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Festival

Naropa Festival 2016

Naropa & His legacy

A thousand years ago, a child was born named Naropada (Tibetan name Naropa) who grew to be an excellent scholar at Nalanda but left his materialistic world and his family to the path of enlightenment. At the age of forty he met his Guru Talopa and the next twelve years were the most introspective and spiritual learning period for him that led his attaining enlightenment.

Naropa Festival 2016, Naro Palace, Hemis Monastery
Fully decorated Naro Palace, the venue for the Naropa Festival 2016 and also where the six bone ornaments were in public display

At this moment

Ramadan in Turkey

Come Ramzan (Ramadan) and it’s a festive mood around us. There are many countries where it is a time of great celebration, something like carnival atmosphere, with trees, mosques and homes in towns are decorated with lights.

The followers of Islam in India, Malaysia, Turkey and other parts of the world fast during the daylight hours of the month long festival of Eid-ul-Fitr or Ramadan maintaining their self-resistance towards their needs and urges. Come evening, they break their fast with mouth watering dishes in this holy month with much gusto.

Today on this occasion I take you to Turkey through pictures.

Ramadan in Turkey

Famous mouth watering Baklava, impossible to resist.

Celebrating Chinese New Year

Celebrating Chinese New Year

If you ask me one reason why I like Chinese New Year, my reply would be that it’s very colorful and exotic. The streets and houses are decorated with red and golden lamps & lanterns of different shapes and designs, the markets are buzzed with all kinds of gift items, decorative pieces and flower and there is a festive mood everywhere.

street selling new year lamps in China @lemonicks.com

A street in China town, Kuala Lumpur.

The Chinese

Kai Po Che !

The landlord of the house where we are staying proudly leads us up a narrow stairway, past the two floors. The entire house is strewn with furniture of the kind we would exhibit with a view that generates a sense of envy in our neighbours. The walls are a veritable gallery of beautiful paintings and exquisite artifacts.

jagdip mehta house @lemonicks.com

We had arrived here in the old

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival

I live in Mumbai and yet this was my first time at KGAF (Kala Ghoda Arts Festival). Call it my bad luck, I was always out of town at this time of the year.
I used to wonder what is so fascinating about this festival that people come here from other parts of India to attend it and I haven’t done so! Thankfully, I now know the reason.

This 9 day art festival is held every year in Mumbai with various themes and interpretations with representation of social issues, the state of our country what it is today. Many artists show their creativity through their work. Not only this, the sub-festivals feature the visual arts, dance, music, theatre, cinema, literature, lectures, seminars and workshops, heritage walks and special events for children as well. Various NGOs also have their stalls selling their products.

Without wasting time further I show you a glimpse of KGAF. Please read the captions below the photos to know what they depict. You can see many more photos of KGAF on my Facebook page.

Kala ghoda @lemonicks.com
Kala Ghoda which literally means

A day in camel fair ground

As I walk towards the camel fair ground, I have a preconceived image of the fair in the back of my mind. From what I have seen in the photos till now, visit to Pushkar is a very colorful atmosphere with decorated camels on sand dunes, tourists galore, stalls and so on.
The shops are open on both sides of this narrow road. It is around eleven in the morning and there is no rush to lure the tourists. Also, there is no sign of sand anywhere. Am I mistaken?
At a distance I see a Ferris wheel being fixed up. Oh that’s the ground! I run towards it. I hear some strange grunting sounds. Do camels sound so? I am excited. With rucksack, camera and water bottle I go in the direction where camels are parked.

My first impression on seeing the camels is a disappointment. There is only one color and different shades of it in the vicinity. Brown. There are more camels than men in this huge ground. The whole atmosphere is a little languid. Under the scorching sun I see people lazing on string cots or near their carts which serve as their temporary homes.

Pushkar camel fair @lemonicks.com

Walking is a bit difficult now and I realize