Part 2 : Wayanad and Kutta trip

Part 1 of this trip covers Wayanad, Banasura Sagar dam and Soochippara waterfalls after which we continued our journey to Kutta.

The offbeat destination Kutta is popularly known as south Coorg. The coffee plantations and homestays, combined with proximity of two wildlife sanctuaries make it a good location to stay.

http://instagram.com/p/xVgRHUC7El/

Day 4:

After breakfast buffet at our resort, Bison Manor Resort, which was served late after 8.30 or around 9am, we visited Irpu Falls, nearby Kutta. Again, we needed to walk 1.2 km to see the waterfalls, but the paths were properly laid and there was no steep climb or rocky terrain on the way, instead a mix of long walk and proper steps. At the bottom of the waterfalls, there was a metal platform for the visitors to enter the waterfalls. And there is a view point platform constructed with seating, a bit away from the waterfalls, for the people who do not want to bath and would rather enjoy the view. The place was crowded, but the walkway was inviting. There were blue butterflies flying near the waterfalls and were a delight to see.Continue reading →

Part 1: Wayanad and Kutta travel

For the Christmas vacations of 2014, we visited nearby places of Bangalore. Initially we had plans to visit Goa again so as to enjoy the beaches with the kid, but considering the crowd of Goa in December and everything else like flights and hotels having higher rates, we skipped postponed it for a while.

The nearest weekend destinations which we had not visited was Vythiri, Wayanad which had got very good reviews. We planned to include Mysore zoo or any nearby wildlife sanctuary, so as to show animals for our child, Nayana. The Bylakuppe monastery which we visited years ago was also a choice as a photography destination, but we couldn’t get any hotels at the last moment nearby Madikeri or Coorg. Though, we did stumble across an off-beat destination, Kutta.

We started on Wednesday, 24th December early morning and reached back night on Monday, 29th December, 2014.The first two days were at Wayanad and remaining 3 days at Kutta. Unfortunately, we were too late to get any good resort accomodation in Wayanad and hence had to suffice with Wayanad Cliff Apartments, a budget hotel. For Kutta, we stayed at Stay Simple Bison Manor for 3 nights.

Day 1:

Started at around 6.10am, we reached Kamat Upachar after 7.30am. After breakfast stop of one hour,we started heading towards Mysore zoo and reached there around 11am. Instead of taking the electric motor ride, we walked the whole 3km inside Mysore zoo, showing the kid animals and taking pictures. Since we didn’t take a zoom lens, the pictures were all touristy.Continue reading →

Resolutions for 2015

Its 2015! Another new year.

Last Christmas

It was a private affair last Christmas with family, with no pomp of Christmas or New year celebrations. We made an almond date cake and few milkmaid cookies which got burnt. But nevertheless, the two weeks with RK was a much awaited holiday. As usual, most of the discussions surrounded over the new year resolutions which normally we tend to break.

Still, I am planning to try again my failed attempt of taking photo daily for 100happydays. I am still confused whether to do it as a happy days challenge, since my main intention is to take photos each day and not to concentrate on why I am taking that photo. It can also mean, I may be taking the photo just because I felt like it, rather than being happy about it. There could be also a reverse logic that if I felt like taking that photo, it could also mean, unconsciously I am enjoying that moment which in turn making me happy knowingly or unknowingly.

I could also view it as Project365 which is quite popular among creative people like bloggers and photographers. Many of my friends in Facebook have already started doing it too. And there is support in the form of prompts from the good old FatMumSlim photo a day challenge to the daily project of Clicking Moms.

And then, there is the confusion over where to consolidate the images. Flickr is a good choice, but that would mean disrupting my public Flickr profile with my mobile images and making it a dumping place. I have a backup in the form of Tumblr, but I am not sure, how to incorporate Tumblr images in groups and “communities” or make use of it in future. Currently I am posting on Instagram, with no proper agenda, taking every day as it comes.

This year, I really will have to replenish my skills so as to stand on my own. I am not sure whether it could be in Software Industry again, or something else. All I want is to get engaged into something productive and useful, not merely for money but for satisfaction of a worthy life. The questions I asked to my soul in last year point me to my creative side as an answer, though I am not sure how to make the flower bud bloom. I certainly don’t think I could be entrepreneur enough and start a photographic company, but the problem of channelizing the new found creative energy and maintaining it to a day to day routine is a humongous task in itself, leave alone finding answers to “what else”.

Last but not the least, health and staying fit is also part of my yearly goals, just like many others. My intention has never been to lose weight, but stay fit enough to face any hurdles thrown across me. So that I do not pant heavily in an impromptu trek I joined on a vacation, neither be lazy enough to give up walking around on my own or in groups.

With a slim waist, standing at a corner in a beautiful gown, beaming with pride on face, and ready for the ball dance with my partner witnessing the next new year celebrations.

That should be a picture perfect dream for 2015!

2014 in review

The year 2014 started off to a great start with a successfully completed daily writing challenge in January. I was so inspired that I got back to my own hosting at Web1 solutions, under the domain name archanaonline.com, leaving the shackles of archonline.wordpress.com and allowing me to experiment with themes and plugins.

I followed Write Tribe, a writing group and started writing 55 word fiction. I was actually surprised at my attempts at fiction that I signed up for the A to Z writing challenge in April on the theme Fiction Fragments. Though I completed that challenge too, I was not fully convinced on my story making capabilities.

At the same time, I started onto photography, by going for my first photowalk in May. And in Flickr, one of my photos got into “Explore” for the first time. And that too, without me having to do marketing or publicizing that photo. This got me into fame. Other photographers in the Facebook groups were keen on achieving the same “photos in Explore” tag, while it happened to me by luck. In 2014, totally, three photos of mine were selected in Flickr Explore.

I also completed “photo a day” challenge on Instagram in July, thanks to the prompts by FatMumSlim. I thought of creating a collage for them to post in this blog, but failed to do so, since I could not find appropriate app to create the photo calendar collage. Then there was the Black and White photo challenge on Facebook, for which I was actually not well qualified by experience, but still tried to complete in my own way.

One of the street photos of Ganeshas from Pottery Town, which I took on World Photography Day, 19th August, was selected for exhibition at Thalam, Bangalore. Then in November, three photos were selected in the FOCUS Bangalore annual photography exhibition, Beyond Colors at Venkatappa Art Gallery, Bangalore.

Though photography wise, I started to flourish in 2014, the blog suffered on the second half of the year. I realized both blogging and photography is kinda hard to carry on together, but can create beautiful work with some effort. Posts like the Ganeshas of Pottery Town, Sampoorn Santhe writeup and travelogue on Chikmagalur, is something I look forward to repeat in the year 2015.

Hey new year! Awaiting you 2015 eagerly for the events to unfold…

Mini Vacation at Chikmagalur

It had been a long time since we went for a long drive or a mini vacation. Chikmagalur was a destination we intended to visit from last year itself.

Day 1:
We started the journey around 6am though we wanted to start earlier. The roads were quite good till Belur. We could easily cruise around 110-120km/hr. We had breakfast at a Cafe Kamat nearby Kunigal, much early at around 7.30 itself, as we decided Kamat Yatri Nivas would be late, maybe not for us, but for the kiddo. There was also a Hotel Sahyadri inside a petrol pump, as our second backup restaurant.

We reached around Belur around 10.30, and hence decided to visit the Chenna Keshava temple, and if time permits then proceed to Halebidu.

chenna keshava temple

hoysala belur

At the Belur temple, we got hired by a guide for Rs.250/- and he started lecturing about the 48 celestial damsels called madanikas and other sculptures on the outer walls and also within the temple.

belur madanikas

After going around the temple for few photos, we got back into the car. I was forced to buy two stone deepams for Rs.100 by the handicraft sellers. By the time we got back into the car, it was already 12.30pm, so we skipped Halebidu and proceeded towards our homestay at Chikmagalur, Thippanahalli Homestay.Continue reading →

Beyond Colors – Photography Exhibition in Bangalore

If you are in Bangalore this weekend, please visit Venkatappa Art Gallery, Kasturba Road, Bangalore which exhibits three of my selected photos along with 40+ talented photographers. There are 100+ photos being showcased in this exhibition organized by Focus Bangalore. Some of the photos would be put up for sale at an affordable price too.

Beyond Colors Poster

This is the third exhibition organized by Focus Bangalore photography club. The previously held exhibitions, Breathing City in 2012 and Blurred Boundaries in 2013 was a huge success.

Entry is free. Timings from the second day onwards are 11 am to 6pm. The location map is given below.