Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Shivaji Market Poona

Image from iranindia.com
Poona Cantonment Market
from iranindia.com

In the
Char Bawdi and Baba Jan Chowk area.
My old neighborhood of
Guffar Baig Street,
a.k.a. Jan Mohammed Street, a.k.a. West Street.

I lived 2 minutes away, behind India Ice Cream.
in what is now the Devika Apartments, originally 6 row
houses with a large open ' compound ' (playground).

My daily market rounds with family members were
always fun, events fresh as the produce at the stalls.
The blocks of ice on sawdust managed to make this place
feel air-conditioned year 'round. And the smells ! Fish, meat,
vegetables, baked goods, pickled preserves, illicit liquor,
Marijuana and sweat all mingling to create a heady mix, while
in the background the hawkers each used his/her own
unique vocal style to entice us. Muslim butchers, Hindu
vegetable sellers, Marwari bangle vendors and Irani

bakers all rubbed shoulders with Ayahs, Army wives, alcoholics,
perverts, Hippies, tourists, money-lenders and homeless tramps,
not to
mention the daily churchgoers from St. Xavier's Catholic
church
across the street.

All under the roof of the Poona Cantonment Market, erected in
1885 and still intact and fully functional in 2006.

deccanheffalump has a definite Poonaite's approach to Indian
foodblogs and she illustrates them via her wonderful collection
of
Flickr photos, while at the same time offering insights into the
art
of cooking that garners her tons of praise from the global
community.

Here's her Blog look at Shivaji Market

It's entertaining on multiple levels and more importantly,
is an
ongoing inspiration for this blog.



Sunday, May 28, 2006

Mad about Mango


May. Mumbai. Mangoes. Mmmmm.....

A recent article in the NY Times Travel section
brought back a slew of childhood memories of
the Summer holidays in Chembur, Mumbai when
my daily diet included at least two juicy, luscious
mangoes....either the huge Alphonsos, or the Kashmiri
or Ratnagiri kind. Today, in my mid-50s, those two daily
delectable portions would be one whole meal for me.

Oh, yes. I could live happily like that.
And I could die(t) happily like that.

More ripe Mangoes at Simran's Blog :


A collection of free articles and multimedia from
The New York Times.




Saturday, May 27, 2006

Dylanfest in India

majaw

"It's late in the evening and the
music of Bob Dylan
is pouring through
a nondescript hall in the hill town
of
Shillong in north-eastern India.

On stage, Lou Majaw, the hill town's premier
rocker-poet-troubadour, is belting out the Dylan
standards - a ritual that he's been faithfully
performing for the last 34 years on the singer's birthday.

It all began sometime in 1972 when Majaw began a folk
festival to "honour Dylan" at a small auditorium on the
singer's birthday.

A few years earlier he had been converted to the legend
after he heard the seminal album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan.

Since then, the Dylan fest has played out every 24 May at
homes, parks, and halls."

with lil' Dylan

Article by Soutik Biswas
BBC News, Shillong




Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Dawn and Vic NJ



click to enlarge

My sis Dawn and nephew Vic

Taken in Weehawken, New Jersey
in the mid-'70s, overlooking the
Hudson River to the New York skyline.
One of my favorite scans.......

imgkolektr said :

Where are Dawn and Vic now? Is Dawn your wife?
Can you please tell me her history if not related to you.
And from your images I see you were in a rock band in
India in the 1970s. What was that like? What did you play?
The image "Outside Malavli Guest House" is vrey good.
Very Pink Floydish.

Star Trek Cribs

Hilarious video clips of animated Star Trek
crew members
from G4TV at YouTube.com

Star Trek Cribs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyZ6oo0ktJQ

Star Trek Cribs- The Director's Cut

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBXal1GAA4A

Star Trek Cribs-Poolside
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-N6Cwhoh_s

Monday, May 22, 2006

Eurovision Losers



How to lose the Eurovision Song Contest ?
1. Be German.
2. Dress up like Cowboys
3. Name the band 'Texas Lightning' **

**Members of group Texas Lightning perform for Germany
with the song 'No, No Never' during the dress rehearsal for
the finals of the Eurovision song contest at the Indoor Olympic
stadium in Athens on Friday, May 19, 2006.
Organizers estimate more than 100 million TV viewers will
watch Saturday's final. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)


Saturday, May 20, 2006

I'll Text Your Head Off


click to enlarge

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - A Malaysian man slapped his wife
on their wedding night and stormed out of their home after she
received a text message from an unknown admirer who
professed his undying love for her.


"Though you are married, I still love you," was the message that
flashed on the screen of the 19-year-old woman's mobile phone
just as the couple were about to enter their room at
2 a.m. on
Sunday, official news agency Bernama reported.

Her husband, 25, refused to believe the woman's statement that
she did not know who the sender was, hit her, tossed away the
phone and walked out of the house, the agency said on Monday,
quoting the Borneo Post newspaper.

Police on the rugged eastern island have arrested a man and
are investigating after the woman and her family complained
about the incident in a case that one official called unique in
his 33-year career.**

**Why is this unique ?

The couple are members of the Iban, a tribe of former
headhunters that lives in communal longhouses and makes up
about a third of the population of
Borneo.

( Thanks, Paul Hopson ! )

Majestic Backyard Cruiser



There was once a Frenchman who built
a replica of a Royal Caribbean cruise ship
in his own backyard.....


Some Data


Scale : 1/8th

Length
: 33.5 m

Width: 4.75 m

Headroom: 3.5 m

Draught: 1.06 m

Weight: 90 tons in fresh water and 96 tons in salt water

.Two 100 hp engines

Two 38 kw stem propellers

160 m² living space

60 m² upper deck

Link to the Francois Zanella story

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Brothers against Da Code


A Roman Catholic activist, Joseph Dias, began
a hunger strike
on Tuesday which he said would be
continued until the film is banned.


"The Holy Koran recognises Jesus as a prophet. What the book says
is an insult to both Christians and Muslims," Maulana Mansoor Ali Khan,
general secretary of the All-India Sunni Jamiyat-ul-Ulema, told the
Reuters news agency.

"Muslims in India will help their Christian brothers protest this attack on
our common religious belief," he said.

His stance was supported by Syed Noori, president of Mumbai-based
Raza Academy, a Muslim cultural organisation that organises protests on
issues concerning Islam.

"If the government doesn't do anything, we will try our own ways of
stopping the film from being shown," he said. "We are prepared for violent
protests in India if needed."

Link to Da Vinci Code BBC News article


Indian Mc D Ad


click to enlarge

Found this at
Boing Boing
Thanks, Cory !

Friday, May 12, 2006

Mother's Day - really !




Keep clicking on the belly to make it bigger
My neice Veena was ready to drop over a week ago.
Here's hoping it happens this Sunday May 14.

Monday, May 08, 2006

Wonderboy halted

year old runner

A four-year-old Indian child who last week ran 65 kilometres
(40.3 miles) in seven hours, has been banned by worried
welfare officials from running marathons.

The child welfare department of the eastern state of Orissa
announced the ban following a medical report that Budhia Singh
was "undernourished, anaemic and under cardiological stress".

"He will not be allowed to run long distance till all tests are
completed," child welfare officer R.S. Mishra told reporters in the
state capital of Bhubaneswar.

Read the AFP article here

Friday, May 05, 2006

Monday, May 01, 2006

Nepal

Normally I would have given this article a cursory glance and moved
on,
but recently Salona, a Nepali co-worker here in Houston headed
home to Nepal on a vacation - just as the bloody revolution started.
Then this bit in the middle caught my eye :

"Every successful revolution, from Castro in Cuba to Mandela in South Africa,
has had to face symbolising the struggle - someone willing to give their life
for the revolution, someone the people on the streets will die for.

But members of the opposition leadership in Nepal are so old they can barely
walk let alone lead a revolution.

Ever since 1990, when the people of Nepal first won their democratic rights,

the same politicians time and time again have, in the eyes of many Nepalis,
let them down."

Link to BBC article by Paul Danahar
BBC South Asia bureau editor