Off The Beaten Path

Jiu Zhai Gou

Jiu Zhai Gou is most definitely one of the most beautiful places that I have seen in my life. It is one place I would love to revisit again, and again, and again, and again.

You can reach Jiu Zhai Gou by plane from Chengdu, which is Sichuan, China. Jiu Zhai Gou, translated, means "The Valley Of Nine Villages", and has been a UNESCO Heritage Site since 1992.

Jiu Zhai Gou is on the Southern End of the Minshan Ranage.  The landscape is high altitude karst, shaped for thousands of years by geologic, tectonic and hydrological activities. It is a landscape that has been shaped for millions of years by love. If there is a God, then this God has shaped Jiu Zhai Gou with the utmost love and care. However, since it does lie on the faultlines of the diverging belt between the Qinghai-Tibet plate and the Yangtze plate.

Imagine, if you will, three valleys in a Y-shape, between 1,800 and 2,200 metres above sea level.

Imagine, if you will, 720 sq km of hills and crystal clear water, that reflect the skies and surrounding trees with calmness of shimmering mirrors.

Imagine 720 sq km of beautiful clean air, pristine landscape.

Imagine a landscape where the waters seem to change colour with the relections of the changing seasons, and you will then be able to understand the beauty of Jiu Zhai Gou. 

Here, I must pause, and compliment the Chinese government. They have constructed wooden paths along which you are allowed to walk. Walking on the grasses, for fear of damaging the landscape, is prohibited. Tourists are taken from a designated point, into the scenic area, in electric buses. If there is an example of a government preserving the landscape, then this is it.

Imagine the pristine beauty of Jiu Zhai Gou completely ruined with plastic bags, and the assorted debris of unfeeling tourists, and you will then really understand the wisdom of these measures.

Don't go to Jiu Zhai Gou for the food. The food in the restaurants is really horrible. A gastronomic disaster created by mass cooking methods that delight in ruining taste buds.

Go to Jiu Zhai Gou to experience undiluted beauty.

After Dark - 4. All Hallow's Eve'

Centuries ago, the ancient Celts divided the year into two phases, the "lighter" half, and the "darker" half. The lighter half was the time of summer, when sowing and harvesting would take place. The darker half was the time when the days would become short, the nights long, when the cold wind would howl and bring terrors from the nether world. This was the time, before which, a family would hoard food, and spend as much time indoors. The darker half was hostile, and inimical to life.

Centuries ago, the ancient Celts also believed that at the time of the changing of the seasons, when the light would give way to the dark, the gap between the two worlds would narrow, and that the spirits of the other world could slip through, and enter our world.

This was their new year, and they called the festival Samhain, which loosely means summer's end. This was the time when, like many other cultures around the world,  they would celebrate a festival to honour the dead. Benevolent spirits would be welcomed. Malevolent spirits would be shunned, and to do this, they probably wore masks, and devil's costumes, and such like.

While they were difficult times, they were also a time of wonder, when the spirits of nature and of the land, were revered. This was still a time when man still considered himself to be a part of nature.

Head hunting was common those days, and possibly "heads" made from turnip were carved and put on doors and gateposts to frighten malevolent spirits away.

Gradually, as the Church gained in ascendancy, it absorbed this and other pagan religions. Samhain was transformed into All Saint's Day, and All Hallow's Evening, or Halloween.

Somewhere, somehow, possibly through Irish immigrants, Halloween reached American shores. The turnip became the pumpkin, and the Festival of the Dead became the Festival of Tricks and Treats!!

The wonder of the ancient Celts has become transformed into something altogether different. Religions of the past have become new traditions, and the roots of the past have been forgotten. Evolution works in strange ways.

After Dark - 4. Fire In The Sky!

October 1, 1949 saw the birth of the new People's Republic of China. This day is celebrated every year, as GuoQing Jie in China, and is one of the Golden Weeks in China.

I doubt that anyone in 1949 could have foreseen that the country would rise to such heights in such a relatively short time. This is a country that has seen it's fair share of turbulence during the early years, and after it opened up in 1978 the country has grown by leaps and bounds. Whatever people may say, it is a tribute to the extremely focussed leadership that China has. 

August 15, 1947 saw the birth of the new India. We, in our current avatar, are two years older than China is in it's current avatar. Our country is growing as well, especially in recent times. Yet the two countries have followed such different routes to economic growth, and will continue to do so. 

In my opinion, the two countries should be partners. Is this possible? Hopefully. 

October 1, 2009 saw the coming out of China, on the occasion of the 60th year of the Republic. It was quite a show, and it does reflect the growing confidence of the Chinese. The world may well take note of this.

I took the  picture above on September 30, 2004 at the Century Garden in Shanghai. The fireworks were brilliant. The fire falling from the sky heralds a change in the global power structure, some thing that will have a profound change in the way the world will function in the years to come. 

I am, still, young enough to see the way the world will change in the years to come. 

After Dark - 3. Fire On The Ground

Diwali, the Festival of Lights is great fun, if you are in Delhi, or anywhere in North India. It is not so much fun if you are in Mumbai, or Bombay, as it used to be called.

This was our first Diwali, on returning to India after 7 years. One advantage of celebrating Diwali in places like Shanghai is that, since the Indian community is so small, everyone gets together and has a good time. In India, the whole custom of going out to wish everyone, and give them gifts has become an elaborate affair. The gifts, and the associated packaging, has become more and more expensive. Either you do it, in which case your bank balance is damned. Or, you don't, in which case your reputation is damned!

Earlier, we'd write cards to people, seal them, stamp them, and post them. Now, with technology becoming more and more ubiquitous, we send text messages. The element of personalisation has slowly disappeared, and we are all truly becoming bricks in the wall. Never did Roger Waters write a truer song.

The above shot, incidentally, was taken in our backyard. And, converted to black & white. I like the slightly ghostly effect. The essence is what matters.

Diwali is sacred to the Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists. For the Jains, it marks the attainment of Moksha for Mahavir, in 527 BC. For the Sikhs, it marks the release of the 6th Guru, Guru Har Gobind Ji, from imprisonment at Gwalior, and his return to the Gurudwara Harmandir Sahib. And, for the Hindus, it marks the return of Ram, after 14 years of exile. For the South Indians, it marks the victory of Krishna over Naraksura.

Diwali is celebrated over a period of 5 days, from the 12th day of the lunar month. In India, the lunar month, is more important in many ways, than the solar month. It is also a much more accurate predictor of seasons.

Either way,what Diwali is  really about, is the rediscovery of the Inner Light, or Atman. Or, the ultimate reality, the Brahman.

We celebrate the Atman by lighting up our homes, and by bursting crackers, to chase the inner darkness away.

It is odd, therefore, that we do so with rituals and gifts that grow in grandeur and pomp with each passing year. This is why the ancient Hindus believed that we are now living in KaliYug, or the Dark Age.

The Whorehouse

During that first trip to Basel, I went for a walk with my good old American friend. Very cunningly, he took me along the road that had a red door, with the above (and, other such) poster in the window. This place of promise was on the main road, opposite a fairly good hotel. The Swiss took this in their stride, and went about their business as usual.

Outwardly, I was calm. Inwardly, all my conservative Indian upbringing was reeling with shock, with the forces of moral outrage struggling to get out to express my disapproval. Later, under the calming influence of a few beers, under the starry sky, at my favourite Irish Pub in the city, I had the chance to think a little more calmly.

Beer and a starry night are a potent combination, to allow free rein to philosophical thought.

Many centuries ago, my ancestors built erotic temples at places like Khajuraho and Konarak. The sexuality in these temples is explicit, unashamed, and unabashed. My ancestors wrote tomes like the Kama Sutra, which I have read.

Ancient Hindu religion had overtones of sexuality. Tantra is an ancient Indian form of religion, which teaches one way to enlightenment, through the forces of sexual union. 

Somewhere down the centuries, the Moral Police took over. If we were to extrapolate from what the priests and politicians say, the one billion Indians who live in India today have been born through the highly improbable act of Immaculate Conception.

So, what I saw in Basel, was actually very good. By taking sex, and the world's second oldest profession out of the dusty, cobwebbed corners of our minds, we actually help to demystify sex, and bring it into the realm of a purely natural phenomenon.

Beer and a starry night definitely are a potent combination, which I heartily recommend to all budding philosophers......

SBB. Basel

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Basel was the first leg of our trip. My good Chinese friends did not turn up, so I went along anyway, and attended some meetings in office. After office, I wandered around a bit, and saw a bit of the city. This was the first time that I was visiting Basel. I did not know at the time,  that I would visit the city many times, and that I would get to really enjoy and appreciate the city.

The station, like all Swiss hotels, is superb. I like the facade, done up in the old classical style. Swiss trains run like clockwork. Japanese trains are known for their punctuality, but I must say that the Swiss are right up there when it comes to the network, and the absolute precision by which the trains run.

The stations, at least the one in Basel, is like it's own world. Restaurant, shops, wine shops abound. The area around is lovely as well. It has a quaint charm of its own.

Which is why I choose to stay at the Hilton, right next to the station. Life is good!!

At Montreux

"We all came out to Montreux, to make records on a mobile...." For those of us, who belong to the white haired generation, Montreux was an amazingly romantic place. 

I was 16 years old when I discovered "Smoke On The Water". Those were the days when I grew my hair long, wore beads and Lennon/Gandhi glasses, and smoked stuff I would never permit my kids to smoke. The song, and the album are amongst the most brilliant rock albums of all time, in my opinion. 

Little did I realise at that point, that close to 30 years later I would be driving down to Montreux with my Chinese friends. Montreux lies on the North East shore of Lake Geneva, and you can easily cover the distance from Geneva in less than 90 minutes by car. Montreux is a small town, famous for it's wine, and it's jazz festivals, and it's association with rock music. It's a small place, with a population of less than 25,000. 

In India, this would be considered to being close to a village. 

It's a quiet place, and I remember being quite surprised by this. We went around the little castle during the day, and late in the afternoon went up to the village, where viniculture is practised. What did we find? A wine grower married to a Chinese. However, I have to say, she seemed more Swiss than Chinese to me, in her behaviour. I think that she had completed integrated herself into the Swiss culture. 

Montreux is impossibly beautiful and serene. It is quite unlike the hard rocking my fevered teenage imagination had conjured up all those years ago. 

The village is a little away from the town. I took the above picture late in the afternoon, from the village on the hillside. Overlooking the lake and the mountains, this is a place where you could easily find your soul and the spirit of nature. I think that I was blessed with fantastic weather and lighting. Looking back, my only regret is that I had not switched to shooting in RAW at the time. 

Still, a return trip is always possible. In 2010, perhaps, I will revisit some of the places I visited in 2005, and shoot them in RAW. It is something to look forward to.

Lausanne In The Evening

This picture could have been taken anywhere, I know. Yet, this was taken in Lausanne. We did the Switzerland part of the trip before the part that was in Greece. Switzerland has some of the most fantastic landscapes you could hope for anywhere. With so many towns situated on the shores of lakes, with mountains glittering in the background, it makes for some of the most awesome experiences you could hope for. Add to that the Swiss desire for cleanliness, and order, and you have a most fantastic tourist experience.

Yet, getting a Swiss visa is a bloody pain the neck. For a country that derives so much of it's revenue from tourism, they seem to have a sadistic pleasure in asking you, or your company, for details that go back 25 generations. Okay, that is a bit of an exaggeration, but I guess that anyone gets the point.

The above picture was taken in the evening. For some reason, I was not in a great mood that day, and spent half the day photographing a superb looking woman. Looked part gypsy, and wholly romantic and mysterious.

Coming back to the picture. This was originally a colour jpg picture that I converted to black & white. The storm clouds had started growing in the evening. I love the combination of cloud, water and sky. Brilliant.

Lausanne is a French speaking town. Part of the reason for my less than good mood. It lies in Romandy, the French speaking part of Switzerland. It seems, many years ago, it was a Roman military camp calles Lousanna. After the fall of the Roman Empire, it retreated to its current location on the shores of the lake. Easier to defend, or so it would seem. I the 1680's it became a refuge for the French Huguenots.

Today, it is the Headquarter of the International Olympic Committee. Cool. 

Lausanne is easy enough to reach. Just 51 km from Geneva, that would take you under an hour to reach from the town. So, if you are planning a trip to Geneva, put Lausanne on the agenda!

Geneva

The Jet d'Eau is one of the iconic sights of Geneva. Quite nice, but also a bit touristy. Yet, I quite enjoyed hanging about at the edge of the lake, and watching the rainbow forming as  the water jetted up, and became a rainbow. Nice, to be there on a summer evening, watching people skating up and down the pavement, and enjoying the remains of the day.

This is quite a contrast from Asia, where we slog and slog, wanting above all else, to catch up with the Western world. In India, not much attention is given to quality of life, and this is something that most Europeans really believe in. This may be a thing of the generations, as the older generations, or those who lived some one hundred years ago put in the long hours, so that the current generation can enjoy the beauty of the lake.

In India, there is the turning of the tide, so to speak. Some of us are starting to think hard about the environment. Not many as yet, but the first small steps are being taken. Change has to start somewhere.

Geneva, as it turns out, is not that young a town. It is first mentioned in history somewhere around 121 BC, and the name, it seems, is of Celtic origin.

I have to say that the town has a somewhat interesting history. It has not sen as much as many Indian towns, but it has had its share of changes and turbulence.

I'm not going to get into the history of the town here. I would love to, at some point. However, the point is, that it is a town of some antiquity. Being an old town, like many Indian towns, should not, therefore, be taken as an excuse for keeping the town dirty.

The Temple Of Poseidon

The Temple of Poseidon was our last stop in Greece. I left for China after this, and so did my companions. One of them went on to his death, and the rest of us went our own separate ways.

The Temple, which is located at Sounion, is fantastic. It would have been an absolutely magnificent sight in it's heyday in the 5th century BC. Looking over the sea, it really seems poised to worship the Lord of the Seas & the Oceans.

Walking around the temple, you can feel the spirit of the sea in you, and I think that this is what the temple is designed to do. I am agnostic, but the spirit of God, in my opinion, lies in the forces of nature. Rituals, I believe reading somewhere, were originally designed to help a person enter the right frame of mind to receive the spirit of nature. Somewhere along the way, rituals became ends in themselves, and religion has become ossified and completely lacking in anything you may want to call, The Divine Spirit. 

A half day tour from Athens is the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion. And, I must say, an excellent place to sit and watch the sun rise, or the sun set. Doing so can only do good for a person's soul.