It was a typical European setting—open green slopes, large mountain cows grazing and well manicured trees flanked the expressway. It wasn’t until the distinct wooden houses at the entry turns of Zakopane did I realise I was in Poland. In my mind, Poland was Warsaw’s rebuilt structures and Krakow’s agonising history. And then I saw…
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Many versus in poetry and references in literature had led me to believe that winter is probably the most desolate and monochromatic season. Between Virginia Woolf’s ‘Melancholy were the sounds on a winter’s night’ and PB Shelley’s ‘If winter comes, can spring be far behind?’ I was convinced that winter was made of sorrow and…
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It is difficult to escape their charm. Every time I travel to Uttarakhand, the loveliness of the people I meet seem to only increase. I recently wrote about the women who I met in Kilmora and Chirag and as a continuing part of my conversations with the people of Uttarakhand, I’d like you to meet two…
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Two of my three travels to Uttarakhand, last year, introduced me to some of the most enthusiastically independent women I have met. The first bevy was in Chirag (Central Himalayan Rural Action Group) in Kasiyalekh. Chirag is a social enterprise that works with local communities by diversifying and creating various livelihood opportunities. In Chirag, I…
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Very many hours of my waking life are spent staring at India’s map. I think it comes closest to meditation for me! On a serious note, every Spring I spend some time picking my mountain region of the year. Last year, I was basking in Uttarakhand’s chrome sunshine. But where will the roads take me…
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I still remember, the day begun with excitement. Feeling victorious after the Valley of Flowers and Hemkund trek, Badrinath was my next destination. Not a religious person by definition but I was absolutely ecstatic to experience the one of the four most revered destination by the Hindus from world over. As if all their beliefs manifested…
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