Tatz's Travels Around the World

As I sit here on a cold, sunny and windy November morning, I am clearing my desk top and realized I have a lot of photos of nature I have not shared. I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoyed taking them.

This first set is from my weekend at my aunt and uncle’s house (way back in June) located in Bridgehampton, NY.

This next set is from the New York Botanical Garden that my sister and I visited in July, mainly to see the Van Gogh sunflower exhibit. Who knew there were so many varieties of sunflowers! Similarly, along with enjoying the overall beauty, I was struck by the large variety of lilies on display.

Lastly, photos from a road trip to Connecticut we took in August before I started working.

For our next adventure, my sister and I went on a tour of the Rockefeller estate in Tarrytown, NY, called Kykuit (pronounced, “kai-koot“). What an incredible place! The house and grounds are stunning – filled with amazing art, all arranged with remarkable taste and care. This impressive property served as a spring and autumn home for three generations of Rockefellers (including Nelson Rockefeller, Governor of New York for many years, and the grandson of the original tycoon).

The tour began at the entrance to Phillipsburg Manor, an estate from colonial times, about 1 1/2 miles from the estate we actually came to see. I took a few pictures for sentimental reasons as I recall visiting this living history museum on a school field trip in elementary school.

As we rode the bus up to the estate, we learned that Kykuit – about 30 miles north of the Standard Oil headquarters on Wall St. – stretches over 4,000 acres and boasts 40 fountains, 17 bathrooms, and 44 bedrooms. Not to mention the impressive modern art collection gathered by Nelson Rockefeller.

Nelson’s love of art was nurtured by his mother, Abby, who also helped found the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. If you ever visit MoMA, you’ll undoubtedly notice how many pieces were donated by the Rockefeller family.

Philanthropy has always been at the heart of the family. John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (JD) – the original tycoon – is often called “the father of modern philanthropy.” JD believed in giving thoughtfully, focusing on education and medical research, and created a type of charitable giving previously unheard of: he made sure his financial gifts would continue to be felt for generations. This work continues to this day via The Rockefeller Foundation, with the family meeting annually to allocate charitable funds.

Construction on the house of Kykuit began in 1908. Originally, the house was designed in the style of a (large) cozy cottage. But when JD’s brought his wife, Laura, to see it, it was not at all to her liking. Laura preferred a more elegant, Classical Revival look. As such, the house was completely rebuilt into the version we see today and was completed in 1911. The goal was for the house to blend naturally with the landscape, and I think they pulled it off: walking throughout the home and grounds, it feels peaceful and harmonious, grand even in its simplicity.

When the house was built, JD was the wealthiest man in the world. So, of course, his home included all the latest technology and modern conveniences, including an Otis elevator inside the home as well as central vacuuming (in 1908!). But unlike other Gilded Age mansions reputably huge and over-the-top, Rockefeller wanted this home to feel warm, comfortable, and livable. A lifelong lover of natural vistas, JD sought to preserve his beautiful views. So, he bought all the land around the estate, of course, but he also purchased the village of Tarrytown as much as he could to control its development, going so far as to having his backyard raised (cubic tons!) to ensure his view of the Hudson River would not be spoiled by the village buildings. In fact, JDR even purchased the land across the river to protect his view; his land extended all the way down to New York City! This land – called The Palisades (mountains) – was eventually deeded to New York State, but on the condition the upper acreage remain undeveloped. To this day, this prime real estate just north of Manhattan remains untouched.

The first part of the tour took us inside the house, where a warm feeling greeted us the moment we stepped in. Everywhere we looked, the décor added to the elegance and taste – each piece seemed to tell its own story. What truly made the house special, though, was its remarkable collection of art and artifacts. The family had gathered treasures from many cultures over the generations, honoring traditions from around the world. JD’s son, John D. Jr (Junior), even purchased J.P. Morgan’s entire collection of Chinese porcelain (now considered priceless), with exquisite pieces from the Han, Tang, Qin, and Ming dynasties gracing nearly every room.

As photo taking was not allowed inside the house, most of these are from the internet, but I did sneak 1 or 2 photos as I am wont to do!

Next, we entered the Butler’s pantry, just above the basement kitchen, where we saw the dumb waiter that brought up the food from the kitchen, the warmer to hold said food in case the family wasn’t ready for it just yet. We also perused a few sample menus from back in the day. We also saw the old-fashioned buzzer board telling the staff who needed help and in which room (very Downton Abbey style!). What really caught my eye, though, was the linoleum floor — a popular 1930s design identical to the one my grandmother had in her kitchen just across the river.

The dining room was next where, among the many other fascinating details of the house, were floor-to-ceiling sliding windows that could be opened all the way up, for dining en plein air.

And yet, every corner we turned held a personal touch underscoring the fact that this was a true family home. Not far from the John Singer Sargent portrait stood pieces of artwork by Nelson’s late son, Michael, who died tragically as a young man.

The dining room chandelier was originally electric, but Nelson later converted it to candles (my parents did the same thing in their dining room!) and added recessed ceiling lights for a softer glow. Eventually, the chandelier was restored back to electric.

The next part of our tour was Nelson’s Man Cave — a cozy set of basement rooms filled with Picassos and numerous other examples of incredible modern art. I knew we were in for something special when I noticed Picasso sketches hanging on the wall as we walked down the stairs to the den! Nelson loved spending time there, surrounded by his artwork.  Before this space became a gallery, it served a far less glamorous purpose — it was the pipe room for the organ and was also used for storage.

Among the collection are two Andy Warhol silkscreens — one a gift from the artist himself, which inspired Nelson to commission another, this time of his wife, Happy.

At one point, Nelson learned about a large tapestry made to replicate Picasso’s Guernica and after learning more about it, had to commission more for his personal collection. Once a year, Rockefeller would suggest three paintings he thought were good candidates for the tapestry form. Picasso would select one, choose the colors (sometimes changing colors from the original painting), and then send the design to Madame J. de la Baume Durrbach, who wove them in her studio in the South of France. Each piece took about a year to complete and was larger than the original artwork. The final tapestry made before Picasso’s death was woven in silk — all the others are in wool. Nelson Rockefeller commissioned 18 pieces between 1958 and 1975. Kykuit normally houses 15 of these very rare tapestries.

Another charming touch was a display of glass bottles. Nelson’s sons had collected while walking through the woods. Nelson challenged the boys to create this display. He was so proud of their work that he always brought guests down to see it and bragged about what his sons had done. The display still stands proudly in the center of the room.

Next, our tour guide took us outside to the gardens, and I could take photos again.  The landscape architect for the estate wanted the outside to feel like the gardens were an extension of the house, and in this he was most successful.  As we left the basement, we walked through a grove of trees leading back up to the left side of the house and then explored a pool house, a former swimming pool, some gardens and a gazebo.

Behind the sunken lawn of the previous pools is the Pool House seen below, complete with a soda fountain and a painted ceiling.

There were both formal gardens to stroll through as well as more relaxed ones.  One garden near the pool house had an Asian influence, complete with Japanese sculpture.

The more formal gazebo shown below features a statue Junior desperately wanted. He first tried to acquire it before World War II but only succeeded after the war. Especially interesting is that the statue stands on a rotating pedestal, allowing her to face any direction. So – what part of the body would you want facing you?

All the outdoor works of art can be lit at night in a myriad of ways. An extensive lighting panel in a foyer right off the main sitting room controls the lights, their brightness, etc.

When Nelson died, the Japanese style house and pool you see below (it sits lower down a hill below a short wall) was built for his widow, Happy, and their two sons.  His youngest son, Mark, currently lives there.  

The “backyard” of the house is where we were able to appreciate the view this estate has and that which JD worked so hard to preserve.  The rear gardens also included an 18-hole golf course as JD was an avid golfer and played EVERY day he was in residence, weather permitting.  Then there is a wilderness grotto, where the Rockefeller teenagers would have parties.  You could easily imagine how on Friday nights the boys would hang out there with their buds. Jealous!

Above is the original swimming pool to the house.

The right side of the house does not have much garden space but just beyond is an expansive rolling lawn which leads to the “Playhouse.”  The building includes (among other amenities) a bowling alley, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, basketball courts, a movie theater, a dining room and restaurant-style kitchen.  When Nelson Rockefeller deeded Kykuit to New York State, he stipulated the family can always use the estate when they need to and the family clearly still needs the Playhouse because they use it regularly!  As a matter of fact, the weekend before we toured, a family member had a wedding reception there. We could not tour inside the Playhouse, although there may be tours beginning next spring.

The last stop on the tour was the Carriage House. The structure belonged to a neighboring, older estate that was bought by the Rockefellers.  The large building now houses a conference center as well as two enormous ‘garages’: the first with antique horse-pulled carriages and an impressive car collection in the other.

All the automobiles were the top-of-the-line of their day and made for the family.  The family insisted on only American made cars expect for one.  While at the 1964 World’s fair Nelson saw the first Mustang ever built and bought that. Then he saw a red Daimler and just had to have that as well, and thus the family tradition was broken.

As I mentioned before, the artwork displayed in the house and around the estate is a reason to visit alone. Here are SOME of the sculptures on the estate.

This is by Isamu Noguchi

Here are a few miscellaneous photos from the day:

Ending with street art in Tarrytown!

Last Christmas my sister gifted me a “mystery road trip,” so I knew my adventures would only continue now that I am again living in the US. On the website for the company Alex obtained the itinerary from (https://guesswheretrips.com), you identify your location (US or Canada) and they send you a mystery trip via snail mail, contained in 4 envelopes.  As it was Juneteenth, my sister had the day off and since the weather was perfect, we decided to open the first envelope and see where we were going.  The trip was called. “Hudson River Hideaways.”  As we both have/had lived here for many years, we were worried we would be sent to places we knew well. We were pleasantly surprised that nearly all the spots we were sent to were new to us.

Our first stop was The Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. This well-known repose is connected to the Old Dutch Church, founded in 1685 by the Philipse family (who, by the way, fled to England after the Revolutionary War).  It is still a functioning church. Washington Irving, a prominent American writer, lived in the area and immortalized the hamlet in his famous fable of 1820, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” with its Headless Horseman.

This cemetery has graves dating from 1685 to the present day.  I was struck by the various ways names are represented. There are family sections. There are names on top of the tombstones. They are tombstones very low to the ground, and some standing tall. There are simple slabs as well (mostly in the older section).  I wondered whether the variety is due to finances, the styles of the times or creativity of the undertaker. I was also surprised by the in-ground crypts nestled in the hillside.  In general, the grounds were park-like, geographically varied and, overall, extremely pleasant to walk through with modern and old tombstones standing side by side.  Of equal interest is how some old gravestones were carved so well and so deep they still look new.

The information we had indicated the oldest graves had tombstones written in Dutch. We almost gave up trying to find a Dutch tombstone, but thanks to Eagle Eye Alex we found one!

The writer Washington Irving’s family plot was fenced off but included his tombstone in a prominent location.

As we travelled to the rear of the cemetery, the tombs of the rich and famous began to take prominence.

The photo below is the crypt of Harry and Leona Helmsley, real estate moguls who towards the end of their lives had legal issues that were sensationalized (Google it!), especially when Leona left $12million to her beloved dog(!)  However, of more interest is a beautiful stained-glass representation of the NYC skyline in the tomb which I could not photo.

Elizabeth Arden, of the cosmetics line, is buried in the tomb below under her real name, Elizabeth Graham.  Factoid: at one point she was one of the richest women in the world!

Next is the Bronze Lady statue you see below.  This statue was commissioned by the wife of General Samuel Thomas for their family mausoleum.  Upon its unveiling, Mrs. Thomas was furious due to the sculptural depiction of her hands being oversized and her gaze (overly?) mournful.  Nonetheless, the artist refused to change it. As a result, there are many scary stories associated with the statue and the crying sounds that can be heard on dark nights.

William Rockefeller, the founder of the family dynasty and Standard Oil, had this tomb built, with ‘lesser’ family members being buried at its side.

After viewing all the large tombs, crypts and mausoleums, we sought out the grave marker for Andrew Carnegie, which was a clear testament to his philanthropic nature.  The pennies left on his marker are due to his quote, “Take care of the pennies and the pounds will care of themselves,”

The grounds of the cemetery were such a pleasure to stroll.  Below is a recreation of the famous bridge where Irving’s character, Ichabod Crane, encounters the Headless Horseman.

There is probably more to explore here, but it was time to move on.

stop number 2

The next envelope gave a choice: an arboretum or a dam.  We opted for the Jane E. Lytle Memorial Arboretum and decided we will return to the dam another day.  The arboretum is named for a local civic activist and is arranged so you have a boardwalk trail that lasts 15 minutes and is lovely and at the same time informative.

The beginning of the walk saw us engulfed in greenery and feeling the positive vibe of nature.

The walk took us through a swamp with signs, teaching us about the trees and bushes we saw.  I was enamored by the various shapes of leaves and how certain leaf shapes are associated with a breed of tree.

Below is a tree which is the most abundant in any northern hardwood forest.  It is the sugar maple – yes, the kind from which maple syrup is made.  It is also a good wood for cabinets and finishing interiors.  It is also a joy to behold during autumn with its red and orange leaves that splash the skyline (stay tuned for a future post when I experience my first Autumn in NY in 30 years!).

Instead of peacock calls that resound in India, here it is a bullfrog croaking loudly, encouraging me to sit in a gazebo on the path and listen to those distinctive drumbeats.

Stop Number 3

While also a nice walk, this constitutional contained an historical component: it is the West Point Foundry Preserve.  This location was a Civil War foundry and metal works, where much of the Union Army’s bullets, tools and other metal items were made.  It was considered the Silicon Valley of its day due to the innovative items being developed and built here.  One such item was the Parrott Cannon which gave the Union Army a distinct advantage. (For non-US readers, The Union Army was the North, and the Confederate Army was the South).  The foundry was started so there wouldn’t be an artillery shortage like there was during the 1812 War, thus playing a prominent role during the Civil War. The location was also chosen due the nearby Hudson River which provided a great transit connection.

The Parrott Cannon had its own display, showing how it was aimed and how it worked. Practice shots were done here, brought to life as we heard shots from West Point cadets participating in exercises across the river.

Most of the buildings from when the foundry was active were gone, or in ruins.  The 1865 Office Building however, seen below, is the sole remaining building. We also learned that 1911 saw steel take over as the metal of choice, making ironworks redundant and that an industrial archaeologist played a key role in creating and restoring this site.

When the foundry was active, water was the key power source for all machines. The foundry had a very large waterwheel that was able to power all of them. As part of a gesture to honor this era, the wheel was recreated as a sculpture.

While today we were able to walk through a lovely, wooded park – when the foundry was active there were no trees and the area was filled with many buildings. The photos below show some of this.

The walk back to the car was lovely.

When we passed these mounds of dirt, our imaginations had fun thinking what it could be: a garbage pile? a buried building? something else?

interlude

Lunch was in a local town called Cold Spring.  It is a charming, touristy town with a lot of small, quaintly restored Victorian homes (a lot of New York City residents come up ‘north’ to spend weekends and enjoy the beauty and recreation offered by the Hudson Valley).  We ate at a restaurant that was a converted train station, next to a working railroad line. It was fun to eat as a commuter train came by; our joy was shared with a 5-year old boy, his loving father watching nearby.

Lunch and a train!

stop number 4

Our next stop, Madam Brett Park in Beacon, NY, had us walking along a path towards a waterfall, the sound of running water beckoning us with a sense of deep calm. We decided to stop our tour here since it was such a perfect ending to the day, deciding all that all the places we did not get a chance to see will be visited soon.

On the way home we stopped in downtown Beacon, established in 1708, to buy some water for the ride home.  Many local towns pay homage to local fallen soldiers.  I share some of Beacon’s heroes with you.

I can’t end this first US blog post on a somber note!  In Beacon, an eclectic, creative community, I found a store for witches…yes: “real” ones, as well as a store owner who is all about people rather than profits…. hence her sign drew me in, and I purchased from her! The ride home had us cross over the Hudson River on the Bear Mountain Bridge where you can catch a glimpse of how beautiful the river is here.

To begin, here are photos and moments before and after the Gir safaris.

The first photos are of two happy travelers.

One of the things I love most when traveling in India (anywhere, actually) is taking photos of everyday life on the roadside. These next photos were taken on the drive from Gir to Rajkot.  Being my last ride in the Indian countryside made the photo taking session that much more poignant.  Some views look like they could be anywhere, while some are uniquely Indian. I hope you enjoy my impressions.

It looks like this road sign meant business…immediately after I saw it, animals started crossing!

During my years here, I have been fascinated by all the variety of transport in India. On this trip I paid attention and made sure to take photos of the different ways goods were transported, as well as people. I think this drive to the airport captured the essence of India’s commercial transportation system.

Then, in the middle of the countryside and these small, Indian cities, what should pop up, but a British-style train station:

India is a country of contrasts. This concept of “contrast” is something that has stuck with me everywhere I have been throughout my time in India.  As a matter of fact, when I create my India photo book (I have made one from each country I’ve lived in), it will be called India: Colors and Contrasts.  This next set of photos portray some of the contrasts I feel represent life in India.

We arrive at the Rajkot airport at exactly the 4-hour mark, as predicted by the driver, where I see two more nice examples of street art.

Now back in Mumbai, I will now focus on sharing the last moments, savoring what I love about Mumbai, Ecole and India.

Below on the left is a photo from 3 years ago when I ate my first Chaat, and on the right is a photo of my last chaat.  SO delicious!!

My last time indulging on Alphonso mangoes…ate them all in one go!

I combined goodbye meals with visiting my favorite local spots, near my apartment.  Going through this next set of photos was bittersweet…made me really miss everyone from Mumbai!

Luuma, another favored spot with favored people!

In addition to all those dinners out, all the goodbye chocolate cakes I got from various school folk touched me beyond belief.  Students, teachers and support staff all asked for time with me. 

My office at Ecole was such a happy place for me with all the notes from students, teachers and families.  I share a few of them here:

.

Without a doubt, it is the teachers who I think of right now as I post the next set of photos. Such a glorious three years working with them!

Group photos….a regular and appreciated moment:

Hanging out in the teachers’ lounge was always pleasant.

Here is some last photos of life in Mumbai. First, two Jain women on a puja. 

My monsoon video and a photo of the effects of a monsoon when you ride an open-air auto rickshaw home from work.  Look carefully at the photo!

Some final street art in Mumbai:

Outside my apartment complex, a wonderful mural was painted capturing life in Mumbai.  I finally made the effort to photograph it, and it was great to reflect on how I have experienced and photographed all the moments depicted on the mural.

And then it was, finally, time to leave.  I was touched that Zeeshan came to Mumbai to see me off and took a photo and video of my plane taking off.  A fitting ending to an amazing three years.

Throughout my time in India, I kept track of the states I visited.  My original intent was to visit every State in India but since my time here was cut short, that goal didn’t happen.  However, I am proud of how much I saw and experienced!

And so, I am back in New York, at least for now. But as far as I am concerned, this is simply a new place to explore. After all, I haven’t lived here for over 30-years! While my India posts may be over, the blog is not: stay tuned for posts exploring my next home!

Some lion factoids:

1. Lion roars can be heard for several kilometers.
2. Lions are the only social animals of the feline family, and live in groups.
3. These big cats can cover 20kms in a single jaunt.
4. Like most animals, lions mark territory with their pee.
5. Lions can run 75-80 kmh.
6. The preferred hunting time for Leo is dawn.
7. Unlike domestic cats, lions love to swim.
8. Lions begin to roar at 4 years of age.
9. One way to distinguish Asiatic lions from African is that the Asian males carry a sparse mane … and a belly fold!
10. While originally found all over northern India and other parts of Asia, lions are now pretty much limited to this state of Gujarat, with conservation efforts in play to help the endangered animal survive.
11. Remember that sign at the hotel that said to mind your children? Well, a few weeks ago, a lion came to the hotel and hung out for a few hours. The warnings are real!

Also, just so you get a feel, this is what most of the day on a safari looks like:

While the naturalist we had on the morning safari was not very good, the driver we had going back to the hotel – Tashima – was: he picked up on our frustrations and during the drive gave us “the scoop.” Thanks to his intel, we made sure our afternoon drive took Route Six, which was supposed to be the good one.

Tashima also shared a recent story about a male lion in the park who hadn’t moved in a few days (they are tagged), so they had to search for him.  They found him: he was ill and taken to the hospital. However, he died, and everyone who works in the park was mourning.  It was nice to learn how the safari workers have this connection with the animals.

After eating and resting, we returned to the park, with Tashima as our driver again. The park is 28 miles from the Arabian Sea, which is why one feels the moisture in the air, and I smell the sea as we drive down the mountain. Already, the afternoon trip was off to a MUCH better start!

For this second leg of the safari, we had a much better naturalist: Harish. We started the tour at 4 o’clock. While this is lion naptime, it meant we would be in the thick of it between 5:30 and 7pm, a very active time. 

In the meantime, some photos and facts about the other animals in the park. How lucky was I to capture this blue, White-Breasted Kingfisher?!

Then there was this orange, White-Breasted Kingfisher!

My favorite, a Ghost tree

Samba Deer are usually quite elusive, but this one wasn’t spooked by us at all and continued munching on the leaves.

I saw these rock piles everywhere and learned they are there to mark the territory of various lions.

This is an Oriental Magpie-Robin, a common bird in the park.

I was thrilled to see this Indian Scope Owl. Check out his ears!

This is a Flying Ibis

There are 92, 000 spotted deer in Gir National Park, but it is always a joy to see them and take photos.  Such graceful animals.

Seeing a Red Wattled Lapwing was not a unique experience, but seeing one sitting on her nest of eggs was!

Peacocks, second only to monkeys as the squirrels of India, do not disappoint.  Yet again we got to see a dance, resulting in one of my best peacock photos.

Likewise, Wild Boars cooled off in the water after the heat of the day.  At first, I was excited to see one, then I saw two together, then we saw an entire group lounging!

This was a fun moment: both Zeeshan and I noticed an owl at the same time. I was looking at the one in the hole, and Zeeshan was looking at the one on the branch and then we realized we were looking at different owls and saw each other’s! What are the odds??

Lions will eat and kill larger animals like deer once a week, but small animals once a day.  This is a stark reminder that real animal life happens here.

OK…now for the amazing stuff: seeing lionesses and cubs! There were two special moments.

The first was seeing a group of lionesses with their 10 cubs resting in the shade, near one of the (manmade) water holes (spaced every kilometer and a half so they can drink during the dry summer).  The moms didn’t do much, although a few times one looked at us.  The kids were pretty quiet as well but were a tad bit more active.  Here I learned that cubs stay with their mothers for three years. Also interesting was seeing a peacock calmly walking around.  Since peacocks are not on the lion menu, they are free to wander!

WHAT LOVE LOOKS LIKE

Last – but not least, by far – I had one of those travel moments that hit your heart and stay with you forever.  As we drove, we came upon a female hanging around by herself, so we stopped.  Nonplussed by our presence, she started roaring, but nothing scary. It started off a little quiet, then became more insistent – but still, not scary. That’s when we saw grown cubs come running: mom was calling for the kids to come home!

Luckily, Zeeshan had the video going while I took still photos.  Even the guides were in awe of this moment and asked for our footage. Below, you see how the mom is lying on the ground and our convoy surrounds her. It is now when she roars, and the cubs arrive (the videos are after the photos).

What happened next was an incredible thing to witness. For the next 30-minutes, the family cuddled, they caressed, they cleaned…. It was extraordinary… and not caught on camera as we were transfixed.  There was no doubt in my mind: I was looking at love.

It got to the point where looking wasn’t enough. Their beauty, majesty and affection for each other was overwhelming. I wanted to go up to them, stroke them and join the cuddle-fest. It didn’t seem possible this loving pride could easily have me for lunch.

I did release my gaze towards the end when I got a few shots. 

We noticed one of the oldest cubs stayed off by himself; likely a male preparing to set off on his own soon.  These cubs are probably three years old, while the ones we saw earlier were around one year.

A patient mother….

Here, some of my favorite photos of the cubs:

This is the male who sat off by himself:

I will end this blog post with our happy faces.  The rest of the day and the trip to the airport will be in the next post.

After landing at the airport in Rajkot in the state of Gujarat and dozing during the long drive to our hotel, we could only have 4 hours of sleep before rising for the day’s adventure. The beautiful, cloudless late-night sky was dotted with stars.  As we drove, we crossed paths with giant bats heading home while listening to the morning sounds of the forest. A nice beginning.

Our destination: Gir National Park. Gir National Park is 525 sq. miles, established in 1965 on the grounds of a former Nawab’s hunting area and is now committed to lion conservation. There are 850 lions and lionesses living within it.  Rather than utilizing the ‘zone’ system like some other parks, Gir National Park employs the ‘route’ system.  Routes mean it is easier to locate the wildlife in their natural territory as opposed to limiting where they can roam, and the drivers know which routes have better chances of particular wildlife sightings than other routes…hence (at least for us!) a so-so morning safari and an amazing afternoon safari.

Not only was my visit to this reserve my final Indian Safari, but this was also, dear friends, my final excursion in India, so it is a special memory beyond the usual reasons. 

Aside from the wildlife, entering the park was an experience all its own: you pay to enter the park, and you pay to take photos. And, you have to rent and bring into the park THEIR non-plastic bottles for water!  They sure know what they are doing.

While we may not have seen many lions in the morning, I photographed lots of other animals, and as always, I loved being within and among nature.

After I took the photo of the Red-Wattled Lapwing I noticed her two babies and got this shot:

I was able to take a good photo of the ever-elusive peahen!!! What a triumphant feeling!

It was quite the experience to stop and watch the peacock in the photos below go through all the motions of his dance. First, the bird adjusted his stance, then he opened his feather tail, danced around and finally ended his performance by settling on a branch, where he promptly began pruning himself.

It was definitely The Day of the Dancing Peacocks.

No lions (yet), but I can show off what different exposures do to the same scene:

And the same view with my iPhone camera:

Then it was time to head back to the hotel and rest before our afternoon safari. Here are some photos of life around the entrance to the park.

Now you can see the outside of the hotel room, as well as an important sign!

Day 4 of the vacation was also a travel day, but due to long layovers (again!) we were able to get some sightseeing in as well. The decision was to visit the National Museum in New Delhi.

Before I leave Leh on the blog, there are few photos to share.  First is the original fort in Leh, called Zorawar Fort.  It was here the famed General Zorawar Singh, who was admired as a military genius and a master of mountain warfare, extended Ladakh’s boundaries between 1834 and 1841. He is referred to as the Napoleon of India.  We didn’t have time to go into the fort, although we passed it many times on the way to our hotel.

Leaving Leh was bittersweet as such beauty is not found everywhere.  I will miss seeing the plethora of stupas, large and small – fancy and simple – new and old, that dot the streets and countryside.  Stupas, built for honor and good wishes, are tributes erected by family and friends.  Along with the memorials, there were large and small prayer wheels seen everywhere.  Faith and everyday life clearly intertwined in Leh.

New Stupas

Old Stupas

not all stupas are shaped the same

a few of the many prayer wheels

After I leave India and Asia, I will miss seeing bamboo supports for construction, but here I saw also strong wood holding up floors while cement dried.

With all the beauty of nature, as well as the stupas and prayer wheels, street art was not really evident in Leh other than these few murals.

Leaving Leh also afforded an interesting first:  In this small airport, each airline had their own baggage screening machine…all in the same room, one right after the other!  No photos allowed!

After the delay, we flew to New Delhi and visited the National Museum, focusing on the first floor exhibits.  We didn’t have much time so a lot of the information I am going to write about was researched here on my balcony in NY!  For those visiting this museum in the future, I recommend the 1.5-hour headphone tour (although I have no idea how you sign up for it). In addition, avoid the gift shop! It is tiny, far away, tucked into a corner with nothing interesting.

The first room we saw focused on the Harappan Civilization, also known as Indus or Indus Valley Civilization, which started 5000 years ago.  This community gave us their system of writing, town planning and religious beliefs.  The Harappan era is divided into three Phases: Early (3500 BC-2600 BC), Mature (2600 BC – 2000 BC), and Late (2000 BC-1200 BC).  One interesting fact: Harappan populations developed from village life to big cities; but after the fall of this civilization, life returned to villages.  During the Bronze Age, Harappan artefacts feature metals such as copper and bronze along with gems.  Knowing there was a major civilization thriving at the same time as Egypt, Mesopotamia and China was eye opening to me: what other aspects of World History are not part of Western education?

Because the Harappans were a major civilization, there was much trade with Mesopotamia and the Middle East, as well as Afghanistan and other countries in that region.  Excavation of the Harappan civilization has been limited to areas where some of the major cities were located. One excavated city is estimated to have housed over 5 million people.

Early Harappan pottery was impressive. Imagine – these were made 5,000 years ago (3000-2800 BCE)!

Similarly, the clay figurines had real character and presence.

I fell in love with this polished pillar base from 2000 BC, probably because it is such a beautiful stone.

Less intricate storage jars from the Mature Phase paled in comparison to the earlier pieces.  However, during this time female figurines begin to appear in relation to religious rites.  Also, copper items start showing up. (Photos below)

Weights and measures, similar to what is still in use today – a timeless design – have been found in archaeological sites.

Here is a depiction of how large and organized one of the Harappan cities was.

While pottery of the Mature Phase is not impressive, this period has wonderful toys, showing us their modes of transportation.

Some jewelry styles never go out of fashion!

This is a burial urn from 1000 BC.  My hand in front gives you a sense of how large it was.

This is a bronze elephant. Artisans have expanded their work to use this medium.

The Indus Valley civilization preferred square or oblong seals depicting local objects.

Being an ancient civilization museum, a preserved skeleton is de rigueur.  Here is a best-preserved, middle-aged female. She is wearing bangles on her left hand which means she was married.  The pots arranged around the head suggest a belief in life after death.

The copper harpoons seen below were found in 1822 and led to the discovery of more piles of copper objects in other sites around India.

Now we move onto the Common Era with Buddhist and Hindu sculptures, and much more intricacy appearing in the artwork.  The works in the photos below are from the 1^st and 2^nd century AD. This room focused on the Satavahana Dynasty (2 BCE-1 ACE) which ruled the Deccan plateau (South and Southwest India).  This dynasty added a lot of great Buddhist art to our history.  They used stone and terracotta, with the terracotta being made with a double mold technique and using Chinese clay at times.  During this reign the human form was created with much improved perspective.

The next section we visited focused on the late Middle Ages of India, which span the 11th to 16^th centuries.  Traditional Indian attire and female goddesses now appear regularly in the artwork, as does the formalized female beauty.

The next room focused on Bronze work from various parts of India. The artwork of the western region was mostly financed by the Jain community and focused on the icons of the Jina.  The hoard in the photos below was found in 1951, in present day Gujarat. This iconography traces itself to the 6^th and 10^th centuries, however the 7^th century work has the most sensitively carved work, while later pieces are more elaborate. Unfortunately I didn’t save any of those early period photos.  There was some Hindu bronze work during this time as well.

South Indian bronzes focused on depicting movement.

I end my visit to the museum with the photo below. This sun god sculpture had so many interesting details.

Lunch was a lovely western restaurant where we feasted on hummus, then it was off to the airport. The photos below also show some of the New Delhi Airport artwork.

The flight to Rajkot (in the state of Gujarat) was smooth as was the long, late night drive to the hotel near the Lion reserve.  I am posting some photos from the Rajkot airport artwork and the lovely hotel room.  Included is the toad who greeted us upon arrival!

For our next day in Leh, Zeeshan arranged for us to drive out into the country.  While the ride was lovely and we had some wonderful moments, it view was not as spectacular as the day before.  Our destination was Pangong Tso (lake), situated at a height of 14,270 feet above sea level, is said to be one of the highest brackish water lakes in the world. 

The ride out to the lake had us pass by many monasteries perched on beautiful mountain sides. But I also saw the extensive manual labor toiling to clear rockslides, reminding me of how cheap and plentiful labor is in India. 

I confess! I slept through part of the trip out to the lake! The following photos were taken by Zeeshan using my camera.

Halfway to the lake we had to stop at a gate of a military base to register our vehicle.  As there was a small village here, Zeeshan and I decided to look for water and a snack.  Instead, we found a local cultural exhibit sponsored by the Vibrant Village Program!

One of the local tribes was selling their wool and showing their culture and crafts.  I believe the tribe name is Changpa.  They are semi-nomadic and raise yaks, pashmina goats and other animals.  The program highlighted how, for the woman of Ladakh, yak and other wool has become a valuable source of income through their spinning and weaving of traditional products.  What interested me was watching them make their own wool. 

Two funny moments during this joyful stop: Using hand gestures I asked one woman if I could buy a traditional hat on the table she sat behind.  She gave me a funny look, then put the hat on her head.  That’s when I realized it was her hat! Soon after, I was buying wool for my friend Kathy – a super knitter – but I couldn’t buy one of the spools because the vendor needed it for her own knitting!  While she wasn’t ready to part with that spool, the vendor was happy to sell me 3 others (yak and sheep wool).

At one point, a young lady asked me where I was from. When I said, “the US,” she gave me a packet with information from the local tourism board. When I excitedly said, “Oh this has all the information on it,” her response was, “Well, not ALL but some.” It’s funny how the nuance of an idiom doesn’t translate!

Being here, so close to China and Tibetan cultures, my belief that Chinese babies are THE cutest was confirmed:

The women were all so welcoming and their smiles warmed up everything around them.

After the village the terrain was a bit different, so I enjoyed taking even more landscape photos!

When we arrived at the lake, the view was surprising and stunning: this magnificent body of water was every shade of blue I could imagine. The lake shares the border with China (hence the Chinese name, Pangong Tso) and we watched the expected military boat coming back from its daily patrol.  We bathed in the view and relished our time here.

Look at all the blues of the lake!

I am dividing the photos of the lake into three sections: the left, center, and the right, because the views were so drastically different.

The Center

THE RIGHT

The photo below shows the enormity of the lake: do you see the people in the bottom right corner?

THE LEFT

And now for some miscellaneous photos from our visit here.

On the way back we stopped several times: for lunch, to photograph some animals, and to stand at the peak of the local mountain.

Lunch again was very delicious thanks to the driver.  It also impressed both Zeeshan and me – that soldiers were eating here and paying rather than have a free meal on base!

This is where we stopped: the high point of Mount Changla. At 17,688 feet, the altitude made me dizzy when I got out of the car.

Here are my animals photos!

And I end this post with some more beautiful photos from the ride back to Leh.

Shame on me: I forgot to show the usual map of where I am.  Included is a map showing the location of nearby countries.  This should give you a sense of the closeness of China, Tibet, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

Before coming to Leh, we were warned it would be cold, so we packed lots of warm clothes.  Boy, what a surprise when we were ROASTING all day AND all night!  Of course, during breakfast people were in down jackets and hats while Zeeshan and I were in summer clothes.

The morning view of the mountain with the clear sky was all the coffee I needed.

After breakfast, we drove out into the country to see beautiful nature and a monastery.  The drive was spectacular, with rocks in the dry, high desert showering colors and designs, framed by the crystalline, blue sky. 

The faraway mountains in the spectacular view from the hotel did not seem to soar as high into the sky now that we were closer. This was when I realized we had been steadily climbing up since we embarked, confirmed by some road signs as we passed through towns.

Then the scenery changed, allowing me to focus on the stripes and patterns made by the rocks and boulders.  The colors of the various types of stone paint incredible canvases I love; I always appreciate desert landscapes.

Patterns were present as well!

I was also enamored with how sand-flow from the mountains created designs that looked as if God took his paintbrush and made long, downward strokes.

This ride also afforded me my first view of the Indus river, a critical waterway during the Indus Valley Civilization (2600 BCE to 1900 BCE) – a key historical era in Indian history.

Then there were the old style and new style bridges!

Along the way there was an official scenic stop called Moonland View Point.  It was especially stunning, well worth the stop.

The long drive wasn’t boring at all! Not only because of the stunning landscape, but an army convoy passed by, affording me gorgeous views of hunky men, especially one behind the wheel of one particular truck …a rather fun distraction.

Also a source of entertainment were the road signs.  One road sign said, “disconnect from Internet and connect with nature,” which was very easy to do since there was no Internet or phone access up here!

This view totally reminded me of the Nevada desert.

While driving we periodically passed an oasis where a village had developed.

When we stopped at an army checkpoint, this woman was selling dried fruit. 

Shortly after our stop at the moonscape, we arrived at our destination: the Lamayuru Gonpa. Also known as Yuru Gonra, this Tibetan monastery was officially started by two Indian Tantric masters between 1143-1212. However, a holy man, Naropa, came to this area in the late 10^th century and mediated in a cave now located inside the temple.  In the 16^th century the name of the site was ‘place of freedom’ and offered sanctuary to everyone, including criminals.

Situated high on the mountain, the architecture of the monastery is very Tibetan and I felt a deep sense spirituality and peace.  I loved how I heard the young students laughing with their teacher before serious study began … I heard monks drumming.  There was a young student who kept staring at me, clearly enjoying the unusual view of a white woman!

I had a great moment with the monk in the photo below. He said he was wrapping the string in preparation for focusing on his prayer and similarly when he was pouring the oils over the wax figurines in the chapel.  He said I was welcome to take photos and enjoyed chatting with me as much as I enjoyed chatting with him (until he saw a senior monk coming and hurried into the temple!).

I also wish I knew what these rocks were saying, but they were carved recently and whoever did them seemed to create one per year.

The inside and outside of the temple were, of course, beautiful and colorful – adding to the wonderful mood of the location.

Next stop was the Alchi Choskhor (sacred enclave), a complex of ancient stupas built in 11 AD.  I had to put my camera into a storage locker as photos were not allowed, but for some reason not my phone, so I snuck a few photos of one stupa to show how amazing the insides were.  The photos of the alleyway towards the complex give a sense of the ambiance of this little town and the sacred enclave.

I bought a heavy yet beautiful local hat here, which hangs proudly on my bedpost. My excitement at the hat precluded serious bargaining but Zeeshan did his best!

Next was one of the highlights of the week: lunch at Alchi Kitchen where we sampled every local delicacy of the area.  One of the benefits of having a good driver with whom you have a good rapport is he knows the best places to eat!  The owner and chef, Nilza Wangmo, has been recognized for her efforts at motivating an ‘army’ of women to revive Ladakh cuisine and has won awards for her cooking/restaurant.   The all female staff cooked on these simple burners and bowls to create the magic. 

The food was AMAZING, one of the best meals I have ever had.  I took photos of the menu to describe each dish for you.

Thukpa: a noodle soup with wild chives, garlic, pepper.  Since there are no local spices, typical flavors are used to create the unique cuisine.

Tain Tain: In the highlands of Ladakh wheat struggles to grow, however buckwheat thrives.  There were two styles of crepes: savory and sweet. We ordered the savory but if anyone goes here, sweet would be better.

Khambir: the bread of the mountains is a thick bread baked on an iron griddle.  It was traditionally made to sustain farmers, traders and monks through the long, cold days and the chef says it pairs beautifully with bitter tea.  This chef serves it as a stuffed bread.

Mok Mok is the local dumpling, a staple in every Ladakh home as well as every culture in the world.  We chose ours with farm fresh vegetables and cottage cheese.  There was an accompanying chili sauce I passed on.

Yarkendi Pulai is a local rice dish, believed to have originated during the times of the Silk Route.  Here in Ladakh they add mulberries, apricots, almonds and saffron which grow well here.

Apricot Juice is a local favorite as there are many groves filled with this delicious fruit.  This hand-pressed juice was delicious.

One of the draws for me to visit Ladakh was its connection to the Silk Route.  As Ladakh was a major stop on the Silk Road, many of these dishes were made to be easily transported. Merchants would eat the meals on their trek across the rugged terrain of this mountainous part of the Silk Road.  As Zeeshan and I enjoyed the food and the view from the outdoor table, I contemplated what life must have been like in those days.

While waiting for the food, my zoom lens afforded me the chance to take some photos of the snow up close.  It was fascinating to see how hard it was for the autofocus to find the correct focus, so I ended up manually focusing the shot.

On the way back we had four stops, the first being a bridge festooned with Buddhist flags.  Here I was able to take a nice photo of the river.

Next was where the Indus River meets the Zanskae River.  There were a lot of water sports to be experienced here and it was advertised as the world’s highest rafting point. Of more interest to me was how the two rivers met: there was a clear mixing point of the clear water of one river with the muddy silt of the other.

Then was a spot called the Magnetic Hill, found at 11,123 feet above sea level.  I entered as Doubting Thomas and left a true believer.   There is a magnetic pull that moves heavy cars.  The location was discovered because planes kept losing altitude in this area and through the research, scientists found the spot that was pulling them down.  I was amazed at the speed with which we were pulled back.

Our next stop was Pathat Sahib, a very holy spot for the Sikh community.  It was here that Gury Nanak Dev Ji arrived in 1517 as part of his travel journey from 1515 to 1518 when he traveled around Nepal, Sikkim, Tibet, Yarkhand, and Leh.  He started mediating to counteract a local demon that was troubling the local community.  The demon, to kill the Guru, rolled a huge builder towards him.  The boulder turned soft when touching the Guru and you can see the imprint of his body on the boulder.  As Sikhs always provide free meals for anyone, there was a kitchen as well as information on the religion.  One enters with a covered head and bare feet, walking through a thin layer of water to ensure cleanliness.  I learned about the three pillars and five virtues of Sikhism.  A very noble religion.

The drive back passed quickly again, with not a moment of boredom as I relished every nuance of the nature I saw, soaking up the beauty as well as enjoying more funny road signs.

The day ended with us returning to the pedestrian shopping street.  I took photos while Zeeshan went to pray in the Mosque.  It is here I made one of those silly connections:  the call to prayer is exactly that, the CALL to prayer and the prayers being within a certain amount of time.  After that, we meandered off the main street and found back streets where there was a lovely little shop with great prices, so that is where I bought gifts.  Overall, another wonderful and full day.

And now we get to the final few posts from India.  In a fit of nostalgia, I rationalized a trip to 2 more Indian states (making a total of 17 Indian states/territories visited out of 36), since I didn’t have to rush home after school ended for the year. Originally, Zeeshan and I were going to visit Kashmir but the terrorist action there had us change our destination to Leh (pronounced “Lay”) in the state of Ladakh.  Many people wax poetic about the beauty of Kashmir, but personally I cannot image how Kashmir could be more beautiful than Leh.  Stunning.

I met up with Zeeshan at the Delhi airport for a long layover (delays).  Since I had very little sleep, I was thrilled there were these comfortable couches to rest on.  As expected, there was also beautiful artwork.

The flight from Delhi to Leh afforded beautiful views of snowcapped mountains and barren, high desert landscapes: at 11,483 feet (3500 meters) Leh is higher in altitude than Quito (the first day I was a bit lightheaded!). Zeeshan enjoyed taking photos and videos on the plane as he had the window seat. Between the two of us, we got these wonderful shots.

First view of Leh:

Located in the northeastern most part of India, and surrounded by China and Pakistan, there was the expected high military presence arriving in Leh.  We even landed in an Airforce base – no photos allowed. During the flight, Zeeshan and I had fun guessing who on the flight was heading to their Leh posting: all members of the Indian military must do at least one tour in the area. Upon landing we learned our guesses were correct: we saw the young men line up to meet their commanding officers (or their underlings) before heading to their destination.

We met our driver Sonam and headed to our hotel which highlighted the Tibetan influence of this region.  There was even a signed photo of His Holiness the Dalai Lama – no he didn’t stay here but the owner had visited Dharamshala and gotten the signature. Still impressive.  After checking in and having some cardamom and cinnamon tea, we headed downtown to register again (we had to register in the airport as well – just another reminder of where we were, politically speaking).

Our first stop was at an imposing building perched on the cliff of a mountain: Leh Palace (the local name is Lhachen Palkhar).  This 17^th century palace was completed by the legendary local king, Senge Namgyal, making Leh the epicenter of his kingdom.  This palace is an excellent example of the vernacular architecture of the Himalayas, a very Tibetan style. However, it is known for bringing together influences from Kashmir, Baltistan, Tibet, Nepal and mainland India.  Namgyal’s reign was prosperous, and tributes paid for many Buddhist monasteries in the region.  He was also able to repel some Mughal invasions. But when his kingdom did fall, the conquerors closed the local trade routes and the area fell into to economic distress.  The palace was abandoned by the royal family after an invasion in 1834-40 and remained as ruins until restoration began in 1982.

Driving up to the palace was a bit of a headache as the road is narrow and there are a lot of vans and cars bringing tourists.  May I suggest providing shuttle busses?!  I did have some fun joking with one driver about how close our two vehicles were, while our driver was out directing traffic!

The palace is 9 stories tall and has over 100 rooms, with the floors getting smaller as they went up. Built in only three years, the process of building the palace was fascinating: materials came from all over the region, with workers standing in a row for 28 miles passing stones from one to another. Two key architectural features you’ll see in the photos below are the wood porch and the two-banded texture of the stonework.  This porch also combines Mediterranean and local decorative motifs.

One enters the palace on the 2^nd floor through the Lion Gate, which must be situated facing east for the rising sun to shine on it.

We climbed the stairs up to the 4th floor where began our visit in the main courtyard. This is where royal functions and cultural events were held.

Up again, on the 5^th floor, is an open chamber probably used for royal functions, although historians are not very sure about the purposes for all the rooms in the palace.  There is also a balcony here, overlooking the courtyard and the town below, where the royal family probably watched performances.

The open chamber is also the only section with artwork still on the walls. It made me realize how stunning the palace must have been in its heyday.

The 5^th floor also houses a famous Buddhist temple, complete with a monk continuously reading prayers. The two Buddha statues had such loving and happy expressions.

Climbing from floor to floor was challenging, lots of very steep stairs and small openings.

It was fascinating to see the carved support beams throughout all the floors and rooms.

The decorative style below is what intrigued me the most on the tour.  From afar I couldn’t tell what it was but using my zoom lens I saw the design is made from the ends of sticks.

On the higher floors, it was fun to see how the layers became a patchwork of roofs and rooms.

Also interesting is how the windows evolve, from simple slits on the lowest floors (where the workers lived and worked), changing to ornamental designs on the upper floors.

Not photographed is how above the 5^th floor, the walls get thinner and the rooms larger (for the royals). Also, by the 6^th floor brickwork was used to lighten the load on the lower floors. On another note, the 6th floor afforded us some interesting views. 

The royal apartments were on the 7th floor but none of those rooms were open, so I settled for these photos!

The 8^th floor (which had rooms for important meetings) was closed so we were limited to walking on the roof and seeing the 9^th “floor.” Here is a room called the tse zimshung (main room) and is believed to be reserved for worship.  An interesting note is that the palace was originally an eight-story building, but since nine is an auspicious number in local culture, the ninth floor/room was added. The views here are stunning, showing the rear of the mountain upon which the palace rested.  That side is much greener; clearly a higher economic bracket lives here.

The higher I climbed, the fewer women I saw which helped me feel noble and proud that I pushed myself. 

Leh is one of the highest inhabited places on earth and it is a high desert.  The word for Ladekh actually means Land of High Passes.  These photos were taken with my zoom lens and show the nearby snow-capped mountains, part of the Indus Valley and Ladakh Range which runs parallel to the Himalayas.  There was also a monastery on the neighboring hill which some brave souls climbed to visit (you can get there by car but we didn’t go).

Our next stop was the stunningly beautiful Ladaklh Shanti Stupa.  As the world’s highest Shanti stupa, standing at 11,841 feet above sea level, it symbolizes world peace.  As with all major stupas, buried deep within are holy Buddha relics.  This was built by the Nipponzan Myoholi Buddhist order of Japan, a group that has built many such stupas around the world.  Building began in 1983 when the Dalai Llama laid the foundation stone and ended in 1991 when it was inaugurated.

The views from here, along with the evening light, allowed for some wonderful photos.  A photo-tour group from the US, poised to take photos of the sunset, though I was confused as they were facing away from the direction for the sunset.  I guess they were going for golden views on the mountains.  Me, I just enjoyed the artwork, clear blue sky and mountain views.

Check out the views:

All around Ladakh you see local women knitting with thick wool.  I bought myself a hat since I will be in NY for the winter and took a photo of the woman from whom I bought the hat!  I loved how she was so shy at first!

The walk up and down the hill to the stupa afforded a few nice photos and one funny photo.

The ride back to the hotel was interrupted by a group of neighbors cutting and loading a huge tree onto a truck. Waiting for them to finish afforded me an opportunity to see how walls here are made with the local style of mud bricks. Then it was a quick dinner and a good night’s sleep!