Botanic Gardens - Singapore's Eden... Part I

I woke up feeling very happy this morning. It was a bright sunny morning, but that was not the only reason to be cheery - I was only a day away from meeting Neeti, as her course was to be getting over tonight.... 

And then it was independence day, India's independence day... I was 4,000 kilometers away, I was a missing a momentous occasion - Narendra Modiji's maiden speech at the Red Fort in Delhi. 

Despite the distance, my heart was in India, I was thinking about the roadmap that Modiji would layout for India, for the next 5 years, at the least, but I hope that's not less 15-20 years....

With a lot of optimism for the future of our nation, I got ready and headed out for breakfast at the Kopitiam in Balestier Food Market. I passed by Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, a villa that was used by the founding father of the Republic of China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen in the early 1900s for his organisation, Tongmenghui.

I had to visit the memorial during this trip, my hotel key-card card granted me free access, but today was not the day for it. Today, I had to head to the place I so wanted to visit ever since I knew I was going to visit Singapore, the Singapore Botanic Gardens.... Afterall, it was a bright, sunny morning and what an ideal morning to spend outdoors.

After breakfast (I had very interesting, delectable local fare), I took a bus from Balestier Road to take me to Novena MRT. When I alighted at Novena, my heart sank - heavy clouds were moving in, covering the skies fast.... I prayed for just a little sunshine and moved on. 

I took the North South Line and headed north towards Bishan, where I interchanged to the Circle Line, that would take me to my destination for the morning.

The clarity of signages and directions in Singapore's MRT and transport network (as well other places, like Hong Kong) is liberating. All you need is a map, which supplements the signage. Seldom, did I ask for directions from anyone, in the last two days that I spent here.

Just as I reached the exit of the MRT station, I knew my worst fears were coming true... It was raining, the rain was rather heavy, so heavy that I had to wait at exit for nearly 20 minutes till the intensity reduced.

I stopped by to look at the map and plan my walking trail through the 74-acre green patch that was indeed thriving despite the rapid urbanisation and rising skyscrapers of the city-state. This was the third botanical garden that I was visiting.

The first one was at Entebbe, Uganda - the Entebbe Botanical Gardens. I went there in 1981, I was little kid then. The enduring memories of marvelous green palm fronds fluttering in the breeze against a backdrop of shimmering, gentle waves of Lake Victoria are very evocative, they still give me goosebumps.

The second one was at Mauritius, Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Garden, popularly known as the Pamplemousses Botanical Garden, which is known for typical African species - the baobabs, mahogany and yes, the giant water lilies. The visit here was again special, for it was during the initial days of my life, together, with Neeti...

My first impressions of the garden were positive. The garden was spic and span, fallen leaves were placed at the base of trees and plants - they weren't scattered around. That was the way they claimed, the nutrients were being returned to the soil.

The garden was much like the Garden of Eden - green and peaceful, with little ponds and lakes breaking whatever little monotony that the vegetation around gave,

The garden had its beginnings in 1822 when Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of modern Singapore who was also a keen naturalist, developed the first ‘Botanical and Experimental Garden’ at Fort Canning. 

In 1859, the Garden was shifted to its present site an agri-horticultural society under the colonial administration. In its early years, the Gardens played an important role in development of agriculture in Singapore and Malaya. The administration collected, grew, experimented and distributed plants that could thrive in the climate of this region. 

A little known fact is that development of the rubber plantations in Malaya had its roots here, in these Gardens. A native of the Amazon rainforest, Para-Rubber, hevea brasiliensis, was introduced to the region from these gardens. And it went on to became a major cash-crop which brought great prosperity to Malaya and then, later, Malaysia. 

Besides, plants, it was evident, the Gardens supported a wide variety of life - including these pigeons.

A Love & Peace Flower sculpture by a Croatian artist, Ana Tzarev.... 

I wish I could pause here, sit here and soak in all the peace that Nature has to offer.... 

But I had to move on.... There is a lot to see in these Gardens....

Bombaypolis Moments....

A series of photos, spontaneous mobile grabs, collected over my past few years in Bombay....

The centre of gravity of the city is shifting from traditional business areas like Nariman Point, to newer areas like Bandra Kurla Complex and Andheri Kurla Road. Bandra Kurla Complex, though swanky, lacks the culture and warmth of town!

Not only does Bandra Kurla Complex suffers from a lack of "culture", it looks like a dusty dump, with swanky outcrops, that seem totally out of place.... That's much unlike town, which does have a reasonable green cover, like the evocative banyan tree at the junction of J. Tata Road and H.T. Parekh Marg, at Churchgate.....

But why complain? I am told Andheri-Kurla Road is worse... it's chaotic, crazy, noisy, dusty, you name it, it's all there....

While the commuting lifeline remains the train, some of us are brave enough to drive long swanky cars to work. I guess that would be something like a slow suicide, the traffic kills you....

But commuting by autorickshaws has its interesting moments. Not only do you have to struggle to get an auto to take you from point to point, you also run the risk of getting a bad back as the autos race over the famed crater-ridden roads, which our holier-than-thou BMC would care to repair.

But when you come across graffiti like this on autos, you forget the trouble and laugh it out... But I wonder if the autowallah doesn't want to be kissed or is he warning other drivers to be careful and mot "kiss" his auto?

I once came across an interesting taxi driver, who was playing a crossword while the cab had stopped on a traffic signal. That was real inspiring...

Having India's busiest airport, the CSI Airport is an excellent place for airliner-spotting. Besides the biggies operating out of CSI Airport, one also gets to spot exciting carriers from exotic places like Kenya, South Africa, Mauritius, Seychelles, etc. etc.

CSI airport rarely sleeps, but with a slowdown, fewer Indians are taking to the , one is getting to see lesser and lesser crowds at the airport. Sights like this have become common now.....

Landing into CSI Airport has always been an interesting experience. The sight of the mighty Western Ghats is amazing, like this shot. This looks even better in the Monsoons, with a carpet of green covering the mountains. But this heavenly sight soon gives way to the repelling squalor of the slums. While the world-over and closer home, in Delhi, the political focus is on beautification of cities, in Bombay, the elected leaders thrive on slums.

Talking of food, Bombay has quite a few decent options for exotic fare, but does anything match up with a sinful Vada-Pav? Guess not...

Being on the coast, gives an additional dimension to the skyline of the city. The beauty of Marine Drive at night is matchless. Similarly, nothing beats the sunset at the beach...

I hope to continue this blog in the near future with interesting pictures and anecdotes from this city - the metropolis of Bombay, Bombaypolis.....

The bonding over a steaming cup of tea...

I have always seen people bond over a smoke and a drink, but for me, a steaming cup of tea works wonders...

But if you think, its as simple as it sounds, you are mistaken. The tea has to be made the right way, my way, probably the only way, is what i would say.

The right way is to heat the water and just as it starts to boil, add tea leaves and take the pan off the heat. This ensures that oxygen is not boiled out of the water, ensuring the oxygenation of the tannin in the tea leaves, which comes about by brewing it (of course off the heat) for about 5 minutes and voila....

One wrong step and it all becomes a royal mess, that I would prefer to throw down the drain.

Now coming to the element of bonding over tea, or dare I say the right kind of tea, just happens. In Neeti's and my family, it is the trigger - its like a war cry to say "chai ho jaye", and the anticipation of a conquest over the cup of tea begins. This invariably happens every night after dinner, providing the right trigger to stay up a while and talk about the happenings of the day.

I still remember the day my folks and I visited Neeti's place for the first time before our marriage. After an hour or so, when we moved out, the first thing I told my folks was that I loved their tea!!! And my folks nodded in agreement, laying the foundation for our marriage.

Mauritius, where we had gone for our honeymoon, is known for its boutique vanilla teas. Our resort had nothing but vanilla flavoured tea all over. And both of us had to struggle with the Creole and French speaking staff just to get a few tea bags of Assam tea. Wherever we go now, one of the standard gifts we usually get for our families are tea gift packs.

Tea has taken to several extremes. On weekends, when we are out in the market and Neeti starts checking out some nick-knacks, I can barely control my patience for half an hour after which extreme boredom sets in, and I am forced to let out the war cry of "Chai ho jaye"!!! And Neeti, like a fellow "drinking partner" gets so tempted that she winds up within the next 15-20 minutes, after which we either head home or to the nearest Barista or Cafe Coffee Day.

One such hangout for us used to be the Cocos outlet at Lokhandwala market. It charmed us with the quality of its tea and its colourful ambiance. But as real estate markets had their way, high rents forced them to move out. And old does indeed make way for the new.... we have now started patronising Coffee World with a similar zeal.

And just as I want to write more, I hear Neeti making the war cry of "chai ho jaye" - it's time to go...