When I see a tree being cut!

When I see a tree being cut, I go ballistic. As an environmental journo I KNOW that by doing that we are inexorably killing ourselves. In our ignorance we only see the tree as a block to the city's so called 'development'. Boader roads, cut the tree, Namma Metro, cut the trees, turn a bungalow into flats, cut the trees, electric lines being 'disturbed' by the branches, hack the tree branches off, dig for cables, dig for drains. Its a never ending scenario where we are sounding our own death knells.

In a recent Climate Change meeting of the UNFCCC in Bonn, an organization called the Global Canopy Programme (GCP) from the UK explained that “ old trees go beyond carbon sequestration and storage, and act as giant utilities providing vital ecosystems services to the city. They generate rainfall, buffer the climate, maintain biodiversity and also stabilize the soil. Although we all benefit from these services, nobody pays for them, they are for free. Therefore keeping them safe, keeps us safe.”

There is no policy in place which promises that these trees will be replaced.It is upto us, let us plant a tree on our pavements, two or four if you have the space, and nuture them like children till they reach maturity. We need to help ourselves or soon not only will pollution levels spiral out of control, those of us with lung ailments are sure to get worse and the old and infirm will succumb to the dust and dirt.

It's a stunner - the Doumo in Milan!

It was my first trip to Milan and this time there was the internet at my finger tips. The amazing internet which in minutes told me what were the best places to see in Milan. The Piazza del Doumo was the main piazza of the city I was told, which is dominated by the Doumo di Milano or the Milan Catheral.

As you climb up the stairs of the metro to come out into the sunshine, the Duomo made its breathtaking and stunning appearance. I love churches in Europe for their grandeur and their intricate decorative scultures, but nothing had prepared me for the marvel of this cathedral. It took five centuries to complete and no wonder -- take a look at the detail which is found all over the exterior of the massive cathedral.

I loved the flooring too - take a look at the picture. For someone who is crazy about stone, these churches used them to the fullest extent and they have held through the centuries to give us pleasure, so many hundreds of years later.

Water colours!

Across Europe I have found the most amazing water colours being sold in all the little tourist gift shops. Whether is was Copenhagen or Amsterdam,Bonn or Rome, Florence or Madrid, these water colours beckoned and beckoned me to buy them and then have the hapless hassle of lugging them home!

In Amsterdam, I had to get a HUGE one 3 feet by 2 feet from the Van Gogh museum. Apparently thats the most bought touristy souvenir taken across the world from Amsterdam--- a copy of a Van Gogh masterpiece! You bet I have one and it was such hell lugging it home. Every painting comes in its own tube, but its only out of Amsterdam they are very understanding of you carrying such a big bazooka looking tube! If you have the hapless luck of transitting through Paris or Frankfurt, you will get suspicious looking security almost making you feel like a leper, no, actually more like the Taliban when you go through security.

This time I just looked the other way every time I saw a gorgeous water colour. Whether it was Torino or Milan, Venice or Rome, I assidiously looked away refusing to be hijacked yet again. The fact that we were back packing too helped, I might add! However, it was in Florence, finally the the sinuous arm of desire clinched its hold and by the scruff of my neck dragged me - albeit very willingly towards the stand. It took a minute to choose and two to pay for them and then- I stood totally and completely at peace with myself in the warm Tuscany sunshine!

I felt like the cat that had got the cream, as they were not that large, just a foot each in height and it was just one train back to Torino I told myself. Then they would be safe in my back pack along with my notebook computer. There is no need to plan with me - impusiveness is the name of the game!

Albert the frame man on King Street, smiled indulgently when I walked in with them. He encourages my weakness by saying wonderful things about the pictures I buy. He even tells me with pride, how many people come by and ask to buy them. That helps vindicate my fetish for water colours! And the house, I promise looks great with them, almost in every room.

Italian Pizza & Kebaps!

For two weeks Italy indulged my craving for the real Pizza, not the faux pizza that we spend huge money for here in India. There, the Pizza were baked in wood fired ovens and literally doused in cheese. Infact I think it was in Rome that I shamelessly indulged in a big slice of pizza smothered in four varieties of cheeses!The only trouble was one of them tasted like the famous 'blue' which I detest!

You could just walk into a pizzeria and poke your finger through the glass at the slice you wanted and he would chop off the size you indicated. Then it was slopped onto a weighing scale, so he knew what to charge you and then heated in the oven. The enormous slice was then slapped onto grease proof paper and you happily ate it as you walked along the roads of Milan, Venice, Florence and of course Rome.My slices never went beyond 3 Euro at the most.

If you are in Italy you just cannot and should not, go away without indulging in Gelatos as well. I am diabetic so cannot enjoy sweet stuff, but it was on my last night in Rome that I decided to binge and bought a two scoop 1.5 Euro Gelato with organic Cantaloupe flavour. It was to die for, every slurp and chomp was delicious and I tried to make the experience last for longer than normal in the warm Italian weather!

Eating in Italy is cheap in comparison to elsewhere in Europe, but its eat on the go thats reasonalbe. If you go to enjoy a sit down meal, then be prepared to pay for everything including the ambience!

The Church of the Shroud -- Torino

So, I finally got to see the Church of the Shroud in Turin. I can't imagine why I thought I would see the actual Shroud because obviously it was the height of summer in July when we were there and the exposition was over.
However I was able to visit the church and actually look at the shrine where it is kept in a temperature controlled box.

For years as a young girl and then a young woman and now at this point of my life, seeing the Shroud had been a dream which I needed to fulfill. I had followed the stories about it,about the tests undertaken by scientists and that they had come out clear and crisp, that the shroud was indeed human blood and the date too was right. Graphic stories in the National Geographic had pictures which I had pored over and the image stayed fresh in my mind. Theimage of a man thrashed and crucified to death and that image seemed burned by his blood on the Shroud.

Funnily enough there were other journos in my group who dreamed of doing exactly the very same thing. So, even though the church was shut when we arrived, we walked around the Egyptian museum and then walked back to the Church of the Shroud no matter how tired we were.

For me it was a pilgrimage of sorts. I am glad I went, even though I never saw the actual Shroud, but I was lucky to be in its presence and was happy to be able to ask for very special favours that I know will be granted.

It's all about faith and what you believe. I believe and I saw others believe and if religion brings peace and happiness to us, thats all that is necessary.I am just grateful I got a chance to go.

Mallika madness!

This year in particular, Bangalore seems to have got a bumper crop of Mallika mangoes. For a 'sensible' Rs.40-45/- one can buy a kg of the ripe and wonderfully flavoursome variety which I prefer over the Bainganpallis and (well its debatable) Raspuris. No one can change my love for the Malgoba which we Bangaloreans have always enjoyed in season. But this year in particular we were told that due to 'unseasonal' rains, the mango crop will be dismal.
However, the crop has been astounding and particularly the huge quantitites of Mallika. They have made me into a mango addict and thats not very good for a diabetic!

On the farm two trees got beautifully large fruit, but as usual when the time came for picking, I was told by the venerable (he is a young rogue) Narsimappa, that the fruit had fallen with the breeze and so he threw them away. I could have gladly strangled him. BUT, in his usual casual fashion said, the next round I will see that you get them Amma --- and that by the way is NEXT year, IF the mango trees fruit!

As kids we always gorged on really HUGE Malgobas which grew on the tree on Hayes Road. However the trees just stopped fruiting for years now, no matter what we feed them.The Mallikas are a graft and just 5 feet off the ground have begun to fruit.They are apparently a new variety, so hats off to the Botanist or Dendrologist who stumbled on this delicious variety. They are fleshy, divinely falvourful and the seeds are narrow almost flat, giving the fruit much more meat!

I have cubed three kgs and frozen them in the freezer for Dave and Andy to make trifle when they come for the wedding in October!They are not fruit crazy, but I have tasted the awful Jamaican mangoes in the US and after paying an arm and a leg for them, I can say without a doubt, our Indian mangoes are the best!

Here's my friend Caroline Martis Radhakrishnan's ( & I thought I had a long name!) recipe to enjoy -
Pulp from 1kg mango(any fibreless one), 200g nilgiri cream, sugar pdr if needed, gelatine 3tbs. Puree pulp & sugar pdr (if using). Whip cream til stiff. Soak gel in 3 tbs water for 5min & then melt over double boiler. blend pulp, gel well. Fold in cream well. chill til set. decorate with mango slivers or piped cream ... or just your tongue :-))

Try it, I am going to tomorrow. As you can see I have got the mangos!

Castle Street or Moonscape?

We are living in the dark ages on Castle Street. It's unbelievable the way we have had to bear the brunt of first unfinished drain digging and now the KEB laying cables.
First they began digging and making a drain on both sides of the road. The contractor was obviously not paid, so he stopped the job halfway and left.
Now the KEB is digging the road itself and since last night we are without water as they cut our water pipe supplying water from the road connection. Its hellish living in Bangalore. If you don't get water, you have sewage problems or traffic jams. Its an endless stream of problems and there does not seem to be an end in sight.
Now to get after the BWSSB guys otherwise how will we live with no water? And , get ready for shelling out huge sums for no fault of ours.
Oh yes! The BWSSB guy said it's not our fault get to the KPTCL, and the KPTCL guys said its not our fault, get after the BWSSB. Finally I took pics and said look fellows, fix the damn pipe or I will take these pics to the papers. The press card, that powerful, magical presscard, and the creeps who said Kannada gottila to my Hindi are quickly fixing the pipe.
Bangalore has gone to the dogs, errr! to the goons whom we pay to run the infrastructure.Three cheers for the press, jaago re!

After a week: Finally in desperation and no water for 3 days the pics got the reporters down here.Then the inaccessible Ramesh (BWSSB)who was ever so nasty arrived at our door to enquire how he could help.I almost fainted at his feet. The story must have had his boss kick his ass ( no do not pardon my french, I am so furious)Miracle of miracles he knows to speak Hindi, or English, or Tamil or any language.
We bought the pipe but they fixed it and the corporation goons who terrorised us are absconding. You should have just given them 500 bucks for their Sunday liquor said the plumber. NO I WILL NEVER DO THAT. We all have to stand together and stop this shamefull paying our way to get anything done in this country. If you are strong enough to fight the cowards will cow down.
I am vindicated and the road is at last seeing some semblance of normalcy coming to it.But its a continuous fight. Today the BSNL was opening the road, checking their broken cables.Our country cannot have state of the art underground systems as we do not follow any systems.
Onwards untill the next collision, thats the way we live in Bangalore today.