The Valley of Flowers

 Bhuynder valley in the Himalayas in Uttarakhand state lives up to its English name- the Valley of Flowers.From mid June to mid October each yeat, the valley becomes covered with hundreds of varieties of wildflowers, some of which you can never see anywhere else. Every week the flowers change as old flowers fade and new varieties take their place. Mid August to mid September is the best time to visit the Valley, as the Monsoons would be abating giving rise to fine days. There would be less fear of landslides then.

 Since the Valley of Flowers is a part of the Nanda Devi biosphere, a UN heritage site, it is kept in a pristine condition with minimum road building activity. Staying in the valley at night is forbidden. The trek from Gangharia village to the Valley is around 3 kilometres, and is delightful with wildflowers of many shades all along the trail.

 The Queen of the Himalayan wildflowers is the Blue Poppy, which is seen at altitudes of more than 14,000 feet.

 In August when I did the trek, there were bright Inulas everywhere at 10,000 feet.

I could count 52 different wildflowers on my trek.
The Valley of Flowers is a heaven for naturalists and botanists. There is a memorial for Ms.Legge, an English researcher who slipped and fell to death in 1939.

Forts of the Deccan

In the history of India, forts have played a major role. The Mirjan fort was the bastion of the queen of Gersoppa, who traded spices with the Portuguese in the 16th century.

 Built of red sandstone, it is an impressive fort on the Arabian Sea.While the Mirjan fort was constantly under threat by the enemies and pirares, the Gandikota fort had a natural canyon  to guard it;

 The beautiful canyon made by the river Pennar discouraged the enemies from attacking it.

 The fort is built using red granite which is in abundance there. Unlike the Mirjan fort, Gandikota is a living fort with people living inside the fort .

 Wildflowers bloom in the barren land.

This building was a prison with dungeons in the 13th century.

Many thanks toMrs.Nesbitt who started abcwednesday, and to Roger who is firmly taking it forward.

Javagal- Poetry in Stone

 The Hoysala kings wer great patrons of the arts.There are many beautiful temples built by them between 1000 to600 years ago in our state. One of the most beautiful is the Lakshmi Narasimha swamy temple at Javagal. It has intricate carvings on all the walls.

 The temples have hundreds of stone pillars.

The entrance is guarde by a pair of stone elephants.The elephants are adorned with stone ornaments.
These temples were built using the locally available soap stone, which is soft when it is freshly quarried, but turns hard and strong after being exposed to the elements.

The Trek to Thadiyandamol

 The Thadiyandamol peak in Coorg district, is the third highest peak in our state. Usually shrouded in mist, this 5630 feet peak is a nature lover's paradise. Early this month, I had the opportunity to visit this beautiful place.

 The trail which goes through coffee plantations for a while becomes harder to trek when it enters the dense rainforests of the Western Ghats. You do not hear a single human or machine made sound as you trek, but the loud song of the cicadas interspersed with the songs of innumerable forest birds.

 The only human sound you may hear is when your companion says "Ouch" when she sees her bleeding leg which was bitten by a leech.
Thadiyandamol is also famous for being one of the points in the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India conducted during 1802-1860. 

The top of te mountain is covered with grasslands where a myriad wildflowers bloom.
My thanks to the talented Mrs.Nesbitt who started the ABCWednesday and to Roger who takes it forward every week.

N for Narmada

 The river Narmada in Central India flows westwards while most other rivers of India flow eastwards.Like all the rivers in India, the Narmada is also considered holy. It flows amidst marble rocks in Jabalpur. You can go on a row boat down the river and enjoy the scenery. If you hire a bot with a boatman, he will regale you with funny stories, all in verse.

The Dhuandhar Falls is a bweautiful spot near Jabalpur.

 Maheshwar, a small town on the Narmada, is famous for the fine  Maheshwari sarees made of silk. One can go boating here also.

 Maheshwar was the capital of the Holkar kings of Indore. Queen Ahalyabai in the 17th century brought about a lot of improvements in the kingdom. She is still revered by the people of Madhya Pradesh.

A memorial to the legendary queen is visited reverently by hundredsof people every day.

My thanks to Mrs.Nesbitt who started ABCWednesday, and to Roger and his team.

Macau, where Money is Made and Lost

 Macau is one of the two Special Administrative Regions  of China. Macau was under Portuguese rule until 1999, when it was transferred back to China.The photo above is the Fishermen's Wharf, a theme park.  The picture below is that of the Tower.

 Unlike Hong Kong, the other Special Administrative Region, Macau has no forests, pastures or woods. The drab and boring landscape is now made immensely attractive by the casinos, which are an epitome of luxury. 

 Bungee jumping is done from the top of the Tower.

 The Venetian Macau is the largest casino in the world, they claim. Te ambience is like Venice, coplete with canals and Gondolas. The computer controlled artificial blue sky is always suggesting late afternoon.

 Macau is the world's fourth richest region. Wealthy Chinese flock to the casinos to try their luck.Great fortunes are made and lost in the 35 luxurious casinos of Macau.

This ancient temple is dedicated to the Chinese goddess Matsu, who is the protector of fishermen and seafarers.This place has a small wooded path up a hill, overlooking the sea.

My thanks to Mrs.Nesbitt, who started ABCWednesday, and to Roger and his team who manage it so well.