The Winged Beauties of Satpura

A little bit of context before you begin reading this book review. I have recently enrolled for an MA in Philosophy at the University of Mumbai. Philosophy is something I have been getting interested in, over the past few years, as those of you who have been reading my blogs and Instagram posts would know. During the pandemic, I thought long and hard about what I wanted to do next, and this is what I eventually came up with. It has been a challenge, getting back into academics as a student at this age, especially in a subject I have no academic background in. However, it has also been very exciting, especially thanks to my wonderful classmates (who, surprisingly, are of all age-groups, including some quite near my own) and my teachers, who have been very supportive and understanding. How well I will do is something that remains to be seen, but so far, I am enjoying this new journey and look forward to where it leads. Now that you know the background , you probably get an idea of how

The Winged Beauties of Satpura

The first thing that struck us at the Denwa Backwater Escape were the number of butterflies and dragonflies fluttering around.

The colours and their patterns had us bemused and fascinated, little though we knew about them.

Over the next couple of days, our guides rattled off names and species, though I remember only a few today. Which is why, I am settling for showing you the wide variety we saw, minus names and details!

When it came to birds, however, we remember a lot more of the names. After all, we were seeing some for the very first time!

Spot Billed Ducks and Ruddy Shelducks, together, in pairs!

Whether we were walking around the resort, venturing into the jungle, taking a boat ride on the river, or simply sitting near the backwaters, there were plenty of birds to be seen.

We saw over 50 varieties of birds, without really going in search of them! These pics are just a few of those I managed to capture!

This beautiful raptor posed for us on the ground, but I can't seem to identify him! Help please!

This Black Winged Kite eluded us all day, but settled on a tree in front of our window, just as we were getting ready to leave!

I have created a collage of the photos simply to reduce the number of photographs in this post. For those of you who want to look at each pic in detail, here is a slideshow…

Or, to head over to the Album, click here.

This was in November, before the migratory birds had arrived. You can imagine what it would be like now!

I visited Denwa Backwater Escape in November 2014 on an invite from Pugdundee Safaris to explore the Satpura Wildlife Sanctuary. You can read more about the trip on my other posts about the experience.

Information:

The Satpura National park is located in Madhya Pradesh, and the backwaters of the Denwa river from the Tawa dam marks one of its boundaries.

How to Reach:

By Air: The nearest airport is at Bhopal (176 Km)

By Rail: The nearest major railway station is Itarsi (70 Km), which is well connected to all parts of India. Other accessible railway stations are Pipariya (50 Km), Sohagpur (19 Km) and Hoshangabad (50 Km).

By Road : There are a few local buses to Sohagpur, but there is hardly any regular public transport to the sanctuary itself. It is best to hire a car from Itarsi or Pipariya.

Where to Stay: There are plenty of hotels in the vicinity of the sanctuary to suit all budgets. We stayed at the Denwa Backwater Escape, which is certainly one of the best options in the area. The forest department also has accommodation near the entry gate of the sanctuary.

The Havelis of Bikaner - A Photo Post

The lanes are narrow , twisting and turning amidst buildings old and new. Crumbling old structures with intricate workmanship stand side by side with art deco buildings, and more modern constructions, which follow no particular style. Autos, bicycles, motorcycles and vans rush past, blowing their horns as loudly as possible, while cows saunter past peacefully, completely unaffected by the noise. In the midst of all this chaos, children play by the side, and women go about their chores, as we explore these by-lanes of Bikaner, and its beautiful Havelis. Facade of one of the Rampuria Havelis

Gokarna Part II – The Five Lingams

We continued our Gokarna trip by visiting four other Shiva temples in the vicinity, all connected to the same story of Gokarna. The story of Gokarna mentions the Mahabaleshwara Lingam as the one brought from Kailas by Ravana, and kept at this place on the ground by Ganesha. (See my earlier post- Gokarna – Pilgrimage and Pleasure). However, the story does not end here. It is believed that, in his anger, Ravana flung aside the materials which covered the lingam- the casket, its lid, the string around the lingam, and the cloth covering it. All these items became lingams as soon as they touched the ground. These four lingams, along with the main Mahabaleshwara lingam are collectively called the ‘ Panchalingams’ . These are: Mahabaleshwara – the main lingam Sajjeshwar – the casket carrying the lingam. This temple is about 35 Kms from Karwar, and is a 2 hour drive from Gokarna. Dhareshwar – the string covering the lingam. This temple is on NH17, about 45 Kms south of Gokarna. Gunavantesh

The Elephanta Caves

The Elephanta Caves , located on Elephanta Island, or Gharapuri, about 11 Km off the coast of the Gateway of India, Mumbai, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A visit to these caves, excavated probably in the 6 th century CE, is awe-inspiring, and also thought-provoking. Over the years, I have visited the caves a number of times, and also attended a number of talks by experts in the fields of art, history and archaeology on the caves. Together, they help me understand these caves, their art, and the people they were created for, just a little bit better. Every new visit, every new talk, every new article I read about the caves, fleshes out the image of what the island and the caves would have been like, at their peak. I last wrote about the caves on this blog, in 2011, almost exactly 11 years ago. Since then, my understanding of the caves has, I would like to think, marginally improved. Hence this attempt to write a new and updated post, trying to bring to life, the caves of Elephan

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