Tagged !!! - twice !

Both Cen's Loft  and Lenox knits  have tagged me.. and it is the same tag... the rules are stated above.. please click on the picture so that you can have a good look at the rules.........

It did not surprise me that June (Cen's Loft) had difficulty saying No, I could see she is a generous soul by the superb freebies she constantly provides in her blog..!!

But Lenox (I still do not know her name) surprised me when she had declared that she has been knitting for just five years..!! wow... her knitting is simply stunning...

Now... 7 random things about me.......

1. The first thing any person who has known me even for a few days, will tell is that I am crazy          about books.. in school, I was know as 'the bookworm'..that state of affairs haven't changes            much..

2. Love art, craft, knitting, poetry,.......there are so many ways of creating beauty and I would           love to learn it all.......

3. I am very loyal to my friends and family .

4. I am a huge fan of the  CSI (Crime Scene Investigations) series.

5. Cooking is another thing I like doing. Love different cuisines and I experiment a lot.

6. I am the first-born, but I never act the big sister with my brother and little sister,or any of my       younger cousins... doesn't  work with them ....!!!

7. I am scared of dogs.. even if it a teeny tiny dog, I freeze..while my daughter simply loves                them..and she is all of two years old..!! I am making sure that I don't pass on my fear to her!!

Now to pass on the tag to seven people......

JayaPrem's Hangout

My Beautiful Creations

The Singing Chef

Lizzy T Designs

Sanghi's Art Life

The Artsy Crafter

The Country Cellar

A couple of old sketches...

I was just digging up a book on crochet that I had bought a few years back, when I chanced upon this book with a few of my old pencil sketches.. 

These two pictures were drawn 10 years back, in February 99, to be exact. 

The first is of 'Unni Krishna'...

Second one is a sketch I did from the photo of a warrior, in an old edition of National Geographic..

Have a few more of these lying around.. also discovered a couple of incomplete fabric paintings.. One was done atleast 6 years back!!!

I may complete them before posting..or not!! 

Jaipur - my last post!!

I wonder if all of my friends who visit my blog are fed up of my Jaipur posts by now!!! Anyway, this is going to be the last post of the series. In this, I present two more special palaces that are very unique in their own way...and we could only get the long view since it was closed to the public.

The Jal Mahal (Water palace) is located right in the middle of a very deep lake and the view is incredible. We are not allowed inside and this was the best view..but still, it is an impressive sight.
That building has been standing for more than 300 years, and used to be the summer palace of the Royal family. The pillars of the palace are built such that the water does not destroy the foundation.. in fact the water passes through the pillars. It serves to make the palace cooler and also protect it from immense water-pressure
build-up!!!

Also, just the balcony portion is visible. The living quarters are submerged and have the umpteen number of chambers needed for the large Royal family and their servants.. It is said that there are windows underneath so that there is no sense of being under-water..and all the chambers are still water-proof...Also, the rooms are well-ventilated from above!!!Imagine the talent of builders and artisans !!!

Above is the picture of Hawa Mahal. It means 'air palace. The large number of windows are where the ladies in the palaces sat while any royal procession or special events took place down in the streets. The windows are well-curtained so no one can see in, but all the ladies could have a good view of the streets without crowding together at one window.These windows do make the place very airy, and if you notice, the open windows show the open skies beyond, as though the front is just a cut-out, and there are no walls behind.. but you can also see a man sticking his head out from a lower window..How is that???

This palace is built on the main 'pink' streets . All the buildings are the same coral-pink colour of the palace ..that's why Jaipur is called the Pink city.. it was so crowded with vehicles and people, that it was difficult to get a decent shot. 

We had a great time, but I recommend that you avoid the peak seasons while visiting Jaipur...the rush is unbelievable...

So this is it..a summation of our three-day trip to Jaipur!!!

A special day today!!!

Wow.... a first!!!

I won a $20.00 paypal certificate from The Muse... it was her 100th post and I just answered some questions.. I have not taken part in more than a couple of giveaways since I don't believe that I am lucky enough to win anything...

This was Muse asking the questions..and so I was inclined to answer...and I actually won !!!

And to top things, today is my father's birthday...I hope he had a great day ..

We did think that he would be hearing a special birthday song from my daughter since she had been practising it yesterday... but she was feeling a bit shy while I was wishing dad today morning, so he did not get to hear it...

As any two-year old, she is fond of the attention one gets on a Birthday. So, she insists on singing Happy birthday to Ithu (her version of her nickname)...and that's what she was planning to sing to my dad.. 

So today has been a special day for me.. Thanks Muse.. and..

Happy Birthday Achacha....

Jaipur - Amber fort

The Amber fort at the summit...



The long roads to the fort



A record holder among cannons...


The inside of the fort...


A peep into Rajput past. The Queen and her ladies-in-waiting in their dining hall...


The men folk have a separate dining hall.. a corridor separates both dining halls.



The visitor's hall

Amber fort is one of three forts in Jaipur. Remnants of past glory and a testament to the amazing people, who could dream up and bring to fruition,the existence of such monuments. The fort is built at the summit of high hills in the desert.

There were no roads, no conveniences,no modern building methods..all the supplies must have reached the top on the backs of camels and elephants.... yet after 300 years, the fort still stands.

There was a painting of a Maharaj there that was quiet unique. No matter where you stood in the room, the man's eyes ans shoes seemed to point in that direction..that was quiet eery!! Sadly, we were not allowed to take pictures there...

A lot of history, so much in evidence in each article exhibited there, and so much more lost as time passed...

The Noblesse Oblige award -

This is the second award that Kat has passed my way today. People who have been following my blog would already know I love her blog... I am thrilled to bits..!!!

This is an award that comes with a set of rules...whew.. so here they are...

This award is presented to bloggers who display consistency in any one or a combination of these conditions:
1. The Blogger manifests exemplary attitude, respecting the nuances that pervades amongst different cultures and beliefs.

2. The Blog contents inspire; it strives to encourage and offers solutions.

3. There is a clear purpose at the Blog; one that fosters a better understanding on Social, Political, Economic, the Arts, Culture and Sciences, and Beliefs.

4. The Blog is refreshing and creative.

5. The Blogger promotes friendship and positive thinking.

The Blogger who receives this Award will need to perform the following steps:

1. Create a Post with a mention and link to the person who presented the Noblesse Oblige Award.

2. The Award Conditions must be displayed at the Post.

3. Write a short article about what the Blog has thus far achieved- preferably citing one or more older post to support.

4. The Blogger must present the Noblesse Oblige Award in concurrence with the Award Conditions.

5. The Blogger must display the Award at any location at the Blog.

I love cooking and art and crafts, and my blog is about all these things.. also, while exploring the various lovely places in India, I try to post about these so as to let my fellow bloggers know about our part of the world, the beautiful monuments and the things that inspire me and touch my soul. 

 

Examples are posts like 

Jaipur - bhavani temple , 

Jaipur - Blue Pottery

 there are more of them, but these are the most recent ones. 

  

And now, to nominate a few fellow bloggers for this award..wow..this is the difficult part...

not to find deserving bloggers, but to stop at a few... 

The artsy crafter

Hot Rocks Glass Jewels

My Beautiful creations

The Muse

Cen's loft

Scandinavian ways - winesworld

Nancy's arts, crafts and favourites

An Award...for all those who comment on my blog

Gosh.. I have received two more awards from Kat ....She is amazingly talented and makes a variety of candles and other craft .. the best part is , that her writing is very down-to-earth and interesting.

 It is a great honour to receive these awards from people I have not met and probably never will. Through our blogs, we have been able to share friendships that are forged through mutual respect and admiration for our abilities . 

 Thanks Kat, you have made my day too, by passing on this award...

And I have decided that this award is to be passed on to whoever comments on my blog the next two days... after all,  these comments make do my day... !!!