Oh Calcutta

Snatches of Calcutta; the Oberoi’s Chauffeur, a Sikh in Sudder St, an explanation of Hijab in the Muslim quarter.

Food Glorious Food

A year on the road exposed us to many delicious dishes in Asia. My own delicious dish, Kristen, has somehow miraculously managed to stay slim and gorgeous while I have taken on a barrel like shape and are preparing myself for several bouts of serious dieting once we get back to Sydney, Here are some […]

Rudd-anoia

Can erstwhile PM and full time nerd K Rudd be following us ? Is he in deep cover throughout SE Asia on some covert mission for the UN trying to scrape those last few votes together ? Certainly at one stage he seemed to be taking on the physical shape of Gareth-Gareth Evans, Australia’s other […]

Who said Asians talk with their hands #2. Rono holds forth.

Opium, not of, but for the people

The opium trade wasn’t just about “evil” Britishers imposing their terrible and implacable will upon child like and helpless asians. Some Indians were forced to grow opium, others made enormous profits from it. There is nothing childlike about Asian people, particularly the Chinese, or for that matter the Indians. They are, and always have been, […]

Lovely Indian Images

Some wonderful images sent to us from our cousin Rono in Kolkata.

Hinglish Rules !

Hinglish. Perhaps the most evolved of all the variations of our noble mother tongue. Most felicitous and expressive, most bower birdish and elastic, most sweet to the senses, most profound to the reason. You know it makes sense. We know that Shakespeare and Chaucer would have approved. But enough of car now Le jay. What is […]

Bengali Child Catchers, & other smatters and snatches.

Kolkata, West Bengal, deeply mysterious one day, way enigmatic the next. Here the time honoured rules just don’t apply. This Lady, for example, seems to believe that orange and green shouldn’t be seen…unless there’s a wacking great pot on your head. Or is it pink and yeller that shouldn’t be seen…unless there’s a blue and […]

The Lady in the White Sari

119 Lake Terrace Ballygunge. A house like any other in a street like any other. There’s our room, with the green shutters closed, on the top floor. This is Shonkar. Cook, valet, chowkidar, odd jobs man, you name it. Faithful servant of the Dutt family these many years past. Shonkar came from a small village […]

Kolkata International Photography Festival

We’re very excited to be heading to the Kolkata International Photography Festival. En route, on Rash Bihari we meet this elegant lady and amicable priest. Bengalis love a great demo. But also stop to smell the flowers. A quick coffee. Then we plunge into the Museum, one of several campuses (or should it be campi […]