Of mountains and lakes and a magical trip.....

'I want to make memories all over the world....'

      In my case 'all over the world' gets replaced by 'in my backyard'.... I had once come across this quote while surfing through some sites for quotes. And found it apt, simple yet something that made so much sense. I want to roam all over the world making memories and have already embarked on it :-).... While planning for it, I realized that there is so much to see in my own country. So why not start from here itself!  And we have been travelling for some time now. We come back from a short trip to the mountains and hills and I find myself planning for the next! Do I sound crazy? Possible! Looks like I am a victim of 'travel-mania'! The travel bug has gotten to me with all its strength and isn't leaving me at all! To top it all, I have been lucky to live in Bangalore; the city spoils one for choice of destinations! There are n number of places around here to take a pick from. 

Red Hills was our destination this time; and while selecting the place I never knew that it will be such an out of the world experience! Yes, we have visited this part of Ooty before so were a little prepared about what to expect in terms of weather, roads and the natural beauty. But this particular place surpassed all expectations. It was tranquility personified; the peace, the calm, the weather, the natural beauty and also the comfortable stay all rolled and packed into this holiday at Red Hills. While I enjoyed the serenity of Lake Emerald from the resort, I experienced a slice of heaven on earth! I remembered how I harboured this intense  craving to visit the Swiss countryside. The colourful photographs I have seen of those places made me dream of them....sometime, maybe sometime, I kept chanting in my mind. But this visit to Red Hills had certainly impacted my dream; we have all of that here, in our very own backyard:-)....

Well, there is a little history behind the name of the place, Red Hills. According to Vijay Kumar, who owns this magnificent place, ' Willie Collins came from Red Hills in England. This place reminded him of his place and he named this as Red Hills.' As you keep reading on, you will know who Willie Collins was and  have more information on this splendid property of Mr.Vijay Kumar. I read about this beautiful place in a few sites. And armed with all these information and reviews from the various guests who lived in this gorgeous property, we chose the place. We had visited this part of the Nilgiris before and were absolutely blown over by the magnificent scenic beauty! The emerald green water of the Lake Emerald blew us away completely! What a spectacular sight it was! Straight out of a travel magazine; on the other side, Lake Avalanche made a pretty picture with its forested islands and meandering course. The verdant vegetation all around, the lakes visible through the trunks of the tall trees; oh! I would say this would be a painter's delight! 

Such places can soothe our tired minds :-)...such visits can be so relaxing. Our drive up to Red Hills, though tiring physically was relaxing mentally ! Once there, we fell in love with the place instantly. The bungalows resembling those of the colonial style with high ceilings, large windows, fireplaces, wooden flooring, a neat little sit-out, all added to make the place even more charming. What caught my fancy was the dining room with a view of a tall peak, shooting straight up. The table by the window overlooking the mountain was to be my place for the next two days! I had already made up my mind the moment I saw this! Every time I sat there for my meals, I felt as if I was traveling by train through the Swiss countryside. I know this might sound strange to most but my imagination ran wild. The numerous times I  have read Heidi can be squarely blamed for this fertile imagination! So that was the story of the dining room. And now comes those benches with a view. I call them' the benches with a view'! The white painted benches on the  green carpet of the grass with the meandering lake Emerald is something I shall not be forgetting anytime soon!

As I write about Red Hills here, I would like to include a few things about the estate as has been told to me by Mr. Vijay who owns the place. In his words, " The property was established by Willie Collins in the year 1875. My dad bought the property in 1937. It was my family home and I was born in this house. In 1992 we opened this place for guests as a home stay and we continue to do so."
And we were lucky to have come across this beautiful place. We not only had a pleasant stay there but also made great memories.I guess it is time to let the photographs do the talking. Most of the photographs might look a little hazy as it was cloudy and we tried to capture it as it was :-)....

The star attraction was Lake Emerald.

the view from our veranda..........

as the lake meandered on............

It was cloudy as can be seen and most of the photographs have been clicked in the regular setting.

One side was the Lake Emerald and on the other side were the mountains and the tea plantation...

one more view.................

What a lovely bungalow! I wouldn't mind staying here forever :-D

the tea bushes along the slopes.........

Can you spot the waterfalls?

top of the world........We trekked up, huffing and puffing as we climbed up to have this magnificent view!

at the top of the mountain ( ? )......... I would love to believe that I climbed a mountain!

The dried up branches created a beautiful pattern.....

What a pretty sight these wild flowers made!

view from the top...........

Loved the perfect contours!

To me, seeing is believing!

The mountains in the background, the wild flowers strewn all along our way, the tricky climb up, all made for a glorious morning!

Seeing is believing at times and we shall do just that! While I document my experiences at Red hills here, I shall upload a few photographs of the place, too. But believe me, when I say that these visuals are nothing compared to what my senses have taken in:-).....

And here come the clouds like a whiff of smoke !

I loved the tiny temple :-)

Pretty, isn't it?

And there were these pretty wild flowers all along our path ........

A group of bikers stopped by Lake Avalanche to enjoy the beauty and made for an interesting photograph!

And look at those colourful houses on the slopes of the hills!

selfie time up on the mountains.......

picturesque.............

Lake Emerald

The mountains behind me and the lake in front of me ; I couldn't have asked for anything better!

One of my favourite places there........

 And finally Moby here! The friendliest one I've ever come across!

Dressing up the walls

'Home' is such a beautiful word. The four letters mean so much to a homebody like me and many others. Doing up or dressing up a home has so many facades to it. It's not just the pieces of furniture but a whole lot of other trivial aspects that combine together to give a home its look. Dressing a home starts right from the entrance and moves inside. The most common and important element of dressing up the home comes in the form of furniture and accessories like cushions, throws, curtains, etc,etc....but what about the wall? The walls that make up the four sides of a room or space, too, need their share of importance, right? Today we are going to look into some simple and easy to incorporate ideas of dressing up and accessorising our walls. 

A couple of weeks ago,I visited a friend's home. What caught my attention were a few pretty and colourful frames on her walls. They ranged from Batik to Madhubani paintings to gift wrapping paper. The Batik and Madhubani framed pieces weren't the regular paintings that we generally get to see. They were actually pieces of cloth that were bound in pretty frames. A few of these grouped in clusters and behold! You have a unique look! The gift wrapping paper,too, were given a new look by being framed. On speaking to my friend, I got to know that she and her son have together done this:-)....good way to keep our children busy, isn't it? Many a time, we have these pretty ones that we are reluctant to throw away. I remember how many times I have folded and stored the gift wrapping paper after unwrapping the gifts. They had been too pretty to be thrown away! Now I know what to do with them :-).... The wide varieties of these paper can give dull corner an instant glow. 

Well, this was an easy peasy instant idea! And we have many many more such ideas up our sleeves :-).... A virtual friend and an extremely talented person has used basketry on her walls! Unique, isn't it? Want to try out? Go on and try for yourself. I am sure you will come back to us with your pretty walls. 

Another idea is to dress up the walls with pretty rugs and durries! And who says that they are meant only for the floors? Try this out and see the effect. Not too sure of the durries? Never mind, try out draping a section of the walls with a colourful dupatta or a stole:-)....go on and be a little different..... a little bold and a bit dramatic! And once you are done with giving a new look to your walls, do share your experiences with us here :-).... You could actually have a virtual party here in your homes......don't forget to invite us then:-D.....

Images 1 and 2 are from my friend Aparna's home. Look, how cleverly gift wrapping paper has been turned into a piece of walk decor!

Reshma Sharma, another friend who blogs at Dreams are made of these,(http://rishhhhriti.blogspot.in/?m=1),has innovatively used her colourful baskets as a decor element. Isn't it gorgeous?

I loved this idea of framing up fabric pieces and this image is from the internet. One can use all prints and colours of fabric depending upon one's choice and requirement.

This is another image from the internet. A few pieces of fabric or colourful paper can be framed and grouped together.

A woven wall piece from the north-east. I have also used a framed and painted tile in my dining area.

Image and inspiration from the internet

A gallery wall in my friend Kakoli's home. I loved the funky Ganesha photographs! Well, this wall decor is passé now.

Home! A decorative comb has been framed; idea borrowed from my blogger friend Padmamanasa :-)......

Finally, a recent photograph from my friend Kakoli's home. The rust wall has been painted and all I can say is that the pale background is complimenting the Ganesha gallery.

Three of the photographs have been borrowed from Pinterest ( fabric wall art ideas).

Wishing everyone a happy and blessed new year. May all your dreams be fulfilled. May there be peace everywhere, within and all around us.

An afternoon spent at the Sampoorn Santhe.......

The much needed break seems to be zooming ahead without 'brake'. The days are packed up with lunch meets, rendezvous-vous, visiting friends and trying to catch up with a long list of pending chores. Every time, I decide to complete all my pending work during the break but never seem to be able to accomplish them! This time was no better! My earnest wishes to be a person who never ever keeps things pending hasn't been of much help. Sigh! As I step into the holiday and break time mode, I seem to become lazier and an easy going person! The 'shall do this tomorrow' syndrome takes the better of me! I soak myself in the real holiday mood and before long find myself at the end of the break time with a huge pile of unfinished chores. As usual! I guess, this is how it will continue to be!

So I decided not to think of my woes much and really take in all the fun and happiness that this short spell of holiday has to offer. It was one of those days when I met friends for lunch, chatted endlessly with them, enjoyed the absolutely gorgeous Bangalore weather and went shopping at the Sampoorn Santhe! Sounds fun, isn't it? And believe me, it was a perfect day spent with the loveliest of people I have met and bonded at the institute; friends with whom I have become so comfortable :-D.... A trip, a visit or just about the silliest of activities become so enjoyable when there is good company:-)...

After a super delicious lunch, we decided to pay a quick visit to the Santhe...my quick visit invariably stretches itself to as much as it can be done! So an hour, as we had decided, went beyond a couple of hours and even at the end of it left me craving for more. I would have loved to spend some more time there. But then there are always these time issues, these checks that act as the great barriers to anything enjoyable! The environment at the Santhe was beautiful; the weather added to the charm. It was extremely pleasant, cool, breezy, cloudy at times with the sun making brief appearances at times and lighting up everything so beautifully. The crowd was comparatively thin, yesterday being a working day. So it was perfect for us to linger on at each of the stores, examining the pretty wares, speaking to the artisans who were more than eager to share their stories with us. The Rajasthani folk music added to making the place lively! The folk singers from the most colourful state in our country sang effortlessly creating an eclectic atmosphere. There were those visitors who could not control their urge to dance gracefully to those catchy tunes:-D...artists who sat amidst all and sketched effortlessly, young and talented designers who showcased their creations, the artisans who explained to us about their art that has been in their families for years together. No art school experiences there for these local artisans who have been talented enough to learn things themselves and experiment with their forms of art. All these and many more made us wonder about the storehouse of talent out there in our rural regions. These are places where I do not even ask for a discount! I feel, these artisans deserve their prices and maybe much more.

I tried capturing a few photographs; some of those gorgeous, colourful things that we got to see. I wanted to pick up something from each stall but then I did mention about those 'restrictions' earlier here, didn't I ? So I had to do a lot of mental as well as visual calculations before deciding on anything. I loved a lot of things; the dokra figurines, the terracotta planters, the colourful Khurja pottery, the Patachitra, the Peepli work on fabric, the kitschy metal hooks, the list goes on and on! I absolutely loved the bottle gourd planters, lamps and chimes! Imagine! The humble 'lauki' adorning our homes in a visibly creative avatar! 

Before I make the post an extremely lengthy one, I better stop here! Bangaloreans can always drop in to the Chitrakala Parishad for a real 'dekho'! Seeing is believing as we all know:-D.... In the meantime, I shall give you some visual treats here; a few of the shots that I managed to take at the fair. Hope you all like them:-)..... Do share your takes with me here.

Radha and Krishna- applique work from Peepli

Patachitra from Bengal...... This particular form of art exists in Orissa as well but this one is by the artisans from a tiny village in Bengal.

another one from Peepli.....I loved this one! The artist told me that this one has been done by his mother...

And look at the entrance;amidst the thick cluster of trees, this gives such a rustic feel.....

and when i had the chance to click the entrance without much obstruction.......

my love for the Peepli art!

riot of colours!

Pretty wares made out of the dried shells of our lauki or bottle gourd!

the folk singers from Rajasthan adding to the charm at the santhe

another view.........

Patachitra again!

Dokra love

Look at all that!

Such prettiness!

Isn't she a beauty!

Some more from the same stall!

colourful terracotta knick-knacks

metal wall decor pieces

I am completely smitten by these beauties!

What can I say to these!

Completely kitschy!

Kalamkari never seems to go out of fashion!