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My wife saw the cake and to our nightmare, we found a piece of glass in it. Luckily no one had eaten the cake yet and the Gods were actually smiling on us since one of our good neighbors got a great cake from American Classic Bakery for us. So we ended up using that cake to cut and serve to the other guests. We then spoke to a couple of friends and we were suggested to get our cakes and bread from Fernandos Bakery.

This experience almost turned into a nightmare for us and we were fortunate that it turned out well in the end.

Did you know that there is a tool out there that could save you an awful lot of money when it comes to paying for your home? Very few people actually do. Comparison sites on the Internet are all well and good, but could they really assess your needs on the strength of a few questions about the size of your mortgage and period you want to take it out over? I think not! This is what the mortgage calculator is for instead! The calculator is a great invention that all homeowners should use, regardless of whether you are looking to remortgage your existing home, purchase a new one or undertake a buy to let mortgage.

The mortgage calculator is incredibly easy to use and can help you to find the best deals for you in just a few moments. It does ask you some more personal questions if you use the complex calculator but all are justified because the information is necessary for it to find you the best possible deal. No calculator or comparison site will find the best mortgage deal for you by simply guessing at your credit scoring in line with the amount you want to borrow, but the time you could save by finding the deals this way will undoubtedly be better spent enjoying yourself!

The scroll is given religious sanctity and is worshipped by the bards. When it becomes old, it is immersed in the river.  It is thus deified as a living person and when discarded, treated like a departed soul. However, now with old scrolls becoming collector’s items,it is often sold. The scrolls bear the names of the painter and the bard or patron who commissions it. Today paper is also used as canvas. Most paintings adorn homes as well hangings.

All the scrolls displayed by Vaikuntham are mythological ones. He also makes sawdust masks and dolls,which are used for narratives of the Kathamaraju kathas. The mythological scrolls draw heavily from the Puranas,the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The exploits of Krishna are also popular-Krishna teasing the bathing gopis,his victory over the hooded serpent Kaliya (Kaliyamardanam). Then there is Draupadi Swayamvara-Arjun hitting the fish eye to win Draupadi’s hand and the story of Shravan-his accidental killing by King Dasharath. Smaller panels for decorative purposes drawn today include Rama crossing the river in Guha’s boat, the dashavatara of Lord Vishnu, a hunting scene, a village scene, and so on. The richness of the drawings is however manifested in the charming retinue of rural folklore,which captures scenes from day to day life-of women with children, men climbing coconut trees…the serene aspects of rural life.

The question commonly asked is whether such scroll narratives can survive in a world of television and cinema. The skills of such painters could be utilised,by using the stories and drawings in cartoons(as animated characters). The background score could have the bard and his narrative songs. Animated versions of these traditional characters n a story would be eye-catching, entertaining and educational for children, and also provide remuneration to the skilled craftsmen. such a change would be an ideal way to preserve the rich repertoire of folk stories and oral narrative tradition.

Monisha Jaising is known for her sporty styles. In her recent fashion show, she showcased a sporty collection- a lehnga with a sporty twist. she also paired a heavy zarsoi-embellished lehnga skirt with a strappy printed top. Monisha Jaising says,”Sportswear and leisurewear have always played an important role in fashion because of the ‘relaxed’ factor attached to it.”

D Vaikuntham Nakash is a national award winner and a member of the rare breed who makes Cherial paintings. One of his scrolls carries a quaint story on the washermen community. It shows how the dhobi,who used to wash the clothes of a king, was insulted at the place. Seething in anger over this slight, he refused to wash any clothes. Unwashed clothes started piling and the royal palace was in a fix. The problem was sorted out only after the direct intervention of the King. Apart from reiterating the importance of each vocation and its role in society, the story captures day-to-day occurrences hilariouly. The panels capture the true essence of the story beautifully.

The performances by the bards usually starts at night and continue till dawn. The narrations are in Telugu, with the narrator and the accompanying artist using a speech-dialogue-song medium. The accompanying string instruments lend a dramatic element to the narration. “These paintings are used as visual aids for the stories told in villages,” says Vaikuntham Nakash,”This form of entertainment is still popular in small villages.” These paintings can also be seen at cultural programmes, organised by various craft associations. The recitals speak volumes about the abilities of the bards to learn the scenes by rote and perform extempore. It is a skill honed with extensive practice and performance.

The view of Chhota Kailash defies imagination. The white snow-clad peak was soaked in the crimson hue of the newly born sun. Its image rested in the tranquil waters of Parbati Sarovar. With a feeling of deep contentment and accomplishment, we started our descent. I had conquered the peak.

Oral traditions:
In Japan, Manga is a form of illustrative painting. In India,it was the scroll painters who drew illustrations for bards to use as visual aids for their renditions. The storyteller-singer sang, nanarrated and danced the tale on the scroll,making it come alive. The enactment was not only entertaining, it also educated the rural audience. Both the bard and the painter created in their endeavour a genre of artists who kept alive a fantastic sytem of oral tradition. These mobile showmen were the precursors of the chalchitra, which today has evolved into a multibillion-dollar enterprise comprising cinema, television and the Internet. Bardic forms of entertainment have been popular throughout the country, be it the Phad narrated by the Bhopas from Rajasthan, the Patuas of Bengal, the Chitrakothis of Maharashtra and the not so well-known Telangana scrolls or Cherial paintings.

Cherial paintings, as they are called today, derive the name from the place they are made in-Cherial in the Warrangal district of Andhra Pradesh. Historians, however,term the paintings as Deccani paintings or Telangana scrolls, since the painters were spread across a number of villages in the Telangana area. The name ‘Cherial painting’ is more of a recent origin, as most of the painters from mid-20th century onwards were from this village, and the name has stuck.

The scroll works more on the lines of a film. A story is made up of a series of panels, as many as 20 or 30. Each panel could have three or four scenes from the story. The scenes within a panel are demarcated by pillars, trees or other symbols. They are painted in chronoligical order, so that when the narration begins, the story flows through the panel’s series of scenes. The paintings are drawn both vertically and horizintally. In the vertical format, which is more common, the scenes are depicted horizontally, with the panels distinguished horizontally by borders. The horizontal one, on the other hand is divided into horizontal panels, demarcated by borders at the top,middle and bottom.

The first panel in the painting has a drawing of Lord Ganesha. The rendition usually starts with an ode to the elephant-headed God, who is believed to remove all obstacles. As the story progresses,the bard holds up the relevant panel to the audience and sings the story contained in it. He runs through all the scenes in the panel before going on to the next.

In search of a suitable camping site ahead of Kuti, we cressed the river and found a source of clear water adjacent to a snowy nallah. Left without a choise, we had to pitch tents on sloping ground. The night was freezing,but our spirits were soaring high as we were now close to achieving what we had set out for.

This was the final stretch of 11 km. Full of vigour, we decided to leave early at 6 am for Jolingkong, climbing a geight of 4,572 m. Tiny red and mauve flowers greeted us on the way and the mountains were bathed in the orange glow of early dawn. The apparently gradual climb proved quite exhausting. We came across a series of peaks, named after the five Pandvas.

Having traversed from one mountain to another, valley after valley, for the last five days, the heart was becoming impatient now. All along, we had been trying to imagine what Chhota Kailash would look like.

At last:
Somebody seemed to have anticipated our mental and physical states. A message on a rock aptly said, Bas thoda aur!! One turn round the corner, and we had our first glimpse of the Chhota Kailash peak. But mountain trails are never straight; they are full of ups and downs and go over streams, valley and passes. As we proceeded downhill to cross a snowy stream, Chhota Kailash soon disappeared from view. This snowy stream emerges from the snow-clad Himal peak, and the grand view was a feast for our fatigued souls.

After we climbed the ridge again, the ITBP(Indo-Tibetan Border Police) check post came into view, from a distance of four kilometres further uphill. Chhota Kailash, hiding behind the mountains, appeared to be growing in size. I realised that what we were now seeing was the southeast face of Chhota Kailash-best view from Parbati Sarovar. Patience appeared to be the only key to successfully completing the last few kilometers.

We reached Jolingkong, totally exhausted, and dumped ourselves in the abandoned barracks of KMVN(Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam). The sky was overcast and the fast blowing winds were biting cold. As we tried to nourish our drained bodies, the clouds retreated and the sun  peeped out. We jumped up to resume our quest.

At Gunji we were greeted by smiling children, Chanting ‘Om Namah Shivay’ and asking us for toffees. The gruelling pace of the previous two days,covering 18-19 km of trek everyday,was taking its toll. We decided prudently to split the remaining 35 km to Chhota Kailash, into three days instead of two. Toour great relief we found that we would be leaving for the next leg of the trek only by 9am the next morning and not earlier.

Sunrise was a lovely sight,with the beams encircling the mountain peak. We set off with rejuvenated spirits, our path taking us along the meandering river Kuti. The tall bhojpatra trees offered a sharp contrast to robust mountains. there were eye-catching fields, dotted with re-hued cash crops of Rongkong village.

On hills, ponies are set free to graze druing nights. Alarmingly, the beasts would run away in the night and one of our porters had to trace them every morning.

We now left for Kuti, ascending to 3,600 m. we had been trekking above 10,000 ft for the last three days now  and had got acclimatised to the climate and oxygen deficiency.

Indeed, Meghalaya has been rated as one ot the 10 best caving destinations in the world.
Started around the late 1980s when a few international caves came down to explore the region and were excited by what they found. Over the years the stream of cavers from the US, UK, Germany, Italy, Belgium, and other parts of Europe grew and in 2003 there were over 45 visitors who camped around the state,each one staying for over a month. Indeed,Meghalaya has been rated as one of the 10 best caving destinations in the world.

Into the light:
The main attraction of caving in the North Eastern state is that it is vigin terrtory and each year new caves are being discovered. Currently there are around 190km of caves in the state including a recent find that is 24km long. Neil, who has accompanied many of these expeditions,could not hide the thrill in his voice as he explained what true exploraton caving involved: crawling on one’s stomach through one tight squeeze after another, scaling cave walls 300 ft high, rappelling down others that were equally deep,floating down underground rivers and streams, recording the finds…

Chhiyalekh:
Morning was unbelievably beutiful, with the sun casting shadows of the peaks on the clouds. A pony trotted by my side, her colourful headgear and trimmings bringing a smile to my face. We were now ready to tackle three kilometers of very steep climb to Chhiyalekh Pass at 3,320 m, aiming to accomplish it in under two hours. The zigzag uphil climb made breathing difficult, and only the sight of deep red pulses on terraced fields kept my mind off the physical discomfort.

We started descending to Garyang village (3,225 m), camouflaged by harsh and stark mountains, devoid of vegetation. Eighty-one year-old Tabdoo Singh let us on to an interesting fact- in his childhood he had seen all the houses at a single upper level. Now the same houses existed at three different levels, as the ground had sunk.Many of the houses were leaning like the Tower of Pisa and quite a few had been deserted due to the fear imminent collapse. Gunji(3,500 m)lay 10 km ahead on a dusty trail with moderate ascent and descent. But my feet refused to obey me-blisters had started appearing on them.

The best places for paragliding in India are Kamshet in Lonavla between Mumbai and Pune,Virar near Mumbai,Kanifnath Near Hadapsar in Pune, Harrison Folly in Panchgani,Munnar in Kerala, Arambol Beach in Goa, Nandi Hills, Bangalore,Manali,Bir Billing, and Garhwal in Himachal Pradesh.

And at these places,it is not only the paragliders who enjoy what they are doing,but it’s also a sight to behold for the bystanders-the sky is full of paragliders,like a plethora of giant coloured butterflies hovering high up in the sky.

Moreover, once you are airborne,”The view is breathtaking;the scenery divine,”says software engineer Mr Pradip Mandal,an adventuresport enthusiast and a recent convert to this sport.

The relatively unknown cave in Meghalaya scored over its more famous sister in that it was a little treasure shared by only a few who dared to explore its dark side of stalactite and stalagmite formations. In silence we admired the displays in the art gallery tucked deep inside the bowels of the earth: it was as though nature was rewarding us for our efforts by flaunting works sculpted by a painstakingly slow process of water dripping,drop by drop from teh ceiling. Each droplet left behind the littlest sediment of calcium,which over millions of years formed columns reaching down from the ceiling (stalactites) or up from the floor(stalagmites).