Bird Spa Tales

Don't know about all the n-star spas  in the nation's capital frequented by those who treat water,money,time,power and so on on the same footing, and expend lots of it.  But there is a great bird spa in Delhi, with an amazing ambiance, amidst fruit and flower fragrances, sun dappled trees and fluttering leaves, and assorted spa tubs placed in strategic places .

It is visited by all, including the posh and the carefree and the middle class types. The brown headed Barbets represent the last category, and are just totally wide eyed about what they have discovered.

The owner of the Spa is a  Papparazzi called, what else, Sangeeta !

The Sangeet Bird Spa
the first of its kind
in the Capital.

Mr and Mrs Tailorbird
couldn't praise it enough
lauding the
pervading tomato and jasmine fragrance...

The typical male
Asian Koel,
well entrenched amidst the greens,
watched avidly
as the
Oriental White eye
shrugged
her wet clinging feathers
dry,
till the
Laughing Dove noticed him
and stopped laughing...

Of course
the posh
Rose ringed parakeets
and the
Red vented Bulbul,
veterans of other spas
pretended
as if they go to spas
all the time,
and
this was just another one.

But we Brown headed Barbets
are a bit middle class,
like to enjoy
these spa baths
by ourselves,
but never knew that
there is a Paparazzi
lurking around here
all the time,
and whats more
publishing our bath pictures on FB !

Sha! Waise I've seen some films.
aaj kaal ke logon ko kuch sharam hi nahi lagti
safed sadi pehenke, waterfall ke niche
photo kheechte hain...

Would you leave ?
I so need to have a bath.....

And the fruits listened ......

Hot  summer days in Mumbai , children having summer vacations, and a variety of summer fruits means kids and adults both frequently enjoying fruit salads with cool custard. 

 Hot summer days in places like Delhi, sometimes means hot days in Parliament, and sometimes I think folks there can learn a lot from kids.

My blogfriend Magiceye, has been actually enjoying such fruit salads, and posted this , as part of his Saturday Photohunt Series. 

It just got me thinking of adding a final dollop of icecream....:-))

Lovely circular
crystalline premises,
with vertical column designs
reflecting the country's powerful
on a bright
and sunny day.

Bananas,
revealing themselves
falling to pieces inside;
Older mature Chikoos,
shoving aside the seeds,
rushing in to
express concern;
Mangoes,
with their Hapoos security,
bossing their way in
cut up just so,
watched by
the adolescent oranges
stewing in their
own angry juices
whispering
and conspiring with
the pineapple bits.

The slightly peaceful
apples and pears
wondering
at all the
enmities and commotion,
after so many years and years
of meeting together,
as a solitary green grape
inadvertently
enters the premises
new to everything.

And then a child
looks on delightedly
at a jug
of
cold milk of human kindness
enriched
by some educated custard, 
and simply pours it all
over the fighting fruits,
saying,
" Chill, guys !
there is nothing more sweeter
than all of us in this
together;
and for those
who are still fighting
maybe a slap of icecream would help ?"

White with Gold - summer colors

My young blogger friend Kalyani, often posts pictures, with a color palette that simply screams the specialities of the season......with backgrounds, and colors bringing back memories of school summer holidays in native places in Kokan, traipsing around in the hot sun in white petticoat type sleeveless frocks, climbing trees, plucking flowers, making them into garlands and "wenis", secrets amongst cousins, afternoon escapades, playing and fighting over "Sagargotaas", and gorging on juicy mangoes, and being shouted at for studding the pristine white with gold ...

(Wrote the Marathi poem first; did an English version for my Non marathi friends; probably not as sweet in English, but what the hell, enjoy the mangoes and chafaa flowers ! Summer's here ....)

(photo by Kalyani Wakkar)
उन्हाळ्याच्या सुट्टीत
सफेद फ्रील वाले झगे घालून,
दुपारच्या वेळी
झोपाळ्याच्या खोलीत ,
मामाच्या घरी
लहानपणी
सागरगोट्यानचे फेकलेले डाव
चोख्लेले रायवळ आंबे,
आणि
त्यांचे सफेद झाग्यांवर पडलेले
सोनेरी पिवळे डाग ......
एका सोमवारी सकाळी
आठवणी हसल्या ......

A hot and sultry
May afternoon
at
the family homestead
in Kokan,
little girl cousins
at grandma's,
playing
in soft
frilled
white
summer frocks;
the Sagargota stones
have been abandoned,
for the
liquid gold
of the RaiwaL mango,
squeezed,slurped
and swallowed,
as is,
while
the yellow gold
drips inulgently
on to the
pristine white innocence....

And while grandma
takes a nap,
nearby,
the creaking of the old swing,
the giggles,
and plundering
of mangoes continues,
in the mind,
making you smile,
hot
and sultry,
this
Monday morning
in Mumbai....