Day 26 March SOLSC! #SOL23

I think there are countless temples in our country. Even in our small town, Udupi, there are many temples to gods and goddesses.  During certain months temple festivals take place. There are fairs in the temple grounds and at the end, fireworks. Annually, ceremonies are performed consisting of various rituals. They are well attended. Eating…

OUR WEST BENGAL TRIP-(23)

10-01-2023    Day 25 March SOLSC! #SOL23   While on a vacation in Kolkata in January, on the 10th we were enjoying seeing different beautiful and interesting places. From Jorasanko, the imposing home of Rabindranath Tagore we proceeded to College Street.  We did not want to miss going there. Our tour assistant, Mr. Babu told us he…

Day 24 March SOLSC! #SOL23

On the 21st of this month we performed the death anniversary rituals for my father-in-law. After the rites lunch is eaten on banana leaves. On such occasions we sit on rectangular wooden planks kept on the floor. This is traditional seating in villages.  We have a banana plant in our garden but there were not…

Day 23 March SOLSC! #SOL23

The last three days have been very windy. Dry coconut fronds are falling regularly. We keep them outside the gate. Some of our neighbours carry them home as they are good fuel in firewood stoves. These days we see the seeds of the Crown Flower plant floating by. They have white hairs attached to them.…

OUR WEST BENGAL TRIP-(22)

Day 22 March SOLSC! #SOL23   10-01-2023 We grew up reading about Rabindranath Tagore. I have read many of his stories which have been translated into English. His Gitanjali which won the Nobel Prize in 1911 was translated to English by himself. I have read it many times and each time it is a different experience.…

Day 21 March SOLSC! #SOL23

On the 14th we posted a parcel from our post office to our daughter, Gayatri. She and family live in Germany.  They went there in 2015. Some years ago, we were wondering how to send parcels to them. My cousin told me she sends chutney powders and other masala powders to daughters living abroad by…

Day 20 March SOLSC! #SOL23

Yesterday morning I woke up to the sound of rain falling on the leaves of the jackfruit tree in the back yard. It was 5.45. I opened the window to smell the fragrance of rain meeting dry earth. That is petrichor and is one of my favourite words. It was drizzling for quite some time.…

Day 19 March SOLSC! #SOL23

On the 14th morning we went to the post office to send a parcel to our daughter, Gayatri. She, Vinay and children live in Germany. Advaith is nine and Kavya five 😊. When we went to Shantniketan we got gifts for all of them. Along with the gifts we sent some books and a cross…

OUR WEST BENGAL TRIP-(21)

Day 18 March SOLSC! #SOL23 10-01-2023 On 10th January we had booked the whole day city trip with Kolkata City tours. While making the booking I had written that we wanted to go on this tour on the 9th. Mr. Karmakar kindly told us that many of the sightseeing places were closed on Mondays. So,…

Day 17 March SOLSC! #SOL23

Today morning I used mustard oil for seasoning the potato and green gram curry. We did not use this oil earlier. In January we went to West Bengal for a vacation. Most Bengalis use mustard oil in their daily cooking. Mustard is grown extensively there. I thought I would try it in certain curries, and…