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The Vaishnodevi Experience 2023

My first trip to Vaishnodevi was unimpressive. Climbing was hard, and it only served to highlight how badly out of shape I was, while my in-laws managed to cope so much better. Further, I hadn’t quite realized that the cave experience wouldn’t be the same as I had imagined, since the original cave was only opened at certain times a year, and that we only entered a newly created tunnel, one far easier to access, and hence more manageable with the crowds that thronged the mountain shrine. The resulting experience at the shrine, for barely a fraction of a second, hardly compared to what I had expected / imagined / heard about. So, for me, Vaishnodevi was like any other temple, nothing to write home about, something that was reflected (though not explicitly mentioned) in the blog post I wrote then.
3 comments

Flowers of Gold!

Its a sweltering summer out here, and everything seems terribly hot! I shudder to think what May will bring, and when the rains will come.... Meanwhile, here's a spot of yellow which is pleasing to the eyes....The golden laburnum in our colony is full of flowers and the ground is a carpet of yellow! That, unfortunately,  was a sight I couldn't capture on camera thanks to the condition of the road, but here is the tree and its flowers....







and yes, for those of you who are wondering, yes, I haven't yet managed to write all those over-due posts, so I am filling time by posting random photographs I have taken last month.... and the list of my over-due posts is going to increase, since I have another outing scheduled for tomorrow!

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Comments

  1. sriMay 2, 2010 at 8:54 AM

    lovely

    in bangalore there are violet , pale yellow and vermillion flowers that fill the tree to the point there are no leaves :)

    Lovely world!

    ReplyDelete
  2. chitraMay 2, 2010 at 10:09 AM

    This is Vishukonna which is used during Vishu festival for 'Kanikanal'

    ReplyDelete
  3. thecoupleMay 2, 2010 at 10:28 AM

    Kanikonna is one of our favourites. Reminds of Vishu. Though it's Kerala's state flower, we could see it in abundance outside the state.
    :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. MridulaMay 2, 2010 at 8:19 PM

    Thanks for posting these Anu even I want to post a few of these and the Gulmohar.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anuradha ShankarMay 3, 2010 at 9:55 AM

    @Sri: oh yes, we do have some others too, like the red gulmohur, but nothing looks as beautiful as this!!

    @Chitra: yes.. its the same,...... keralites in our area dont need to buy them.. they can just pick them from the tree!

    @Bindhu: oh yes, they really are plentiful in this part of the country too....

    @mridula: please do.. would love to see ur pics...

    ReplyDelete
  6. IndraniMay 4, 2010 at 8:03 PM

    These yellows are so pleasing.
    Have a great trip Anu.

    ReplyDelete
  7. SoulSpaceMay 9, 2010 at 3:58 PM

    a drop of sunshine on earth!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. UnknownSeptember 6, 2012 at 3:09 PM

    Lovely colour and I love the flowers too...thanks for posting ...

    ReplyDelete
  9. UnknownSeptember 6, 2012 at 3:10 PM

    Lovely colour and I love the flowers too...thanks for posting ...

    ReplyDelete
  10. UnknownSeptember 6, 2012 at 3:11 PM

    Lovely colour and I love the flowers too...thanks for posting...

    ReplyDelete

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