Mommy and Sonny Visit the BirdPark

Last Sunday my husband was  not in station and it was just me and sonny at home.

My whole family truly believes that the most heinous crime that can be committed against me is asking me to sit all day within the confines of the four walls of the house.

V was actually busy and content.You simply do not get bored when you are three and a half and you just dont need a reason to be happy. An ant on the floor can give as much pleasure as a visit to Disney Land.

Hence though I declared to the big bad world that I was taking him out as he was getting bored, it was actually my own boredom I was escaping from.

Anyways, I have mentioned in some of my earlier posts about my son's addiction, craze or whatever you may call it to fauna. If there is anything that fills him with absolute glee its the sight of birds or animals.

With due consideration to the above fact, bird park was the choice as its close to my place and I decided to take on the herculean task!(Herculean? If you are wondering why, you need to take care of my little fellow for a day. Or for that matter any kiddo in the 3 to 4 yr range.Believe me, it sounds a lot more easier than it is!)

The weather-God smiled upon my quest to spend some quality time with my little boy and made sure that there were no irritating and troublesome downpours.It was bright and sunny throughout.

I just let the day go, moving in the directions he wanted to the tune of his childish pleasures.Whatever he wanted to see, however long it took!

The way his face lit up on seeing the penguin swim, the squeal he gave on seeing the pink flamingoes, it was bliss.

I realized that a simple thing like a hornbill flying from one branch to another could be the source of innocent pristine exuberance.

Every now and then he excitedly pointed at little things that he observed which were huge in his world...."Amma, the feather of the Pelican fell into the water. We need to stick". Luckily he did not insist that I had to stick it back immediately!

He spent almost three quarters of an hour simply watching the storks as they kept wading in the pool trying to find some fish while I sat on a bench nearby observing him. I doubt if any of us adults can get so much joy out of a simple scene as that!

Sometimes, its imperative that we take some time out and be with kids as kids. Just let them be themselves and relish in those little moments.Laugh when they laugh, run when they run and share a cone of icecream .They deserve it and trust me , the happiness it gives can be equated by nothing on earth.

There is a place called Lory Loft in the Singapore Bird Park. Its an enclosure for a flock of very colorful birds called lorries and visitors can feed some porridge-like substance to the birds which can be bought nearby. The last time we went , he was hardly two years. Then I was carrying him and he watched with curiosity as we adults fed the birds. This time he declared 'Vidyut give mum-mum(rice) to the birds' and he took the bowl from me and proceeded to feed his feathered friends. There are some subtle moments in life when the realization dawns on us that 'Boy, he is growing up!' . And I beamed in pride as I watched him carefully feeding the lorries without getting scared or spilling one drop.

The icing of the cake was the Parrot Paradise. For one, I was amazed by the varieties of parrots. Name a color and there was one in it- Purple, Blue, Red and even Black! As we wandered amongst their cages, I heard a familiar note amongst the cacaphony of their screeches. I went in the direction it was coming from and tried to concentrate. A yellow and green parrot was singing some rhyme that was very familiar. I moved closer and listened carefully. 'Haa-ppp-yyy B-urrr-ttt-daay' sang the bird.  I have seen them do in some shows, but on a hot afternoon, this parrot in a cage was happily singing away to glory. Leave alone V, I myself was terribly excited. Both of us pitched in. In the tranquillity of the greenery all around it was mother, son and a parrot singing 'happy birthday to you' without any care about who was listening to us. Actually we seemed to be the only tourists in that enclosure. 

The caged bird seemed to be preaching  "Happiness is the state of your mind, not of your surroundings"

After around five hours, I said to V that we needed to get going. I had been pushing his stroller and was a little exhausted. As I wearily headed to the taxi stand he turned  to me and declared without even an iota of tiredness..."Shall we go to the elephant park ?" I should have thought twice before giving him a name that translated to energy!

Kecak Dance - Bali

‘We saw Ramayana dance in Bali’, my friend who was just back from the island had told me. This roused my curiosity and one of the very first enquiries I made during our vacation to Indonesia was about this dance form.

‘Oh! That is the Kecak(pronounce Kay-Chaak) dance. Its about Hanuman and Sita and Rama’ the receptionist at our hotel had explained.

Kecak dance is promoted widely as part of the tourism in Bali and there are daily performances in some places, predominantly temples. We stayed in a place called Ubud and we got to witness this beautiful art form during our first evening there.

At the entrance , they had stacked some print outs in different languages – English, French, German, Spanish etc. containing a detailed explanation of the structure of the day’s play – the order of the scenes, the different characters in them and a gist of the plot to be enacted.

There were no electrical lights at the venue and the entire place was lit up using oil lamps that did not overdo the illumination and gently sprayed a serene radiance all around.

There were around 50 men seated in a circle on the floor, clothed in a checked robe around their waist.

The main background for the dance is provided by the ‘Caka Caka Caka Caka Cak Cak Cak’ (Pronounced Chak) chanting of these men that takes the credit for the name ‘Kecak’.

I was flabbergasted at their energy levels and stamina. For nearly an hour they kept chanting non-stop with a relentless fervor . Their expressions depicted the depth of their involvement and their dedication to the art form; the synergy of their unified voices reverberated all around us.

Then came the lead artists and enacted one scene after another. These actors have a very distinct costume characterized by decorative head gear, heavy make up, lots of jewellery and unique shiny and colorful clothing. It reminded me of some of our Indian art forms like Kathakali and Yakshagana.

Thanks to the print out they provided it was very easy to follow the scenes, given the fact that we have a basic idea about the contents of the Ramayana. The title of the play was ‘Kumbakarna’s Death’.

Scene 1 – Rama and Lakshmana cross the ocean with the help of the Vanaras(monkeys)

Scene 2 – Ravana brings a fake head to Sita and says that he has slain Rama but he fails to convince her

Scene 3 – Ravana’s son uses his Nagastra (snake-weapon) on Rama and Lakshmana and makes them unconscious. Garuda the bird comes to the rescue

Scene 4 – Rama kills Kumbakarna


The chanting men also play a part in the enactment sometimes as the bridge, sometimes as the snake.

Once this was over, they placed a pile of coconut husks at the center and set it on fire. It was time for the fire dance. The dancer entrusted with the role came charging like a race horse and pranced on the burning husks , sparks flying all around him, his movements scattering the burning fragments all over the place. They gathered them again to a mount at the center and the whole act was repeated. It was mesmerizing.

This was the final act and they thanked us all for being a part of the evening.

As we walked out the performers also started leaving the venue, done with their evening engagement.They seemed to be from all walks of life and apparently the ‘Cak Cak Cak’ was a passionate interest for which they gathered everyday like a game of tennis is to many of us.

Providing a write up for reference before a show is something our dance forms can learn from them and incorporate. Though I could not understand a word of the lyric I thoroughly enjoyed what was being shown. Today if we go to a Bharathnatyam or Kuchipudi concert, except for those who have some basic knowledge about the art form its very difficult to comprehend and appreciate. A similar measure would play a big role in promoting the innumerable art forms we have in our country - a few which need a lot of support to prevent their extinction.

The following is a video I found on YouTube.

My Bali Trip 3

Went on a trip to India and could peep into neither my own blog nor those of others for nearly ten days.
Baisakhi Temple:





The Baisakhi temple , also known as the Mother Temple, is situated at the foot of Mt Agung, an active volcano . The temple survived unscathed during an eruption of the volcano in the 1960's and hence it is highly revered by the locals . The volcanic rock used for the construction gives the structure a unique black shade .It comprises of 7 ascending levels, the 7th most being at the summit of the mount and hence not accessible to the regular tourist.There are three main temples here dedicated to the trimurthis Brahma,Vishnu and Shiva. Exploring the temple's premises involves a whole lot of climbing steps , a point to be kept in mind when deciding to go there . A tourguide can be arranged for around 50000 Indonesian Rupiahs . Our tour guide doubled up as our photographer there and was highly helpful in getting some family snaps .Unlike the temples in India the sanctum Sanctorum of the temples in Bali remain closed throughout the year except on selected days when there is a ceremony in the temple as per the Balinese calendar.






Just like the temples in India, their Balinese counterparts have their own sanctity and some rules. People wont be allowed to enter in shorts. If you are dressed in one, you would need to buy or rent a 'sarong' a local garment worn by the Balinese and tie it around your waist. Also, in all temples there would be a board that women are not allowed to enter during menstruation.



The murals of Shiva and Vishnu within the temple were very fascinating. Shiva with a moustache and mounted on his nandhi, Vishnu with a discus on his Garuda.


Picture Of Shiva In the temple






Tanah Lot Temple:


The Tanah Lot temple is located on the West coast of Bali, beautifully located atop a cliff on the seashore. This temple offers some breathtaking views and is a feast to the cameraman's lens.




There is a structure located at the foot of the cliff as well. In times of high tide, worshippers just go to this one at the lower altitude. When we went it was a high tide and the waves leapt to heights I have never seen before. Tanah Lot Sunset is very famous. Our guide told us that the Uluwatu temple is similar and that it offers equally great views. As it was a little cloudy we did not stay back for the sun set. Even with the sun perched high up in the sky during the afternoon it was a beautiful experience.