A typical road-side chaiwala in India. Between having tea in a 5-star hotel or at a road-side place, I would prefer this any time!
Showing posts with label india. Show all posts
Showing posts with label india. Show all posts
Picture of the Week #61
A typical road-side chaiwala in India. Between having tea in a 5-star hotel or at a road-side place, I would prefer this any time!
Picture of the Week #57
Picture of a poster put up on a hotel run by a Tibetan family in Sikkim, India.
5 Things I Hate About India
Make no mistake about it, India is my mother land and I love it. Having said that, there are some things that I absolutely hate (like "development"), and others that I find merely annoying (like stray dogs). Here's a list of 5 things that I "hate" about India - I hope you find it amusing.
1) Stray dogs
There are too many damn stray dogs in India! In the day time, they are shy and lazy, but one still has to be careful so as not to inadvertently step on a sleeping dog while avoiding the throngs of people. At night, one better watch out since packs of dogs spill out on the empty streets and often have turf wars with rivals, and they surely don't hesitate to intimidate innocent bystanders - like me!
2) Pot Holes
Pot holes, pot holes and more pot holes - they are everywhere! There's a popular saying - are there pot holes in the road or is there road in between the pot holes? It's a shame that the roads of India's economic capital city, Mumbai, are littered with pot holes.. and people talk about Mumbai becoming the next Shanghai - until the quality of the roads improve, they can keep dreaming. This can only happen when the corrupt-to-the-bone politicians stop giving road construction contracts to companies who do a poor job.
3) Garbage, Traffic and Pollution
It is sad but true, that cities are overflowing with garbage, traffic and pollution. Bus depots, train stations, markets, residential areas, commercial areas... garbage is overflowing everywhere. How far is the dump-it-over-the-fence attitude for garbage going to take us? Not very. Temples, especially the famous ones, are some of the dirtiest places where the devotees don't hesitate to simply dump their plastic and other garbage in the surroundings. In big cities, mere 15 kilometers seems like a huge distance because of traffic clogged roads. On Indian roads, those who can afford it can breath A/C air (sitting in their cars), and those who don't breath pollution - there is no fresh air any more.
4) Development
I think "development" is a bad word in India. It is nothing but encroachment, and rampant and unplanned development. It's more like destruction - environmental destruction. Hills are carved, blasted and flattened to make way for new roads and housing, lakes are filled in by greedy land sharks to construct more buildings, trees are cut down for road widening etc. Why does development necessarily compete against nature in India? The way India is "developing" is totally unsustainable and I think the payback for going against nature will be severe...
5) Crowds
Over-population has led to over-crowding in India putting a serious strain on resources and infrastructure. It has also led to a general loss of respect for life. On average, more than 10 people die everyday while commuting on Mumbai's over-crowded local trains - ironically known as the "lifeline" of Mumbai. It's terrible that over-crowded buses in Pune don't even bother to stop at designated stops to pick up passengers; they just slow down a bit further from the stop so people who want to get off can jump off!
Coming up next: 5 Things I Love About India
1) Stray dogs
There are too many damn stray dogs in India! In the day time, they are shy and lazy, but one still has to be careful so as not to inadvertently step on a sleeping dog while avoiding the throngs of people. At night, one better watch out since packs of dogs spill out on the empty streets and often have turf wars with rivals, and they surely don't hesitate to intimidate innocent bystanders - like me!
2) Pot Holes
Pot holes, pot holes and more pot holes - they are everywhere! There's a popular saying - are there pot holes in the road or is there road in between the pot holes? It's a shame that the roads of India's economic capital city, Mumbai, are littered with pot holes.. and people talk about Mumbai becoming the next Shanghai - until the quality of the roads improve, they can keep dreaming. This can only happen when the corrupt-to-the-bone politicians stop giving road construction contracts to companies who do a poor job.
3) Garbage, Traffic and Pollution
It is sad but true, that cities are overflowing with garbage, traffic and pollution. Bus depots, train stations, markets, residential areas, commercial areas... garbage is overflowing everywhere. How far is the dump-it-over-the-fence attitude for garbage going to take us? Not very. Temples, especially the famous ones, are some of the dirtiest places where the devotees don't hesitate to simply dump their plastic and other garbage in the surroundings. In big cities, mere 15 kilometers seems like a huge distance because of traffic clogged roads. On Indian roads, those who can afford it can breath A/C air (sitting in their cars), and those who don't breath pollution - there is no fresh air any more.
4) Development
I think "development" is a bad word in India. It is nothing but encroachment, and rampant and unplanned development. It's more like destruction - environmental destruction. Hills are carved, blasted and flattened to make way for new roads and housing, lakes are filled in by greedy land sharks to construct more buildings, trees are cut down for road widening etc. Why does development necessarily compete against nature in India? The way India is "developing" is totally unsustainable and I think the payback for going against nature will be severe...
5) Crowds
Over-population has led to over-crowding in India putting a serious strain on resources and infrastructure. It has also led to a general loss of respect for life. On average, more than 10 people die everyday while commuting on Mumbai's over-crowded local trains - ironically known as the "lifeline" of Mumbai. It's terrible that over-crowded buses in Pune don't even bother to stop at designated stops to pick up passengers; they just slow down a bit further from the stop so people who want to get off can jump off!
Coming up next: 5 Things I Love About India
Picture of the Week #42
An ingenious fish trap seen on way to Mt. Harishchandragad via nali-chi-vaat.
Picture of the Week #41
Mr. Gogawale ("mountain man") baba resting on Mt. Kamalgad. He is the care-taker of a temple on this mountain and earns his living by playing host to trekkers. He also acts as a guide. The 81-year old gentleman has the stamina of an 18-year old!
Mr. Gogawale held a Masters degree and had spent a majority of his life in the mountains. His love and passion for nature was awesome! His biggest fear was the densely forested plateau of Koleshwar becoming "New Mahabaleshwar".
Picture of the Week #40
Children waiting for their first lesson of the day at 7:00 AM. [Jor village, Maharashtra, India]
Picture of the Week #35
What is this? This is happiness! Oh, childhood is such a magical time of life. Seen here are all smiles after I showed them their digital picture on my camera. [Sawarne village, Maharashtra, India]
Picture of the Week #33
Life is not easy for these pretty young girls. [Dhawale village, Maharashtra, India]
Picture of the Week #31
The bandaged iconic Taj Mahal Hotel nursing wounds caused by India's friendly neighbourhood Pakistanis.
Picture of the Week #29
Colours of India [Kala Ghoda Art Festival in Mumbai, Feb. 2010]
"Berang si hai badi zindagi kuchh rang to bharoon..."
Picture of the Week #28
The famous Marine Drive of Mumbai, India. I want to go there again... I want to visit at night and in the rainy season. I can just imagine myself sippin' on a hot cup of tea as I sit there and hear the waves crashing on the rocks... ahhh that's what I call peace of mind.
Picture of the Week #20
A scene from the coastal town of Malvan in Maharashtra, India. Malvan is most famous for Shivaji's Sindhudurg sea fort.
Picture of the Week #19
Rumtek monastery near Gangkok, Sikkim. This is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery; it is also the largest in Sikkim.
Picture of the Week #17
A beautiful temple in Konkan. Konkan is the kind of region anyone can fall in love with.
Picture of the Week #16
The beautiful Tshoka village (Population: 2, Altitude: ~9000 feet) in West Sikkim, India! This village, nestled in the Himalayas, is primarily used by trekkers as a stop-over point on way to/back from the famous Goecha La pass trek.
What an ideal honeymoon location this would make! Too bad one has to undertake an ardous 10-12 hour trek to get there... I don't think anyone would have this kind of exercise in mind for their honeymoon. haha
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