Late post on Karthigai Deepam

On the day of Karthigai Deepam (Dec12), the Vardha cyclone blast Chennai and we couldn’t make arrangement of lamps as planned before. And I was looking forward to this day to make photos out of lights, but the cyclone ruined it well and we shifted to the upstairs to keep away difficulty. And for those unknown about Karithigai Deepam, it is a south Indian Hindu festival celebrated on the full moon day of the Tamil month Karthigai (that falls between Nov-Dec) and it is also called as festival of lights alike Diwali.

Thought we haven’t celebrated, it wasn’t meant that we didn’t lit lamps. I think almost houses in Chennai and suburbs could have lit a lamp or candle on that day (and days further) to keep away the darkness of night in the absence of electric power. Despite have no power for couple of days, the oil lit lamps have burnt lot, and we made a small arrangement of clay lamps at the doorstep marking the festival at the next day. Karthigai Deepam is lit for 3 days at homes and lighting the oil lamps are considered as auspicious symbols and believed to dive off evil forces and let in prosperity and joy. But for me it’s quite photogenic and joy of beauty in light and lamps form.

Btw. Wish you all very Happy New Year, once again! Hope the year ahead is best for all.

Cheers

Trees aftermath Vardha

As you all know cyclone Vardha has brought down thousands of trees across the city of Chennai and the suburbs, has also left many trees skeletons. The trees were battled by the gusts leaving almost trees naked trunks and remaining was left to dry leaves as trees expose to die blow. Last week I was around the neighbourhood clicking photos on the trees on way to the beach, and one of the beautiful roads of Chennai, Besant Avenue, with canopy of trees experienced the worst disaster in decades with many tree falls marked the Ave. Being evening and expose to glowing sunset, the dry leaves and bare trunks brings out the glory of trees and I really enjoyed taking photos with couple of lanes turn picturesque, perhaps because of the cleaning process of the aftermath of cyclone.

The cyclone has left a great impact of planting native plants and trees, which were the mostly survived trees in cyclone with gusts last up to 140 km. The trees such as Palm, Neem, and Portia are still standing strong even though going through the battle where left with little damage. The need for trees has been pretty strong now (with loss of one third) but more than planting trees, selecting the native ones is the best for long-lasting. It’s everyone’s responsibility to plant trees to bring back the enrichment of environs, and I think every person has to plant a tree to live beyond their existence. Hope you enjoy these beauties 

1st Avenue Adyar/Besant Nagar

3rd Avenue Besant nagar

5th Avenue Besant Nagar

My Christmas décor @ Home

(do check  the header for another angle) 

Last year I didn’t decorate for the Christmas unlike previous years and similar to 2013, when I fall for femur fracture and took quite bed rest, and last year the disaster rain and flood keeps away the spirit for celebrating Christmas. Though this year to the cyclone Vardha created an environmental havoc and be the reason for number of tree fall, the mood for celebration couldn’t be avoided because the intend for the merry Christmas has been in mind even before our honourable Chief Minister passed away, leaving a great void. I made arrangements on my personal interest and thanks to my parents for supporting on decorating the Christmas tree and lighting the portico.

I too was watching some Christmas movies for last few days to keep up the festival spirit and I always believe festivals are to celebrate and bring together the people for sharing. “Jingle all the way” and “Christmas Vacation” are quite fun movies, unlike “The Christmas story” which moved me really and captured minute beauty in the family and relationship between brothers. But it was a movie actual based on Christmas gifts and the little boy (elder son of the family) acting was natural and could easily connect with childhood of everyone.

My favorite x-mas tree 

Btw.

Wish you all Merry Christmas and Happy New Year… Hope it was a fabulous year for all.

RGB Monday

An elegant hording from silk town

During a visit to Kanchipuram, I capture this hording placed atop a building in a very busy road that has number of textile shops. Kanchipuram is world famous for silk saree and the Kanchipuram silk has been recognized as a geographical indication by the Govt. of India in 2005-06. This shot wasn’t purposely shot for the meme, but the hording was eye-catching from the distance and I couldn’t skip the traditional beauty appear overall. Only when I was looking for the picture to post at RGB Monday I noticed the shades of red, green and blue in the sari of the charming lady. 

Here’s RGB Monday to keep away your Monday Blues and make feel colourful and yet cheerful! And this Link-in feature invites your colourful photos with the content of RGB – Red, Green, and Blue.   It could be a single photo or 3 photos that highlights the colors of RGB on each, which could be related in some ways for ex. a post alike, which related by frames, doors and windows by RGB

Thank you for the colorful play! Please leave your link-in at the comment section (along with your comment) until i come up with a link-in gadget. And it will be mentioned at the end of the post by me later.

1. Ramya Rajesh 2. Devilish Angel

An unforgettable, environmental havoc - Cyclone Vardha

Cyclone Vardha stroke Chennai on Monday created an environmental havoc, bringing down thousands of trees across the city (which is estimated to go beyond 10,000) turning into a forest environ and ruin. It’s really hard to describe the state, although there isn’t much loss of lives, the trees aren’t less than anymore and what we have lost is impossible to replace immediately. Most of the trees are at least more than 10 to 50 years old. The city recorded high wind velocity of its history, lasting up to 140km speed smashed almost everything it could, from trees to sheet roofs, hoardings to electric poles and transformers, flipped cars and bus… its unimagined before that we face a great damage to our breathing source - trees. Almost streets in our city faced a tree fall! I ever heard or seen a situation alike and even on our street there’s half a dozen tree fall.

(The tree fall in front of our house)

The Vardha cyclone had been pretty fast and doesn’t left with enough time to prepare well, but we still managed good at least preserving the lives. We well aware there won’t be power on the day of landfall and following days, so we filled our overhead tanks and charged all the battery operated in advance, perhaps the last year’s devastating flood taught us to be precaution than before. As expected the power goes off as soon wind started to blow with heavy rain and the DTH went out of signal, from which we were learning about the progress of the cyclone and the mobiles also lost network in next few hours. It was a storm, a howling we ever heard before. The tense was at high while the rainwater continues to rise around the home and the terrific wind creating a feel of unsafe to find out.  We did none until the cyclone took a brake by 2.pm.

Glad the mobile network lasted sometime and if not we would have thought the cyclone landfall quite. I know it was a very severe storm but never to be very extreme and long-lasting. It took more than 7 hours for the cyclone to completely landfall with an eye (centre part of cyclone) of 100km, which passed in quietness for about 2 hours, before resurface into another extreme twist and turns. The road was blocked on both the sides of the house, because of the tree fall; we had no option just to move to the upper portion of this house which was rented but unoccupied. As we’re uncertain about the rainfall, due to storm, we moved to upstairs after getting permission from the “down-to-earth” household. But there wasn’t much rain after the first stroke and the rainwater also restraint entering the house but the streets turned messy due of fallen leaves and stalks.

There was no power for quite 2 days/night, but had enough power in the inverter for a day which we used for charging mobiles (for the torch), battery light, mosquito bat to spent our evening and night with less trouble. The next day power was restored at our uncle’s house (in the next street) and we brought the inverter there and got charged for another night. It was our neighbours, whose protest and road blocking brought back the power immediately, if not it would have taken a day or two.  Glad we moved our car to another location… the wind was very extreme and there was a loud bang outside. Yes, a 30 feet tall cotton tree fell completely and slightly across the road. And if the wind was blown from the east it would have blocked our way and crashed the car. I really need to say I miss this tree, because it was a cotton tree and if the pods broke away the cotton would float in the air and many green parakeets visit this tree to feed on the cotton pods seeds.

It’s really sad to think how many birds missed their favourite trees in the cyclone Vardha, a word our Chennaities will not forget for long. When the centre part or eye of the cyclone landfall suddenly number of birds appears from somewhere, started to circle the sky near a skyscraper in neighbourhood, perhaps looking for some hideout to protect them from the storm. I learned from the metro plus, many birds from the deep sea have been pulled into the city by the cyclone and the water birds were landed on the marshlands of Pallikaranai and Thuraipakkam. I really wonder how birds manage such strong winds and nesting of birds… but I am happy to see crows, parakeets and babblers back in the neighbourhood. The sudden rushes of birds on the day were looked similar as sparrows and were flying so terrified and bewilder to head where. Hope there’s a sense of peace in their environment despite great loss of trees – arresting.