The stay at Philipkutty’s Farm

Had been for a week long trip to Kerala and I am jotting down just a part of the trip.
Or to put it in a better way, I should say that this was the best part of our whole trip.
A little beyond Kumarakom there is a Farm known as Philipkutty’s Farm. Had heard and read about this place a lot so I had to book well in advance.
It is situated on an island which was actually reclaimed from the backwaters of Vembanad lake by the family.
This place is run by two ladies, Anu and her mother Aniyamma (whom all calls as mummy) Of course the two kids Philip and Aniya also pitches in.
The best part about this place is the family touch. They wait for you when the vallam (a small boat) approaches. Oh I forgot to mention that there are no connecting roads to this place, so the only approach is by the vallam. They send this vallam across which ferries you to the place where the family waits to receive you.
That is the family below :

We were 18 of us so they had to send two boats.

That is Priyanka and Martin trying out the Titanic pose above . . . . . .
They have villas where you can stay, and as proclaimed by their brochures, no TV no A/C.
Or you can opt for the lunch package which includes a tour of the farm followed by lunch.
(we opted for the Lunch package as we were hard pressed for time)
It sounds simple but if you break it up and list it down, it turns out to be a long list, the things that you get to learn by the tour of the farm as well as the long list of delicacies spread out for lunch.
Here Anu explains about the island which is about two meters below the lake level so during monsoon they have to pump out water back into the lake.

I couldn’t resist a close up of the fig.

Here is Martin’s dad having a closer look at the hanging bitter gourd

Some were fascinated by the geese:

These pictures were clicked at the rear side of their house where you can hardly make out the difference between land and water due to the water hyacinth

There were nutmegs, okra, pumpkins, cinnamon . . . . . to name a few.
Those below are Tapioca trees. A well grown tapioca tree yields about 5 kilos of Tapioca when you uproot them.

While Anu was taking us around showing us all the finer aspects of cultivation, I noticed two stacks of braided palm leaf, which brought back my childhood memories.

I remember how my grandmother used to make these as I sat next to her keenly watching her skillfully weaving each leaf. The final product looked artistic and it used to fetch her 50 paise (half rupee) per piece. It was painstaking, thinking of the process it had to go through, first soak the whole palm in a pond for a day or two, then split it into the two halves and when it is semi dry, you start weaving it. Once done you dry it in the sun and the finished product looks like the one below:

This is used to thatch the roofs in the days when tiles were unheard of (or one could not afford it)
Here is a picture of one in process in our house at Alleppey (Alepuzha) and believe it or not the one on the extreme right is me.

After the tour, we had time to explore the place and most of us were fascinated by the old look of the villa and the surroundings:

Some posed photo session in process :

While we were exploring the place, I could hear some lovely music and I followed it. The source was from one of the rooms where Philip was playing the keyboard. I did some video shooting to record the music and I must say, he is really talented.

Anu announced that the lunch was ready and I had a tough time holding back the group so that I could click this:

Some of the things that I can recollect now are :
Chicken curry
Fish Vattichadu
Fish fry
Beef fry
Prawns
Pineapple pachaddi
Bitter gourd fry
Cabbage thoran
Dal
Banana flower cutlet
Mango pickle
Pappad
Rice
Appam
I saw some going in for the second and third helping.

(in case some are wondering about banana flower, here is a picture of it)

© Photographer: Joezachs | Agency: Dreamstime.com

This was followed by payasam and the small variety of banana (which is very very tasty and sweet)

Aha finally all 18 of us in one frame. It was fun to have all from different nationality, Indian, American, Dutch, Greek, German & Spanish. And this time I am in front of the camera (again extreme right)

After resting for some time we were ferried back to the other side where our bus awaited us.

Priyanka tried to pull out the flower from the water, to offer it to Martin and see what she got. (hook line and sinker)

Some of these feathered friends were giving us a quizzical look.

And this is the link to their site.

Christmas Bazar

Last week a Christmas Bazar was held at the church compound of St Patrick’s Cathedral (Pune)

It was fun and I also had some time to observe the place (and people) in detail.

As I was there before sunrise, I had a good opportunity to see the sun coming up, casting long shadows (a photographer’s delight)

People were getting ready with the stalls, sipping in hot tea and waiting for the customers to come in.

The 8 O’clock sun was a good time to click the steeple of the church. Sitting at one of the stalls I had ample time to observe the eagle sitting on one of the steeples. (or rather on the lightening conductor)  Its mate came down and both went gliding together around the steeple, and when they were tired they would rest for some time. I presume there is a nest around.

Now looking at the close up of the eagle, I was wondering if the pole of the lightening conductor is designed with the forethought that a heavy bird can possibly sit on it.

The sun caught the banana tree in the right mood.

And so was the path to the Bishop’s house.

After every service, people thronged in and the deserted tables were full of activity.

Some liked the home made pickles while others bought the young saplings that were for sale. 

Oh yes there were eatables too and who wanted to miss the yummy and hot cutlets. Some preferred the Vindaloo over the Sorpotel. 

  (the above photograph is by Marianne from Flickr)

I saw some making a beeline to the fried fish and chicken roast counter (probably with the hope that they don’t have to cook for the Sunday afternoon)

I liked the way this gentleman parked his walking stick around his neck while sipping the hot coffee.

As far as the buying power is concerned, it is the kids that decide and steer the parents about what to buy. No wonder most of the ads on the television are aimed with the kids in mind.

Starting from the tiny tot. This one (above) was attracted by the bright colours on the next table and kept leaning towards that (even though there were lovely brownies right under her nose) But the brownie table was not attractive and colourful for this one year old !!

Then there were the young ones and teenagers who knew what a Brownie really meant and how it activates the salivary glands. 

So here was a boy who kept pulling his dad back, coaxing and cajoling him to buy “just one daddy , only one pleeeese”

Finally his dad relented and bought a box full (can see the boy’s happiness who just could not believe that he is finally going to slurp his Brownies)

I had to keep clicking without anyone noticing the camera, but this smart girl did spot me, while her parents were busy making the purchase.

Poona Coffee House

After reading the papers, I am getting the jitters.

Daily there is some news about some one or the other getting raided based on the connection between that person and Mr Kalmadi.

Poor guy, he conducted the Commonwealth games so well and India bagged so many medals, but now that the games are over, all are pouncing on him and accusing him of so many things. Nobody is praising him for the lovely opening ceremony that he orchestrated. How can one forget the lovely and colourful Indian dances that were performed.

I confided my fears to my wife about the raids that are conducted.

Wifey  “but why are you so worried about it?”

Me  : “you see once upon a time I had given him some money”

Wifey : “What ? and when was that ?”

Me : “in 1975”

Wifey: So long ago? And how much was that amount?”

Me : “Three rupees fifty paise”

Wifey : “That’s all? And why did you pay him that princely amount?”

Me: “Three rupees for Idli chutney (with sambhar of course) and fifty paise for the coffee”

Wifey: “Now this is all getting very confusing. Why did you have to pay the great Kalmadi for Idli and Coffee?”

Me: “Please correct yourself, it was Idli with chutney and Sambhar and Coffee. Let me explain. I was strolling down Deccan Gymkhana when I saw this Poona Coffee House and decided to get some coffee. Once inside, I decided to have some Idli too. So they served me hot Idlis (of course with Chutney and Sambhar) and with some nice coffee. The bill amount came to three rupees and fifty paise. I dutifully paid the bill at the counter to a man clad in crisp white kurta pajamas. It was only later that I realized that this gentleman sitting at the cash till was none other than the great Suresh Kalmadi who owned the place.”

Wifey: “ Wow you came face to face with Mr Suresh Kalmadi. Now I can tell my friends that my husband met Mr Kalmadi and ….”

Me : “You will tell no such thing. As it is I am worried about having paid him money. What if the CBI comes to some conclusion that I paid Mr Kalmadi with some ulterior motive?”

Wifey: “Wait a minute, do you have the bill?”

Me : “What bill? Oh you mean the one I got at the hotel? No I don't have it. Kamladi took it from me and stuck it on some pointed skewer that he had on his table. In fact there were lots of bills on that skewer. I wonder if all those poor people will get arrested. I hope he has not  destroyed those bills. At least that could prove that I paid him for the Idli (with chutney and Sambhar) with Coffee”

Wifey : “Its just a piece of bad luck that you had to go into the Poona Coffee House”

Me : “Do you know Narayana Murthy proposed to Sudha at the Poona Coffee House”

Wifey: “You mean Narayana Murthy of Infosys? Oh my God see where they have reached. If only you too had proposed to me at Poona Coffee House, instead of some lousy place at East Street”

Me: “You are straying away from the point. Here I am worried about not getting caught for three rupees fifty paise”

Wifey: “You are really turning yourself into a celebrity isn’t it. Last month you told me you had met some one who met Hitler, and now this. I wonder what else you have up your sleeve.

I suggest you keep mum about it and don’t tell anyone that you ever paid any money to any politician”

Me : “and you will not tell anyone that I met Mr Kalmadi. Oh how I wish I had not entered that Coffee house and instead had gone to the Sunshine Hotel next door and enjoyed the music from the juke box ”

Wifey : “Now where in Poona did we have juke box?”

Me: “well that is another long story about my right handed friend who drank coffee with his left hand, but I am not repeating the whole saga again. But you can read it here”

Hitler’s Guest from Pune dies at 103

Yes that was what the papers said  ”Hitler’s guest from Pune dies at 103”

That sounded interesting and I read through. It said that Mahadeo Kashinath Gokhale who took part in the 1936 Berlin Olympics was a special guest of Hitler for four months as Hitler was impressed by his barefoot running. Mahadeo was sponsored by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad of Baroda.

I remember reading about the Maharaja and his generous nature. When Dr B R Ambedkar did not have the money to study further, it was this Maharaja who sponsored his education in Britain for this brilliant student from the backward classes of the society which was unthinkable back then.
So I read a little more about the Maharaja and came up with this:
 Maharaja Gaekwad signed a secret pact with Hitler to get his support for India's freedom.

It was known as the Baroda-Berlin Pact. Gaekwad's personal assistant Vishnu Nene was sent to Germany to arrange the meeting. "Gaekwad believed an enemy's enemy is a friend. So, he decided to join hands with Hitler," says Dr Damodar Nene, who has written a new biography of Gaekwad.

To ensure that the British don't suspect anything, Gaekwad took their permission to attend the Berlin Olympics. "His box was placed right under Hitler's during the opening ceremony," Nene says.
Gaekwad is believed to have promised Hitler the support of all Hindu princes in case of a war in Europe. "It was agreed that Hindu princes would back Hitler during the World War II and Hitler would support India in its freedom struggle. The pact was kept a well-guarded secret as the British would have considered it an act of treason," adds Nene.
So all this explained Hitler’s hospitality towards the (non Aryan) athlets !!
Coming back to our sportsman Mahadeo, he had many records to his credit.
He has cycled from Pune to Delhi and Mansarovar.
He has cast his vote for elections 35 times (from the age of 21 till 103)
He is one of the few people who was alive to have seen the freedom fighters Lokmanya Tilak and Mahatma Gandhi.
For teaching Marathi, Hindi and cross-country sport to the British governor between 1938 and 1941, he used to get 1 kg pedha and burfi as fees.

At 98, he used to consume 1.25 kg of shrikhand (yogurt cream dessert) and 90 jalebis (Indian sweet) if challenged at any wedding ceremony.
He visited Karachi to teach Balgandharva's songs to Jaddanbai (mother of late Bollywood actress Nargis), Begum Para and Husna Bano


He could play the Tabla and compose music.

As I read along I realized that I had met and photographed this multitalented man about 4 years ago, but I was not aware of his achievements then.

Here is one of the pictures that I clicked of Mahadeo after having a small talk with him. (he was a man of few words)

Click on the above picture for more information.
So I met a man who met Adolf Hitler.

The market place

Love to go to the market. I remember the days when I used to go to the Byculla wholesale vegetable market with my dad. You can’t buy anything less than 5 kg in the mornings and in the evenings it was 2.5 kg minimum. (now that market has been shifted to Vashi in Navi Mumbai )

One can imagine how the markets were about a century ago. It must have been more of a barter. This is an old market scene at Shaniwar wada.

Down south if you go to the market you will get a view like this:

Now a days I go to the open market here in Pune (with my camera)
There is no saying what opportunities come up. Like I realized that dogs like to go to the market. I mean which dog won’t like it if it is going to be carried around.

Or if it is the mango season, it is nice to see raw mangoes being cut for pickle.

The sight of fresh Ginger and Garlic is something that cannot be missed:


Apart from buying fresh vegetables and fruits, it is interesting to observe the customers who haggle with the shop keepers. And there are some customers who have their fixed shopkeepers. Like we know one guy whom we call “Lord of the Rings”
Yes he is a vegetable seller and he has some items which is not kept by other shop keepers like Chena (Yam) Chembu (Colocasia/Taro) etc.
So when wifey hands me the list of things that I have to buy, she adds “and buy the chena from the Lord of the Rings”
In fact it was I who christened this guy as “The Lord of the Rings” because he was covered from head to toe with gold ornaments.

(click on the above picture to see the chunks of chain that he is wearing, along with his earing)
And all his fingers had rings. It was with great difficulty that I managed to click his photograph, because I had no idea how he would react to being clicked. So I pretended that I was clicking the tomatoes and took a long shot and later zoomed in and cropped the part showing his rings.

I have this habit of taking prints and giving them a copy of the print. It is worth it to see the smile on their face when they see themselves in print. Like this one that I took

and then in the next week I handed over a print to the lady who was in the forefront of the picture. She could not believe that she was the one in the print,

and she handed it over to her colleague who was all smiles on seeing the picture. Meanwhile our lady here was dying of embarrassment. May be she has never been clicked at her workplace.

Then there was this vegetable seller who said “why don’t you click me” So I did just that, which looked like this:

So I did some cleaning up of his stall to make his surrounding look respectable and came up with this:

Two weeks later I handed him that print and this is how he reacted.

Then he wanted me to click him with the picture in his hand !!

But I have yet to hand over the picture of the “Lord of the Rings” (like I said he is very burly and I am wary of his reaction)

By the way I Googled for marketplace and came up with my own picture which I clicked about 4 years ago.