tryaksha

"The Hauptwache Quartet"

2014-01-11T22:06:00.001+01:00

"The Hauptwache Quartet" - as I call them...

These street musicians make amazing music.. The guys on the violin are brilliant and the accompanists add that little touch of fusion. Heard them today again and was very tempted to record the music on my cellphone. But it just did not seem right.. And probably would have been disrespectful.

I believe you can find them in the Hauptwache subway over the weekends. Do stop by if you are around...

Harvey's Pimped Up!

2014-01-05T00:05:00.001+01:00

Our favourite neighbourhood joint has added some snazzy lights.. Looking good..:-)

Ithaca

2014-01-03T09:32:00.000+01:00

A Greek colleague of mine retired end of 2013 and shared this wonderful, touching poem titled "Ithaca" written by Constantine Cavafy with us as a farewell message. Using as few words as possible, he shared a priceless message with us all.

ITHACA by Constantine P. Cavafy

As you set out for Ithaca
hope that your journey is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
angry Poseidon do not be afraid of them:
you'll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare sensation
touches your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
wild Poseidon - you won't encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.
Hope that your journey is a long one.
May there be many summer mornings when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you come into harbors seen for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind-
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to learn and learn again from those who know.
Keep Ithaca always in your mind.
Arriving there is what youre destined for.
But do not hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so that you are old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaca to make you rich.
Ithaca gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.
And if you find her poor, Ithaca won't have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
You will have understood by then what these Ithacas mean

Bhutanese Tales Of The Yeti

2014-01-02T23:08:00.001+01:00

Bhutanese Tales of the Yeti is the first book I bought from Amazon Kindle as an e-book...I just wanted to experience reading an e-book and I eventually read the book on my cellphone...not a bad experience at all.

Now about the book itself - its a good read if you'd like to indulge yourself in some folklore... its a relatively short read (~150 pages). The fact that these stories have origins in Bhutan increased my curiosity as it is one of the countries I know nothing about. And I am a sucker for the unusual..in this case, it shed light on the origins of the tales around the yeti...or the migoe as the yeti is known there...

My curiosity was rewarded...apart from the stories about the yeti, Kunzang Choden has written quite a bit about the different people of Bhutan, the geography, about their traditions, and their beliefs...lot of detail which I wasn't expecting, but is equally absorbing to read up. The curious part is that along the way you cannot really ascertain is the yeti is a positive or a negative character - it is definitely meant to be respected, it is considered powerful, even supernatural...but its never clear if its a benign or a malignant force.

So, its a very interesting book and I am fascinated by Bhutan now....seriously contemplating a trip there next time I travel to India... It really isn't such a far-fetched idea... :-) This gets 4 stars from me on Goodreads - definitely recommended, especially as a travel read.

Goodbye 2013, Welcome 2014

2014-01-01T17:29:00.001+01:00

Wish you all the very best in 2014 - with peace, prosperity, and joy as your constant companions...

My plans (resolutions) for 2014 (in order of realism - first being most realistic, the last being least realistic):
- travel more
- learn a new language
- exercise more...get back in shape
- get better at using the camera... ;-)
- and...if possible, work a little bit less... ;-))

We'll do a check in summer to see how I'm faring... :-)

2014.. here we come!

On the Naeroyfjord, Norway

Rumi On My Mind In FRA

2013-12-30T23:41:00.000+01:00

On this penultimate day of 2013, I am sharing with you a quote from Rumi, one of my favorite poets... This quote is combined with a picture of Frankfurt I took on a beautiful summer day earlier this year as I cycled along the Nidda ... I was reminded of this very quote as I looked at the view in front of me... only today have I been able to put these two together...

Devilish

2013-12-28T20:00:00.001+01:00

In the history of restroom signs to differentiate mens' room from the ladies' room, I am sure there have been many unique ones.. I just had to capture these on camera when I saw these in the restaurant Olivenbauer in the scenic, pretty village Hopfen am See at the foot of the Alps...

Avatar-esque Glowing Foliage..

2013-12-27T11:05:00.000+01:00

This is decidedly an Avatar-like innovation - imagine walking down a glowing tree-lined avenue with your sweetheart for that after-dinner night stroll... Are we on Planet Earth or on Pandora? No wonder that the company, Bioglow, calls it the Starlight Avatar™

Brilliant (pun intended)... its one innovation I'd like to see come true.

Source: Businessweek - read the full article here.

Merry Christmas...

2013-12-25T18:15:00.000+01:00

Merry Christmas to you all !

This picture was taken in Dec. 2011 during my visit to Jaipur with Kasturi, Maike and Eugenio... This tree in the City Palace of Jaipur that time reminded me of Frankfurt and Christmas in Germany... today it reminds me of Jaipur and that special Christmas in India... So, it is... :-)

Gift From The Sky

2013-12-24T19:35:00.001+01:00

Seemed like this glittering ball fell from the sky...rolling through the glass funnel, before perching on the edge..yes, right there.. :-)

Christmas Decor on the Zeil

Winter Solstice In FRA

2013-12-21T23:44:00.000+01:00

The shortest day (or the longest night) of the year..:-) This view is from the Fleming's bar near the Eschenheimer Tor ... a couple of drinks with Sanket and Meeta and this brilliant view of the city made it a perfect evening before Mum arrives tomorrow... :-))

For You, A Thousand Times Over

2009-05-03T21:23:00.005+02:00

I had put off reading The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini since I am not a big fan of tragic tales - and going by the reviews, I perceived this book to be a tragic tale. But now after reading it, I regret that I did not put my hands on it earlier...

This is rich and moving tale - of friendship and brotherhood, of courage and redemption, of cruelty and inequality, of class and ethnic divisions still existing in our very midst... The tale aroused strong emotions and created lasting impressions... Of those, the most indelible are these words - for you, a thousand times over. I can't tell you exactly why...they hold a spirit so powerful and noble, yet so simple and so innocent. Hassan will haunt me with these words...

I highly recommend this book...read it! With an insightful account of Afghanistan's modern history and the suffering of it's people under the Taliban, I find it hard to view the book simply as a work of fiction.

Gandhara - Art Of An Ancient Kingdom

2009-02-02T13:59:00.011+01:00

I was in Bonn last Saturday to visit an excellent exhibition showcasing the historical artefacts from the ancient kingdom of Gandhara, which now lies straddled across the northwest Pakistan and north-eastern Afghanistan. This region stretches from Peshwar in Pakistan to Bamiyan in Afghanistan (where the Taliban demolished the two giant Buddha statues deeming them to be un-Islamic). And while today the region faces a most critical struggle against the Taliban, the exhibition speaks about a different, more tolerant, and a more diverse history of this region and its peoples.

In the exhibition, one comes across statues, friezes, reliefs, coins, and jewellery, which have distinct influences from Hindu, Greek, and Buddhist religions. One has found statues of Vishnu and Shiva along with those of Buddha, Aphrodite, and Athena...while some friezes depict stories from the life of Siddhartha Gautama, there are others pointing to the existence of Dionysian cults in this region - a legacy of Alexander the Great's adventures in Central Asia. We see busts of Greek satyrs and maenads, as well as of yakshas/yakshis (nature spirits of Indian origin). All these external influences were integrated in to the local popular cults in those days. The integration of these influences is very much evident in its art. You can see pictures of some artefacts here.

In short, Gandhara was home to 'many gods, many cultures', as the brochure states. It was also a prosperous region and kingdom, as it was located on the ancient Silk Road and was an important trade center. This tolerance and prosperity is largely attributed to the policy of the rulers - of promoting art, culture, education, and not to use religion as a tool for political governance. Taxila, for example, was one of most famous universities in ancient India, where scholars and students alike came from all corners of Asia.

As I left the musuem, it was unavoidable not to think of what is happening in this region today. The Taliban has adopted completely opposite policies as compared to the ancient rulers of this beautiful region. The region and its people are not just falling victims to poverty and violence, but also to social development, of which education, art, and culture are key drivers. On a deeper level, the Taliban actions threaten to separate the peoples of this region from their old roots and traditions, imposing on them a more perverted code of Islam, which is internally focused (isolated) and clamps down on freedom of expression.

As far as Pakistan is concerned, the 60 year old animosity with India starting in 1947 overshadows centuries-old common roots and cultures. Just to underline the statement, we had evening tea and snacks with a Pakistani family in Bonn, before heading back. And our conversation was all about poetry, social causes, Sufism, and education - basically everything common between our countries. As we were driving back to Frankfurt, I wondered why the governments were playing politics of blood and violence, while the people can find so much common ground. There is much to write about this, based on my experiences, but maybe in a later post...