Happy Holi-days

Came into Mumbai on Friday, enjoyed Holika with Anush - the huge bonfire in our building and the fireworks. Escaped the dubious though delightful colours of Holi and spent the weekend in Baroda - Vadodra, after almost a decade. Met and stayed with family friends, in a large multi floor house in the heart of the city.

Pic courtesy net
Culturally- very enriching. Caught up with the museums and found that the royalty- Sayaji and clan have done a great job both with patronising the arts and that too sharing them with the public. Raja Ravi Verma's rarer paintings from a time long ago - I particularly liked Menaka and Vishwamitra. An Italian painter had rendered a very well built dark Italian type man looking Brahmin from Deccan centuries ago. Found that amusing. A shepherdess by some European artist was truly mesmerising. BTW the lizards in the museum also are a spectacle.We also got to see the cricket ground where most legends - old and new had played and a small train near it used by the royalty in the past.

A very interesting amalgam of 5 religious architectural styles, we saw a very futuristic looking metal Shiva temple in the Military area which has been opened to the public. The funds that have poured in have got into displays of old sculptures and a rather garish ice shiva in a mock cave.

The zoo was badly labelled but was engaging enough for Anushka. She's getting to be a good story teller- after getting back home and when asked by my grandma, she said she also saw elephants and ostrich apart from the animals she really did see. Squirrels have taken room in almost all the non carnivore enclosures. We saw the turtles eating channa and green brinjals!!

We also visited the now gaining popularity UNESCO site- Champaner. More about that in a dedicated post

Gastronomically picked up the famous eats- a chocolate brown coloured "peda", peanuts and farsaan- chivda and bakar wadi from Jagdish, ate at a roadside place - tomato sev curry old times sake and enjoyed it an also had a Gujju thali at Suryas diner. Was exposed to Poona misal in an old Coffee house in Baroda.

Is it possible for artnavy to go anywhere and not shop? of course I picked up gorgeous ghagra cholis for Anush and her cousins and some casual salwar kameezes for myself. Loved some of the saris but retsrained myself from buying them!!

And yes realised that Anush was EXTREMELY fond of her grandpa.