Society

I was coming back from the Central Business District, and waiting for a friend to pickme up at the junction of Richmond Road, where Brigage Road starts calling itself Hosur Road. Right next to Thom's Hotel, I looked in the cool greenery of All Saints' Church, and on an impulse, walked inside.What an oasis of peace it is! True, the roar of the traffic is unrelenting...but the beautiful, low-set church, and the huge trees (there is one huge Millingtonia, or Sausage Tree, in full bloom and fruit just now) and the birds in them give the effect of stepping into…

Years ago, Cooke Town was full of old bungalows built during the "burra sahib" days. Lots of garden space, verandahs with trellis panels, spacious bedrooms, high ceilings, four-blade punkahs, windows with framed-glass shutters... I could go on and on and on.But things are fast changing out here, with large bungalows making way for apartment blocks. Inevitable, with elderly couples living alone and their children settled abroad. But unlike elsewhere in the city, apartments here try and retain the old world charm associated with local British colonies - especially Cooke Town, Richards Town, Cox Town and Frazer Town.The picture you see…

Years ago, Cooke Town was full of old bungalows built during the "burra sahib" days. Lots of garden space, verandahs with trellis panels, spacious bedrooms, high ceilings, four-blade punkahs, windows with framed-glass shutters... I could go on and on and on.But things are fast changing out here, with large bungalows making way for apartment blocks. Inevitable, with elderly couples living alone and their children settled abroad. But unlike elsewhere in the city, apartments here try and retain the old world charm associated with local British colonies - especially Cooke Town, Richards Town, Cox Town and Frazer Town.The picture you see…

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S.Karthikeyan, Chief Naturalist, Jungle Lodges and Resorts Ltd, is a keen observer of all things in Nature, and he has been alerting many of us, each year, to the arrival of glow-worms in the park adjoining the beautiful, and we-don't-know-how-long-it-will-last, parks adjoining Nanda Road (the correct name for this road is Rashtriya Vidyalaya Road, but it is more generally known as Nanda Road, or Rose Garden Road...there once was a real rose garden here!)They usually make an appearance around Sivaratri time (mid-February), but this year, we received Karthik's alert only last week, and some of us trooped off to take…

S.Karthikeyan, Chief Naturalist, Jungle Lodges and Resorts Ltd, is a keen observer of all things in Nature, and he has been alerting many of us, each year, to the arrival of glow-worms in the park adjoining the beautiful, and we-don't-know-how-long-it-will-last, parks adjoining Nanda Road (the correct name for this road is Rashtriya Vidyalaya Road, but it is more generally known as Nanda Road, or Rose Garden Road...there once was a real rose garden here!)They usually make an appearance around Sivaratri time (mid-February), but this year, we received Karthik's alert only last week, and some of us trooped off to take…

“When was Citizen Matters launched?” was my deliberate question to our editor. I wanted to know why we have forgotten this important date (It's March 3rd 2008). “Well there are so many dates… umm umm…why… well ya March 3rd…” the enthusiasm in this answer was overwhelming. Yes of course it has to be, just that it was unlike my expression: It is our First Anniversary!! We are 1 year and 15 days old magazine!! It’s a moment to celebrate and it’s a date to be remembered.For all of you who are reading Citizen Matters religiously (or even irregularly), we have…

“When was Citizen Matters launched?” was my deliberate question to our editor. I wanted to know why we have forgotten this important date (It's March 3rd 2008). “Well there are so many dates… umm umm…why… well ya March 3rd…” the enthusiasm in this answer was overwhelming. Yes of course it has to be, just that it was unlike my expression: It is our First Anniversary!! We are 1 year and 15 days old magazine!! It’s a moment to celebrate and it’s a date to be remembered.For all of you who are reading Citizen Matters religiously (or even irregularly), we have…

A group of us had gone birding to Bannerghatta on Saturday, the 14th of March...and what better way to wind up a most enjoyable morning than to go to Brahmins' Coffee Bar, that practically-heritage fast-good-food joint, in Basavanagudi?BCB is an outstanding eatery. That is, one has to stand outside to eat, because it's a tiny little joint, which produces its speciality traditional Kannada breakfasts, with the Chutney Master having been doling out chutney for several years....Since there were 9 of us, we had quite an agglomeration of plates, and wanted to eat togther...so we were thrilled when we saw the…