yet again ... getting lost ... then enjoying self-discovery ...

This post carries a piece I wrote after my trip of December 2009  How long I have wanted to go to Calcutta; from before it became Kolkatta!  I recalled discussing with Yash ( more than once ) the urge to re-visit 'childhood moments'. Both of us have been brought up in a section of the city as we incidentally realized over one of our tele-conversations.  This sudden and unplanned trip was certainly not uncalled for.  Roshni and I landed at the airport and as I sipped coffee I glanced at the yellow taxis through the glass panes. In addition to my almost continuous banter on Calcutta since we got aware to the possibility of the trip also recalled our conversation on taxis during her call from the very venue few months ago. Taste of the apple-juice greeted my senses at the airport. Airport was far from our home then and I used to have apple-juice each time I visited it with papa, to receive his official guests. The taxi started, large hoardings and high-rise buildings appear

Share some interesting images from a recent trips to Nagaland ... A friend did remark that at the current juncture atmosphere in the state is favourable to conservation: these boards on the Kohima - Mokokchung route surely seem to underscore the fact; the challenge lies in building on this platform ~ Highly appreciated !!    Board at the entrance of a village with a google imagery on the left and a 'notice' on the right; the mobile phone (all images in the post are clicked by one as none of us carried a camera) did not allow me to click the entire board in one go! This we came across on an old vehicle while walking around the very lovely Mokokchung town.  Not a sign on the roads but came across the newspaper while moving. Wildlife issues do receive coverage in local press and these Amur Falcons I was told were also declared 'affected by bird flu' by the authorities to prevent people from hunting them. They come in thousands in Wokha

Another post that finds place in Indian Birds : 7(4). Introduction North-eastern India, and Mizoram: North-eastern India, comprising the states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Tripura, forms part of a rich biogeographic unit and is among the biodiversity “Hotspots” of the world (Choudhury 1999; Myers et al . 2000; Ved & Lalramnuna 2008). Within the hotspot our efforts are concentrated in the state of Mizoram. Mizoram (21º58’N–24º35’N, 91º15’E–93º29’E) covers an area of 21,081 kms 2 ( Anonymous 2006). In broad terms, the forests of Mizoram are classified as ‘Cachar Tropical Evergreen (IB/C3),’ and ‘Cachar semi evergreen (2B/C2),’ by Champion & Seth (1964). Its land and people have a tendency to being somewhat detached, obscure, and unknown, finding scarce mention in literature, whether historical, anthropological, or ecological (Singh 1996). Saiha district, located in extreme southern Mizoram, covers an area of 1,965.81 kms 2