Don't worry, be happy...International day of happiness

March 20 has been recognized as the International day of happiness by the UN.

Happiness is a fundamental right and pursuing it is serious business. Happiness for all human beings on this planet and let us all try to make each other happy.

These photos were taken in Dubai during the Dubai shopping festival some years ago. It was wonderful, festive season over there and the weather was cool! These drummers were awesome; we all felt thrilled. People were dancing and even they invited many to join them drumming on stage. You don't need any special training for playing those drums, they will tell you what to do and we are in sync with them! So simple!

During the height of frenzy, a guy would shout with the microphone in hand 'forget the past, be happy, live in the present'

Well, not so easy to forget all the bitterness of the past but why can't we give it a try, at the least?

You are all familiar with the Burj Al Arab, the iconic structure on the Jumeirah beach in Dubai. I never tire taking pictures of this magnificent artistic structure! I have blogged a lot about this awesome hotel. What a beautiful building!

I have a happiness group on my Google plus page; ' Find happiness here', kindly join 😊

Live happily, spread happiness 😊

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Greenery, everywhere...!

 Arecanut trees against the backdrop of setting Sun...

 Coconut tree...

 Beautiful yellow flowers...

 Wonderful white flowers...

 Green pepper!

 This is Chinese chilli (Kanthari mulaku, in Malayalam ), a very hot chilli variety...

 Green pepper...

 A cute rose flower...

 Tomato cultivation...

Plantain, a fruit, and a plant...
A common sight in most of the households in Kerala, especially in the villages.

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Camphor Tulsi (Karpoorathulasi, kapoor tulsi, camphor basil) and other common varieties of this divine plant in India

Camphor Tulsi

Camphor tulsi/Karpoorathulasi/Camphor basil is a rare variety of Basil. Rub the leaves of this divine plant, the fragrance resembles camphor!

Tulsi (Thulasi, basil), as you all know, is a holy plant worshiped in India. All Hindu households will have a Tulsithara, a raised structure in front of the house facing the main door where this holy plant will be grown. Some use a special clay pot as the container to grow Tulsi where space is limited.  Nowadays people have started growing Tulsi, somehow or other, in pots and containers in small apartments as well.

Thulasi leaves and flowers are used in Hindu rituals of worship of Gods and Goddesses. This holy plant is considered sacred in Hinduism. It is a divine plant.

There are three varieties of Tulsi (Holy basil) popular in India.

• Krishna Tulsi - the leaves and stem are purple in color, the aroma of the leaves is mesmerizing. 
• Rama Tulsi - the leaves are green. 
• Shyama Tulsi - the leaves are long and narrow.

Krishna and Rama are the varieties commonly grown in houses in India. Other varieties, if present are said to be auspicious. I have here Krishna, Rama, Camphor and Lemon varieties. Trying to get Shyama tulsi, God willing will get it as well asap.

There is a lot of confusion regarding the nomenclature of this species and the local names in India. I tried my best online, but I feel there is no consensus regarding the classification, local names, and varieties. Hope someone knowledgeable will enlighten us sooner or later. So I have used the common names that I am familiar with in this post.

Lemon Tulsi

Tulsi has innumerable medicinal uses as well. It has been claimed to be having anti-diabetic, carminative, immunity boosting, anti-cancer properties and the like. Some varieties have culinary uses as well, like Thai basil.

Camphor Tulsi/Karpoora thulasi is a water-loving plant. You miss it to water one day, hmmm...it will collapse if it is growing in a pot!

Rama Tulsi

We worship this divine plant. May God bless you all.

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Do it yourself - self watering plant pot

Things are all fine until we go for holidays for our plants especially the indoor beauties. I have tried self-watering plastic bottles with cotton wicks while away on holidays and it had served the purpose very well. 

Recently I began researching more about organic vegetable growing that led me to self-watering plant pots. Read a lot about watering, organic manures, organic pests repellents, organic seeds etc. There are plenty of commercial plant pots that are self-watering but expensive. So I thought of making one like this one with materials available locally.

Here is a plastic plant pot. I have kept two stones inside so that the square blue plastic sheet you will find below will fit perfectly about an inch above the base of this pot. Holes were put on this blue sheet and two cotton wicks inserted. Below this water will be collected and above this blue sheet good quality soil, cocopeat, vermicompost, and a little neem cake powder were put. 

A small hole was also put on the brick colored plant pot about an inch above the base so that excess water may be drained out. I have not fixed a plastic tube that extends from the top of the soil to the base reservoir because this is a small pot and I am quite sure that I can control watering this plant to prevent overflow and over-watering. For bigger pots, it is better to use a plastic tube to pour water that reaches directly the reservoir at the base so that the source of water is at the base and water absorption takes place from below. No topsoil watering in this case. Also no need to keep the plant pot on a base plate here to collect excess water like we do in normal plant pots if we can control watering.

As you know cocopeat has great water retention properties. Neem cake prevents pests invasion and Vermicompost is rich in plant nutrients. The excess water that we pour together with the nutrients will collect in the reservoir. It will be absorbed by the wick by capillary action and enters the soil.

So this should work for 3 - 5 days even if we are not available at home to feed these beauties. For more days go for bigger pots and reservoirs.

You are all familiar with the second plant😊  It is an easy-care indoor plant that figured in NASA's list of awesome indoor plants which purify indoor air.

But what about the first dark green plant?
Please name it😊

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Silent night, holy night...

Silent night, holy night...!
With his magical voice, Elvis made this song divine! Hats off to Elvis Presley!

Merry Christmas!

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Backbone, a sculptural installation by Shanthamani Muddaiah at Aspinwall house grounds, venue of Kochi - Muziris biennale 2014

Nestling on the beautiful grounds of the Aspinwall house lies this brilliant sculptural installation!

'Backbone' was created by Shanthamani Muddaiah.

This beautiful coastal land full of greenery has a rich and colorful history. Blessed by natural beauty, suitable for the growth of exotic spices and condiments, inhabited by simple souls centuries ago, life here was peaceful. They welcomed visitors with great hospitality. Visitors wanted business relations as well that turned later on to hostile takeovers and acquisitions.

This art has captivated me. Spent a lot of time appreciating it and taking pictures. An awesome work, no doubt!

 Cinder and cement...awesome!

Standing here all these thoughts surfaced in my mind like an archeological excavation. Each and every piece we have unearthed are precious, they all have awesome stories to tell, nature here speaks volumes, only we need to listen, the backbone of events that shaped the lives of scores of generations who lived here. Moreover, still it is getting reflected on one and all; we experience it...just be here😊

 One of the best!

Thanks for portraying such a brilliant, a thought-provoking work😊

http://www.shanthamani.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AiFT-fViHU  watch artist interview.

Visit my other blog for more about Kochi - Muziris Biennale 2014.
www.magicalpresent.blogspot.com     Started a series about this historic art event yesterday. You will see a lot of posts from me about this awesome event in the coming days.
http://www.kochimuzirisbiennale.org

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Christmas decorations!

Malls, shops, and public places here have already been decorated welcoming Christmas!
We visited Oberon mall the other day. The whole place looked really wonderful!

www.oberonmall.com

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Elephant wearing Nettippattom in the heart of city!

Well...this is not a real elephant but a life-size model!

I shot this in front of Penta Menaka, a popular shopping complex at Marine drive in Kochi. It looked real... amazing! An air pump was attached to it by which the trunk was moving.

'Nettippattom', an ornamental gold plated sacred caparison is worn over elephant's forehead during temple festivals in Kerala. Nowadays miniature versions of this beautiful caparison, you will see in cars and houses also. Being sacred it is thought to bring prosperity.

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Dubai mall waterfall - a very beautiful video!

Serving as a gateway to Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure in the world and the Dubai fountain, this beautiful waterfalls is created inside the Dubai mall adjacent to many awesome restaurants.

It is about 24 meters in height with the water column traversing all the four floors with sculptures of divers made with fiberglass along the flow of direction of the water feature.
During the daytime, Sunlight gets reflected from it and at night it is illuminated beautifully!

http://www.dubaimall.com

Enjoy these videos too :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDxis3wIIR0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijvJ0ZzaoSM
Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world and the beautiful Dubai fountain!

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Crazy fire - an awesome ride at the Dubai creek during DSF 2011 - 12!

Wow, what a thrilling ride!

This was recorded during the 2011 Dubai shopping festival at Dubai creek.
As you all know Dubai is a wonderful city and walking along the creek during the time of shopping festival is really fun!

For more info about this ride:
http://www.happyfun.ae

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