dry day

Hmm.
New beginnings.
I moved to another country last week. It's not a new country to me- I used to live here nearly two decades ago. Needless to say the place is completely different from what it was back then. And I have to get used to it all over again.
I have to be a better, neater, more polished version of myself here. Unironed clothes and messy hair just won't cut it.
I wonder what toll this will take on the environment. Malls, marts, McD's- I see how much more waste is generated here than back home. I suppose that will just be another challenge I grapple with while I am here: making sure I continue to do what I can, and continue to encourage others to too.
How dry it is here!
Know what's awesome though? There are mayflowers here! Gulmohur trees flowering profusely in the heat of an early Middle Eastern summer

Wish me luck in the ME!

red whiskered bulbuls

Remember I said I love observing the creatures around me? (In Robin and I)
Well, now I actually have a chance to observe, at close hand, a pair of red whiskered bulbuls nesting.

How do creatures without opposable thumbs form something so well? The nest's on an evergreen tree that you wouldn't think could take the weight of a bird as large as a bulbul, but so far it's doing well.
We weren't sure the bulbuls would choose to stay- we thought they might abandon the nest halfway because of the activity near it. (hardly my fault they chose to build near the front door)
We do our best not to disturb the parent that is in the nest. It (male? female? no distinguishing marks) doesn't sit on them throughout the day. I guess it gets hungry. And maybe it doesn't want to poach the eggs.

This was taken rather hurriedly, in a moment when the parent birds were on a break. Don't they look like candy-coated chocolate eggs?

I'm so excited! I hope I get to see the chicks! The countdown's begun- 10 days more...
BEST EASTER PRESENT EVER!!!

robin and i

I love James Herriot and Gerald Durrell. They make the natural world come alive and sparkle with humor.

While I am nothing like them (in the first place, I’m a girl. And I’m not British), I love observing, and if possible assisting, creatures around me.

The Magpie Robin has figured prominently in my life- my sister and I tried to rear a chick once; we watched a pair come to eat big black ants under our evergreen tree; we saw their wee speckled eggs in a hole in a guava tree brought down by a storm; I’ve listened to robins imitating the song of the Tickell’s blue flycatcher.

And now I have watched a magpie robin dart at a gecko and fly off with its tail. That was the most vicious thing I’ve ever seen that little bird do!

And they say Robin’s just Batman’s gay partner! Pfft!

sandcastles in the sand

It is the time of year when kids start clamoring to go to the beach. If you’re a parent, you might be put off by all the preparations that need to be made. If you aren’t one, you might be put off by all the money that you have to spend- water sports, a meal at a shack, petrol money = UGH!
In my estimable opinion, you’re looking at it all wrong. Why is it we want to DO something all the time? Light, man (seems this means CHILL).

The beach is a fantastic place to relax. Why do you think so many people come to Goa? Even before all the ‘activities’ were started, people were coming here.

Kids like the beach for reasons other than all the money they can spend (read waste) there. Most kids are thrilled by the splashing of waves, the glimmer of fish, the coarseness of sand between fingers and toes. So why shouldn’t we be?

This summer, visit that beach you’ve heard about but have never been to (I went to Keri- beautiful!)
Swim where it’s safe. Let the sea give you a free massage.
Walk along the length of the beach with friends and loved ones.
Look for shells.
Chase crabs in crazy circles. (It’s not cruel- they disappear and you’re the one left panting for breath).
Watch the birds, the winged ones.
Build a sandcastle. Or a sand hut, if you lack the skill and imagination for something grander.
Play cricket. Or ring.
Btw, in case you’d forgotten, sand is a fantastic exfoliator.

Don’t forget- take your garbage home with you, otherwise someone might burn it or leave it there.
By all means, patronize a local establishment. React if you are treated shabbily, but don’t get in a fist fight.
Lastly, do NOT swim drunk. Listen to the lifeguards – they are supposed to guard your life.
Have fun!