Gavi is 40 km from Thekkady, the western region of Periyar Tiger Reserve which is popular eco-tourism destination for jeep safari, trekking, camping, waterfalls etc. Continue reading
Kerala
Amazing coconut tree
Photo: T J Varghese
Photo taken near Alappuzha, Kerala.
Fresh Water Otter
Photo: T J Varghese
The Fresh Water Otter is a carnivorous aquatic animal which is a familiar sighting in the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Continue reading
The Wild Cattle -Indian Gaur (Bos gaurus)
Photo:Varghese.T.J
Photo taken by Varghese T.J. in periyar tiger reserve, Kerala in April 2011.
The Big Cat – The Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris)
Photo:TJ VARGEESE
Photo taken from Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary, Wayanad, Kerala, India on January 2010.
Nilgiri Langur (Trachypithecus johnii)
Photo taken from Gavi- ecotourism zone, north of periyar
Green Pepper (Pipper Nigrum)
Native to the Western Ghats, Pepper is popularly known as the “King of Spices”. Continue reading
Backwaters Home: Pampa Villa
- Pampa Villa On The Pamba River
We have mostly shown images of life on Kerala’s backwaters from the perspective of boats, as in looking at and looking from. As Milo’s recent post showed (at the tail end, so to speak), there is much more life on these waters than first meets the eye of the occasional visitor. The view above is from the river, looking at a home that Raxa Collective recently took responsibility for.
This responsibility included modifications to the interiors in order to make it more welcoming to travelers. It had served as the home of a prosperous resident of the backwaters, but now is open to receive visitors whose preferences in terms of privacy, decor and food (at least spice levels) often differ from those of locals, at least a bit.
Life of Periyar (Periyar Lake)
Photo by: Varghese TJ
The most familiar scenic view of Periyar Lake, which covers 26 Sq Km of the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Continue reading
East Indian Rosebay (Tabernaemontana divaricata)
East Indian Rosebay (Tabernaemontana divaricata) is an evergreen, much branched shrub which is cultivated as a garden plant.
Blue Grass Dartlet
The first time I saw this species, I was dumbfounded, to say the least. We live in a 10th floor apartment in urban Cochin, which admittedly is on the banks of the backwaters. Nonetheless, I was quite surprised to see a dull-colored damselfly float through a window and over our dining room table, and out the door onto the balcony on the opposite side of the room. Fortunately, I gathered my wits quickly enough to rush back with my camera, and corralled the enigma into a corner in the balcony (non-violently, of course), and was able to get a few shots before it breezed off in the lethargic float I’ve come to associate with damselflies. The only time I’ve seen any damselfly zooming the way most dragonflies do is when they’re swooping in on their prey, at which point even the laziest, slowest, and smallest of them can put on quite a turn of speed.
African Tulip Tree (Spathodea campanulata)
One of the world’s most magnificent flowering trees, African Tulip Tree (Spathodea campanulata) is an evergreen tree native to central africa.
Common Lantana (Lantana camara)
The beauty of this wild aromatic flower attracts butterflies as well as guests in Cardamom County’s butterfly gardern. Common Lantana is one of an ornamental plant which is an erect many branched evergreen aromatic shrub. Continue reading
Chemparathy (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)
Chemparathy (shoe flower) is one of the fabulous plant to have in our garden, which is an evergreen perennial shrub and native of china. So, it is also called as china rose, Chinese Hibiscus. It is the national flower of Malaysia.
Shankupushpam (Butterfly Pea)
One of my favourite flowers is the cute Shankupushpam, known worldwide as Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea). The luminescent blue flower with the yellow core is the most striking feature. Continue reading
Any Given Christmas
While the paper Christmas stars of Kerala are often just cheerful adornments to a rooftop, shopfront or hanging eave, there are also an entire range of much larger, homemade stars. Ranging in size from large to gargantuan, they are meant to convey messages from simple well wishes to the deepest ideologies…. Continue reading
Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia diversifolia)
Mexican Sunflower is a member of sunflower family native of mexico, introduced in India.
Saip!
In my own favorite post of the last few months (Kerala: Seeing & Learning), I briefly mentioned the word. But I didn’t make it clear just how hilarious the instances of its utterance can be, especially when the subject knows its significance.
A New Zealand writer who lived in Kerala for a few years describes a few bizarre Continue reading
Kerala’s Stars
The colorful stars that begin to grace Kerala buildings in December from homes, to businesses, to places of worship have humble beginnings despite their current flashy status. The were originally a simple white 7 point star that correlated with the beacon leading to the Christmas manger.
Many of these folded and cut paper stars are the handiwork of a group of women in a fishing villages around the southern Kerala city of Kollam. Continue reading
Mysore Thunbergia (Thunbergia mysorensis)
Mysore Thunbergia is a climber mostly found in Evergreen and semi-evergreen forest foothills of the Western Ghats. It is popularly known as Lady Shoe Flower due to the flower shape and large size. Sunbirds are the frequent visitor for these flowers which are rich in nectors. Flowering season is between October to January.
Organikos 