Cityscapes

Hitherto, my attention was only towards landscapes. Here is an offbeat post on cityscapes for a change. Cityscapes never motivated me till date and this post purely for a change. Even though the interests on cityscapes are feeble, trying out new to variegate photography realms becomes necessity. In-fact, this policy can be generalized to any domains. Hope you enjoy the pictures :)

 

 

 

Weekend perceptions

17/18th Feb 2018,

As pointed out in earlier post, my DSLR is exhausting shutter cycles and ergo, I use mobile camera for most of the practices. However, it is hard to leave behind the mighty buddy. Few shots are composed from DSLR as well. The evenings of this weekend, I shot wide range of pictures during my casual walk along Rachenahalli lake. I still call myself as amateur and hence don't be surprised if the pictures does not meet your expectations :-). Hope the pictures enthralls your vision to some extent.

Linked to Skywatch Friday

The day after first rains

08 Feb 2018,

As predicted in previous post, the day after rains turned up pretty. The evening Sun shying between clouds presents majestic display of crepuscular rays shimmering the earth with dazzling orange light. I was at the right time in Rachenahalli lake to behold this beautiful artwork of nature. The mobile camera was suffice to capture the magnificent glory of nature splashing vivid hue over the water body. Hope you enjoy the pictures shot during that glorious day!

Linked to Skywatch Friday

Mahashivaratri Sunset

13th Feb 2018

In North India, looks like the celebration is on tomorrow. Here in Bangalore it is today. Considering the proximity, I would go for 13th Feb :-). Nevertheless, festivals are to rejoice with family, savor delicious dishes and internalize the morals of almighty. I don't mind the differences in celebration dates. They are hardly a day or two difference.

I eschew the normal path for my return journey nowadays primarily due to the breathtaking sunset at the Rachenahalli lake. Among all the lakes nearby my location, this lake triumphs. The Amruthalli lake lacks decent landscape. The authorities have not constructed esplanade throughout the periphery of lake in  Hebbal and Lumbini Gardens. Hebbal lake hosts beautiful landscape but lacks decent maintenance. The Rachenahalli lake on the other hand, hosts magnificent views of both sunrise and sunset all through the season. The renovated esplanade makes it even more comfortable for photographers and walkers. Even though sunrise and sunset spots are not the same, both the landmarks have beautiful landscape as backdrop. Despite the blemishes of cityscapes, this lake is my favorite spot for photo-shoot proximity to my area. Jakkur lake is another option but yet to explore it more.

The Shivaratri generally marks the outset of Spring season by carrying strong winds of change across the region. Hope you enjoy the pictures captured during the Shivaratri day on my way home. Let the god of simplicity, destroyer of evil, and energy bless us with peaceful, and colorful glowing life as Sun :-).

Here is a picture of Lord Shiva shot long time ago in Murudeshwara.

|| OM NAMO BHAGAVATHE RUDRAYA ||

 

OBEISANCE TO THE MIGHTY LORD

Passport renewal - Follow ups

I did not want to bloat the older post. This post is intended to track post submission of passport renewal application.

As mentioned in previous post, I was granted passport renewal without any police verification. What does it mean? For me it means to honor the the trust and maintain the dignity of nation wherever I travel.

Following are the SMSes received post submission of passport renew application

14th Feb

Passport renewal granted with no Police Verification.
Passport application is being submitted for print.

15th Feb

Passport printed is completed and a message will be sent once passport is dispatched via speed post.

16th Feb

Hurray! Passport has been dispatched via Speed Post consignment No.XXXXX :-).  Not yet updated in India post website :-(. "Consignment details not found" is the error.

17th Feb

Today I was able to track the consignment in India Post site during early morning. The latest update was the consignment reached Yelahanka facility. The server gets loaded in normal hours and its only by luck you can track at that time of day. After tremendous cycles of retyping captcha, the status was shown. I am hopeful of receiving the new passport at the earliest.

It's time to cheer!! Today at 2PM, I have my renewed passport at doorstep :-).  I was delighted that process concluded in mere 3 days! Thanks a lot for authorities for such quick action.

ITS TIME TO FLY :-)

Unfortunately delivery notifications from both Passport office and Post office hit the SMS inbox only on 19th Feb :-(. This is primarily because of India Post fault. The notification from Post office arrived late and perhaps, passport office delay ensued :-).

Overall, I was exhilarated by the hassle free renewal process!

Ramblings from first rain of year

07 Feb 2018

It has been almost 2 weeks since mercury levels slumped in Bangalore to as low as 12degree C. It is bizarre to witness chilly weather during fag end of winter season. I have heard numerous cases of health upsets including me. Additionally, the city is smeared with dust arising out of dug up roads intended for utility purpose. As always lethargic/corrupt authorities never revamp the roads unless there is human tragedy. Even I am having deep trouble gliding bike over jerky road. The unevenly spread ballast invite high possibility of toppling the bike. It's common to see many of city two-wheeler riders anxiously teetering over the haphazard roads.

Back on track! The chilly weather looming over the city swiftly turned cloudy yesterday.

The clouds which were isolated, amassed over the skies today :-). The heat index increased and weather abruptly turned hot with blistering sun roasting the skin. Around evening dark clouds gathered over troposphere and started showering the earth. This was the first rain of year and drenching in the first rain is something regarded as unhealthy. It was unseasonal rain too! The unseasonal rains carry a jinx of forecasting poor monsoon rains later in the year. Anyways the rains are welcome respite from dust and pollution of city at-least for three days. The rains intensified as I rode bike towards home. Consequently, I was fully drenched in rain. To aggravate, I did not carry jacket or umbrella for temporary relief. It was just 2 days since I recuperated from severe cold. Hopefully, the drenching won't recur the disease. Co-incidentally whenever BBMP revamps the dreaded roads, out of blue the rains turn up. The rains also reflect the quality of work done by authorities. Hopefully, the revamped roads stay healthy against this tiny downpour. The other problem is it is unable to measure the depth of potholes filled with rainwater. Not all the paths have seen recovery and unfortunately, I rode along those paths. Also too many puddles along the road, mirror the quality of recent works being carried out. The BBMP is constructing drainages at nook and cranny of the city for directing the storm-water towards lakes perhaps. This action item arouse from the torrential monsoon season that pummeled the city last year, resulting in all-time record rainfall. Despite the lessons from nature, the authorities seem to have no seriousness in diligent work and huge puddles on the road mimic them.

The day did not favor me either as I deliberately skipped jacket after gap of one month. That evening, unusual rains poured exactly during my return journey. The rains diminished as I reached home. Nature teaches a lot. Troubles can arise unexpectedly. We need to be prepared always. Nowhere I had strength to thwart rains but preparations were not difficult. In this situation, I was choice-less and it was better for me to ride with troubles!

Anyways, enjoy pictures from the rainy day. The last 3 shots were snapped near Rachenahalli lake. I deliberately chose this path to avoid traffic and to shoot rainy atmosphere. It is exhilarating to behold the rains nearby water bodies.  Hopefully we will conclude with dazzling sunset with hazy free atmosphere in few days and I am eagerly waiting for that moment :-)

Alongside Skywatch Friday enjoy the Rainwatch as well :-)

Peachy Sunset

It was quite disappointing visit this time to native place on Republic day and the reason, I keep it undisclosed. The Kaup beach sunset, however, to some extent circumvented this debilitation. As usual, the shoreline was crowded on republic day with ecstatic tourists romping in sea water. The western horizon too was blooming with golden color sharing its joy with the ocean! Surprisingly, the tidal waves are turning stronger (Lunar eclipse?) and have crossed the path which we walked during our last visit. The variations in sea tides has cleaved the shoreline and sea resulting in abrupt dunes. This enabled me to snap few elevated shots with mobile as well as DSLR.

There is another lamenting factor. My DSLR is fast exhausting shutter cycles. It's almost 2/3rd done and only 1/3rd life left. Unfortunately, I am not in a situation to splurge on new DSLR and ancillaries. Consequently, there is a calculation on every shot I grab especially on HDRs where a lot of diligence is needed for calculating exposure levels. It's time to be more attentive and careful on each and every shot I compose. Of course, timelapses may die down soon. And yeah, as Robert Kiyosaki mentions in his best selling book "Rich Dad Poor Dad", before stating financially not viable just ponder as how can you afford it. Hmmm.. Yes! I just have not thought about as how can I afford it by altering my financial moves. Is there a need to buy such swanky gadgets. Yes, for me at-least, and I love landscapes and want to frame the benevolent nature in best possible way!

The pictures shot in mobile phone and edited with snapseed. Such scenes are sufficient to fend off disappointment. That's the power of nature. It can beat even human emotions.

The grave mistakes I commit is to find happiness at wrong places. Without hesitation, nature turns out to be my ultimate source of happiness. It is better to be rationale than holding on to expectations. Unfortunately, the poignant moment occurred after the beach visit. Ergo, sadness persisted for few more days and perturbed mind needed distractions to clear those moment of sadness.

And yeah there are lot of goodies Kaup beach can offer nowadays to tourists. The newly introduced boat ride lured many visitors during Republic day. The jet boat was absconding though! I have limited shots with DSLR as well, but will share in separate post.

Passport renewal 2018 - My experience

14 Feb 2018,

It has been 3 months since the passport expired and my response was lethargic to renew it. This laziness is attributed to naught stamps on the passport. You understand it right :-). It was total chaos when I applied passport for the first time. That chaos was never worth due to zero stampings :-(. Anyways, my father has been pestering to renew the passport and after long indolence, I finally applied for renewal. Here how it goes!

My appointment was due on 14th Feb at 12:45PM in Passport Seva Kendra (further referred to as PSK), Lalbagh, Bangalore. The online submission of application is quite simple. After paying the required amount, my slot was fixed on aforementioned timeline. I gathered all required documents with 2 set of photocopies.

THE CAMPUS

Intention of passport renewal

(i) Expired within 3 yrs from date of expiry
(ii) Changing to Bangalore address
(iii) Addition of wife's name

What did I carry (Originals + 2 self-attested photocopies of each)

(i)  Old passport (This can be proof for many attributes like validating parent's name and DOB. Probably it can be used for address proof as well if you want same address to be retained)

(ii) Aadhar card

(iii) PAN card

(iv)  GAS connection bill (Carry if bills are from public sector company. Mine was from IOC. Carry three latest bills as precautionary measure)

(v) Matriculation certificate

(vi) B.Tech certificate

(vii) Marriage certificate (For inclusion of wife's name)

Note that you don't need to carry photographs unless minor is present (4yrs or below). In such cases carry a passport size photograph of minor with white background.

Additional notes

Please carry food and water if the appointment is during lunch time. The PSK does not have any canteen or snack shop to satisfy the stomach. Once you enter, it's a trap until the process concludes.

The SMS notifications will cost Rs.45/- extra. If you need protective cover for passport, additional amount needs to be paid depending on chosen quality. Both are optional. The fee needs to be paid at the  "A" counter where the initial screening is conducted.

The parking space was full when I reached PSK. I had to park bike in Pay&Park facility which charged Rs.15/- per hour. That is exorbitant looking at the condition of facility. It was open under Sun and dust ridden. There was no choice as well :-(. The trouble is more for four wheelers since the space is insufficient. I suggest to take a cab or ride two-wheeler to avoid parking menace. 

What was my plan?

My plan was to start early as 11AM and on completion, relish sumptuous South Indian meal at MTR once process ends. However, situations never wind up as  predicted. The situation reversed due to reasons described further :D.

As planned, I set out at 11AM exactly. Before releasing the center stand of Shine, I had vague look at the google maps to get a feeling of current traffic. Expectedly, it showed ample red spots en-route and threw estimated time of 40mins in bike. Yes, the first bottleneck was none other than Hebbal flyover followed by Mekhri circle. The blistering heat was difficult to contain alongside burning carbon. The next one is chowdaiah circle and later planetarium. It was smooth ride later until the corporation signal arrived. Overall I reached destination with no route hassles exactly at 11:40AM. Thats what even maps predicted. Google maps bang on target! I chose Lalbagh PSK since it was nearest to my location and route was familiar to me.

The PSK is neatly organized and people were called on basis of batch number. Clear instructions were announced repeatedly to have self-attested photocopy of originals. My turn arrived at 1:20PM, a little later than the prescribed time. After checking all documents, token was issued for further processing. The electronic display boards efficiently display the counter numbers for you. Also, there is photocopy unit inside PSK, Lalbagh which people can make use of. It charges normal fee of Re.1 per copy.

There are three counters before you end your day in PSK. It is printed as A-->B-->C-->EXIT in token. Section A consists of document verification and photo session. The staffs are cordial and check each and every documents you brought. They staple only the documents required for verification. In my case, it was self attested copies of old passport, gas connection bill, and marriage certificate. These documents are scanned and uploaded to passport database. Hence one need to carry self-attested photocopies of originals. Despite having all the required documents there is always a pinch of skepticism blowing on our mind. For me, it was bit intense due to the chaotic experiences of first time.

The section A was concluded in jiffy. Now comes the sluggish part. The sections B & C are scrutinized by government officials. The verification becomes stringent from now onwards and there are chances of rejection. It was the lunch time and the queue was lugging as most of officials were out for lunch. After a while, it picked up pace and the backlogs were swiftly cleared. It was around 2:40PM when my turn arrived for section B perusal. The verification was smooth lasting for few seconds. One surprise was that official asked for older bills as well which fortunately I possessed. By this time, my tummy was rumbling with hunger and famished soul was desperate for food. I did not carry any eatables as well, not even water :-(. The successful conclusion of section B cooled the nerves and I guzzled a glass of water before the final round call arrives.

The section C waiting time for mere 20mins. The process again was smooth and sailed in few seconds. Basically section B & C are verified by government officials at different levels. If the officials are not satisfied with documents submitted, you may need to have chat with APO (I assume). Once the section C is completed, it's all over :-). Proceed to the acknowledgement section and grab your copy.

The representative at Counter-A had informed me that change of address would trigger police verification additionally. Surprisingly, to me, the passport was issued with no police verification :-). It looks like it's the case with every renewal application which has change of address (citation needed). The acknowledgment clearly mentioned, "No Police verification needed". I was delighted after receiving an instant message from Passport center quoting my application has been initiated for print!!! Voila!! The passport process is streamlined to make consumer job easy. At the end of day after whopping 4hrs of patience culminated in desired results. It was time to relish some delicacies at MTR.

GOOD BYE OLD GUY!

Below paragraphs may seem superfluous to readers. It is possible to skip anyways :-)

It was 3:50PM during my exit and parking authority would anyway charge me for 5hours. I decided to walk till MTR which is few meters away from PSK. Despite the famished soul, the taste of MTR added further resistance to my tummy! When I reached MTR, alas! the meal service was shut by 2:45PM. Nevertheless, there is more to savor here. I ordered masala dose, badam burfi and fruit salad to contain my hunger. Within minutes, the order arrived and it's time to devour. The badam burfee taste was not upto the mark of MTR but Masala dose was impeccable. The fruit-salad was garnished with variety of fruits blent with tasty soft ice cream. The items in MTR are served in traditional attire. Despite the city turning cosmopolitan, the grand buffet hotels can never surpass the legacy hotels like MTR :-).

TIME FOR YUMMY BREAK :-)

BURFEE!

Extra ghee provided in tiny container to smear over dosa, adds more taste :-).

VOILA!! SLURP!!

The specialty of MTR is tasty filter coffee served in a silver tumbler. The exhaustion due to excruciating wait would tempt anyone to gulp a cup of delicious filtered coffee. The stroll from PSK to MTR under blistering Sun superseded the choice and I was in no mood to drink coffee. The fruit salad, garnished with range of fruits and blent with soft ice-cream was ideal choice to passively quiet the scorching heat.

YEAH! HERE YOU GO MY SUN :D

After tasty snack treat, I bought a new branded helmet from helmet shop nearby MTR which was planned from long time. The new "ride crown" carries 2 years of warranty with it. There are numerous helmet shops along this stretch and consequently various brands to choose from!

NEW GLADIATOR OF MY HEAD!

Once invigorated after having tasty food, it was time to head back to home. The return path too was battered by hefty traffic but the soul was calm due to successful outcome. A trundle bike ride of nearly an hour amidst traffic heck, and belching wagons lead me safely to home :-)

An unfortunate setting and a fortunate outcome!

19th Jan 2018,

From fortunate in previous post to unfortunate in this write-up :D. Today, I took the same detour even this Friday but was planned. The roads in the shorter route has turned pathetic and dusty. Also white-topping work would begin in front of tech park next week which claims the longevity of 35 years. The main route is immobilized by traffic heck, dust ridden, carbon spewing antique/unserviced wagons and predominantly dilapidated roads. As a pre-emptive action, it was inevitable to take detour. Barring a tiny stretch, it's smooth ride along the detour and provides a pinch of rural picture.

Even this time, there was great sunset. The sun was blazing with clear and crisp circular yellow-red glow. Absence of haze added more charm to the landscape. As expected my excitement peaked and I hustled towards the lake after parking bike in lake gate :D. I only had mobile phone this time and snapped few sunset views from phone camera. It was bit annoying to watch the pictures since the boundary of Sun was blemished by flares. This is when you remember mighty DSLRs which can surpass mobile camera quality. Anyways, there was no scope to moan further since mobile was the only option.

Frustration escalated  as I reached home and glanced at the pictures. My HDR settings were off :-(. Oh that poor photographer. Despite my past experiences of not peeking once at settings before shooting the landscapes, I don't learn :(. The  infamous event repeated this time too. "I mean the Sun was quick to melt down and I had no choice than to hurry" spouted the inner voice. No more excuses please! It's time to internalize your thoughts. The time is gone and patience is lost. On many occasions, overwhelming excitement leads to sheer ignorance. This is not the first time it happened to me.

Despite the fact that I turned off in camera HDR, the silhouettes turned out magnificent. The orange-yellow glow shimmering the lake with dark cityscape framed endearing picture. After fiddling with WB, the real mood of the scene accentuated. It opened up alternative ways to photograph landscape. So, stop beating yourself with words and start learning :-). The final product dwarfed the unfortunate ramblings scribbled before!

Having read inconsequential moaning, hope you enjoy pictures as well :)

Guest passenger

Before someone slays this creature for that tasty feast, he/she might have wished for at-least auto ride as final wish :-). I don't recognize its gender. If this is hen, well the chopping is delayed due to obvious yielding of eggs. If this is cock, the days are nearing by dude, have your last breath or view from the rickshaw :-). Also as a cock you can pay rent only by asking your partner. If partner disobeys then sacrifice is the only way :D.

Shot during casual stroll along the Souparnika river hinterland.