garnished with chopped coriander and served with mint and coriander chutney.   Dhokla is ubiquitous, often served as street food for breakfast, but also found on the counter of every sweet shop.

THE MIRACLE TREE

The Neem Tree, (Azadirachta indica) which grows all over India, can reach a height of over 100 feet - it's an evergreen, with pretty shiny green leaves.  It's a tall graceful tree.  The Sanskrit word for the Neem, is Arishta, (reliever of sickness) and has been used for centuries, as a major component in Ayurvedic medicines.

Every part of the tree is used for various purposes - tea, from a brew of the Neem flowers, is drunk before the summer as a cleanser and to strengthen the constitution in preparation for the summer heat.  Neem oil improves liver function and is good as a hair oil !  It's also known to cure chicken pox!  Village Elders usually hold counsel under its leafy branches in open acknowledgement of its  benediction - it emits more oxygen than any other tree.   Its leaves are hung in front of doorways to banish all ill will -  its antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral......!

So it was not surprising to see this lady in Khandarao Market, selling these small Neem Tree twigs as tooth brushes - they are widely used all over India - seemingly no need for fluoride !

THE DOVECOTE

The Old fortified City, which probably dates from circa 18th c, when the Marathas overthrew the Mughals and gained power over the territory, is a rabbit warren of crowded streets and pols (a cluster of houses around a central courtyard) with tightly packed shanty buildings, a few stories high with overhanging balconies supported very often by beautifully carved corbels, depicting animals, flowers and the ever popular Lord Ganesha.

In this dizzying maze of streets throbbing with life, hooting tuk tuks, the babble of shoppers bargaining, buying and selling, street dogs barking and cows wandering with single minded purpose, it's rare to find a breathing space.  But in the midst of this chaos, as a complete surprise....was the....'dovecote'.  "It was constructed by the 'Jain' community" said the guide, "as a reminder that all living things have spiritual equality".  Interestingly, in Medieval Europe, dovecotes were a symbol of wealth and power and their construction and ownership was a privilege for the nobility and regulated by law.  They provided a source of food....birds' eggs, being a delicacy !

Janism is an ancient religion originating at the time of the Indus Valley Civilisation.  It fell into decline with the rise of Hinduism and Islam and is now a minority religion in India with far fewer than 5 million devotees.  Gujarat is one of the States in India which supports the most thriving population of Jains in India.  They believe in non violence to all living creatures and are vegetarian, even avoiding root vegetables because of the possible harm which might be caused to insects in disturbing the earth !

THE OTHER TAJ !

Another one ?  Surely not ?  The Taj of the Deccan, a hexagonal structure set on a square platform, situated in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, is at first sight, a faithful copy of the famous Taj Mahal of Agra and there are other similarities..... It was commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in the late 17th century, about 30 years after the earlier Taj, as a mausoleum in memory of his first wife Rabia, who was the daughter of the beloved Mumtaz Mahal, for whom Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal in Agra, early in the 17th c.

Furthermore the architect of the later Taj, Ata-ullah, was the son of the Afghani architect who designed the famous Taj Mahal.  So the links between the two were firmly established.  It was meant to rival the earlier structure, but Aurangzeb did not have the financial resources of Shah Jahan, nor was he particularly interested in architecture and so much less money was spent on materials.  Marble brought from Jaipur by ox wagon, was used only up to dado level and again for the dome itself, but the area in between was  simply plastered and polished to give it a fine sheen.

The exquisite proportions of the famous Taj Mahal in Agra and the fabulous use of marble, take it to a sublime level, which is reminiscent of a painting by Raphael - perfection, to which nothing can be added or taken away, it establishes a dialogue and conveys a sense of poignancy, which the viewer simply feels and understands.

                                                       The Taj of the Deccan - Aurangabad, Maharashtra - 1760s

INDO-CHINA !

A joke which causes some laughter among locals, is that China lights up India at Diwali !   All fireworks and coloured electric lights, used to illuminate streets and buildings at this festive time of year, are imported from China!   But it was interesting to see this trend continue in a very stylish new private home in an upmarket area on the outskirts of town.

The man was an Industrialist and he and his wife and artist daughter, had found time to acquire a wonderful collection of paintings, prints and sculptures.  Their local architect was commissioned to create not only a family home, but a space which would act as a foil for their art collection.

What he created was a magnificent house in his new minimalist style, of large areas of external exposed brick, with very high ceilings internally, to create a sense of space.  Courtyards and the brise soleil had also been integrated into the design to provide a cool environment.  Furthermore, the house faced into the prevailing breeze, which blew over the lily pond, bringing cool air into the main living areas.   To further enhance this tranquil and harmonious effect, the architect had been to China on a shopping trip to choose the right furniture for the house.   But the piece de resistance, was the Chinese mobile - a shoal of fish, which sways in the slightest movement of air, creating a focal point for the entire house !

THAMPI

Thampi, our guide, wore his woven cotton mundu in the correct and respectful way, according to etiquette, full length down to his ankles - he was addressing a mixed bag of tourists, both men and women, foreigners as well as a group of young men from Delhi, who were visiting Kerala for the first time.  We were doing the 'Backwaters', comfortably seated in cane armchairs in our woven palm houseboat, being punted by a man who wore his mundu in working fashion, folded in half to reveal his thin legs.

Thampi kept up a running commentary explaining the indigenous fauna and flora with the authority of one who had grown up in these parts.  Like a school teacher, he repeated everything, in case we hadn't understood the first time - as we punted through wide tracts of water and then narrow channels, carving our way through thick vegetation.  He pointed out water snakes, before they slid away, he knew the names of all the trees, pointing out the 'suicide fruit', hanging jewel like and inviting, like a ripe mango, but deadly poisonous, if eaten !  We stopped to watch lime being extracted from mussel shells and local river folk making fibre rope.  Thampi kept us endlessly amused....Kerala with its tradition of communism, has the highest rate of literacy in India.  However, the young men from Delhi, were growing increasingly restless and demanding - our guide remained as polite as ever, until eventually his patience snapped and he turned to them with great dignity and said in a low voice, annunciating each word with care: "I am here to serve you on this trip, but I am not your slave !"

LORD DHANWANTRI - FATHER OF AYURVEDIC MEDICINE

The Vice Chancellor's residence overlooked the main road into the city.  It was a lovely old Colonial double story house with verandahs and a huge garden planted with medicinal and ayurvedic plants, as well as flowering shrubs and trees.   One day, with little pomp or ceremony, something new was added to the garden, a statue of Lord Dhanwantri !  He is mentioned in the Vedas and the Puranas as the avatar to Lord Vishnu and the physician to the gods.  He was a skilled doctor and the first one to discover the benefits of turmeric and the use of salt, as a cleansing agent.  He is known as the father of Ayurvedic Medicine and the first person to impart its wisdom to humans.   His Birthday is celebrated two days before Diwali and all over India he is worshipped as the one who banishes disease and promotes prosperity.

He was described as young and strong, dressed in yellow robes, whose colour heals those who gaze at him.  He holds a conch, a disc of energy, a leech and a pot of celestial ambrosia.

WOODEN DHOWS

Our host for the day in Mandvi, once one of the major ports of Kutch, but now a centre for wooden dhow building, was himself an architect of these amazing structures.  His apartment, near the estuary and harbour entrance, was built to resemble a boat with bridge and 'wheel'.  He was now in his 70's and had started working on ships when he was 14, earning a few rupees a day as a deck hand.  With a wealth of practical experience behind him, he now not only designed the boats but was consulted by insurance companies to give his expert opinion in claim and estimate disputes.

The estuary was littered with the hulks of various wooden dhows in different stages of completion.  Climbing through a narrow gap, we were shown aboard the primary struts of a dhow in the process of being built.  There was a sense of awe looking up at the huge, towering, pieces of teak wood which were being shaped by hand with the simplest of tools.  There was not a machine in sight, the huge 150 000 ton boat was being hand crafted by men, mainly Tamil workers from the South of India, who had the sea in their blood....each gigantic strut was being cut to size using pencil marks and then screwed into place, by people who understood their craft.  The finished dhows would be sold to Somalians and wealthy Middle Eastern ship owners for transportation of goods.

WORTH YOUR SALT

A part of eastern Kutch, known as The Little Rann, is a seasonally marshy region and was once part of the Gulf of Kutch.  During the monsoon, it's submerged but transforms into a desert for the rest of the year, attracting migratory birds, like the flamingo, but is also home to the Asian Wild Ass, which roams this desert region.  A narrow highland near Adeshar connects the Little Rann to the Great Rann, which borders on Pakistan.

Mainly Koli communities live in the area - the women maintain the home and village while the men folk, agariyas, work on the salt pans some distance away, for periods of 8 months at a time, only returning home during the monsoon period, when salt production ceases.  The salt flats are devoid of any vegetation, the ground cracked and parched and the men live in dugouts to protect themselves from the harsh conditions  They produce about 2.6 million tons of edible salt a year, using a process of pumping the brine water into different dams, until the desired percentage of salinity is achieved.  Branches of the local sangetra plant are used in the dam to provide a surface on which salt crystals can form.  The salt is then harvested and loaded onto a truck and then transported to the nearest railhead for onward carriage.  This tough way of making a living is the only one they know and is jealously guarded, despite the harsh conditions and declining production, due to colder weather and longer spells of rain.  Many of the men have eye problems from the constant glare and skin abrasions take a long time to heal.  Drinking water is brought to them occasionally by truck !

CHARCOAL

A subsistence livelihood of the Koli tribe in the eastern part of Kutch is the production of charcoal from acacia roots.  The acacia (prosopis juliflora) is a weed, not indigenous to India, planted widely in the 1960s as part of a forestation programme but it has now run wild.  With encouragement from local authorities, the Koli people dig up the acacia, chop it into neat pieces and lay it carefully into a cone-shaped pile about 5-feet high.  The pile is covered with earth, leaving air vents for smoke to escape.  A fire is lit underneath and in this way it burns slowly for four days, until the air vents no longer smoke and it can be unpacked and the lump charcoal, now a salable product can be bagged and transported. 

BRICKS

It's not surprising that Gujarat, being a largely alluvial plain, supports a thriving brick manufacturing industry, as the sediment produces clay with all the right components for making good quality kiln fired bricks. Many of the brickworks are family owned - some 30 of them alone, operating near Baruch, an hour or so from Vadodara - the bricks are still handmade in the traditional way and transported to the kiln by donkey. The industry is carefully controlled and to avoid too much environmental damage, clay pits are limited to a maximum depth of 5 feet and iron chimneys have been outlawed in favour of brick, cutting pollution considerably. 

The industry is cyclical, being conditioned by climate and the rhythm of nature – as production is impossible during the Monsoon months, the industry closes down in May and only reopens during Dussehra, in October.  

"Overheads are not great" the owner of the brickworks told me "but you have to be rich enough to buy the land in the first place" !  His eighty year old father had had the foresight to buy the land when prices were low and they had then maximised this investment by buying the plot of land next door.  He employed a manager to oversee operations and someone in charge of recruiting the labour and keeping a watchful eye on them - they are expected to produce a certain number of bricks per day.  "During the Monsoon months, we can cart the bricks to neighbouring states where bricks are scarce and maintain an income during the quieter months"