Intresting animals

Dear reader, 

We all know that there 21 days lockdown. I was very bord and then I suggested that I write a blog. Instead, I made a Powerpoint presentation on animals which I am going to share dear reader. 

MY PIGEON STORY

There is a pigeon who often comes to my balcony and pecks at my mother’s plants. My mom, my little sister Vira, my aunty Lizzy and I keep on shooing it away but it just keeps coming back.

One day I came home from school and went to see the pigeon. What I saw gave me a big surprise. I saw Beckey [ the pigeon mother] sitting on two eggs!! I thought that Beckey would like something to eat so, I ran into the kitchen and came back with some red dal. I came closer and closer and petted Beckey. Then I called my mother on the phone and told her Beckey had laid two eggs. My mother was very happy and surprised. Then in the night, everybody was talking about the eggs.

After two weeks or so the eggs hatched. Out came two ugly, featherless pigeon chicks. I was surprised because I had expected the pigeon chicks to come out of the eggs with feathers. When I asked my mother this question, she told me that the pigeon chicks would slowly grow their feathers and when I asked how to differentiate between a boy and a girl my mom said that a boy would be fatter than a girl and my mother asked us to come up with some name. We thought about some names and Vira and I came up with these names with Rikki and Ryan. The pigeons are still in my balcony growing bigger and fatter until they are big enough to leave the nest and I will surely miss them.

                                                         WRITTEN BY; SHARANYA S. HEGDE

          

When the Hockey stadium was home to fishes ...

Till a century back, the KSHA Hockey Stadium was underwater … serving as a “Kere“ or lake for the people in Shanti Nagar and Richmond town.

Mud tank - now the cricket ground 

As a source of abundant water for the various needs of life in the area, it was also why the Muneshwara (Shiva) temple, opposite to the Richmond park, is called the “Kere Muneshwara” Temple.

The kids taking notes 

What it was .... the 'Kere'

Amanda shares the history of the “Mud Tank”

Now the site of the Karnataka State Hockey Stadium and the adjoining Cricket field, the original water tank that stood here was built to supply water to the adjacent village of Akkithimmanahalli (now ‘Shantinagar’) during or before the time of Kempegowda (late 16th century).

Childhood accounts through the 1950s describe the pleasure of fishing for minnows in the tank. The ring of large Rain Trees surrounding the original tank was planted by the British over 100 years ago. When Cauvery water became widely available, the tank stopped being maintained and became a breeding ground for malaria-carrying mosquitos.  It was fully drained in the 1970s, and the Hockey Stadium was built on the reclaimed land in the 1980s.  The grounds have now been elevated, but in heavy rain, the area still floods as it is a natural low groundwater collection point.

Re-creation spot today

Our Exhibit is on the 31^st of March and then on the 6^th and 7^th of April. Do join us, we start in the park.

Please do reach out to Tanya ( 98451 31025) or Cauvery (99720 45903) to join us for the displays !!

This lane holds a secret ..... 'Murder Lane' (not !!!)

A small lane at the end of Norris road, flanked by 4 buildings, 2 of which have front entrances .. this is a mystery lane. Often called “Murder Lane’ by the residents around, it started off being a small lane with limited access - from one side there are some stone half-pillars which ensure you have to walk into the lane (no scooters, no cars) from one side

It is said that rowdy elements used it as a place to escape the police patrol and hide as they got drunk… which led them to become querulous and brawls ensured.

Today it a convenient shortcut for people travelling on foot to quickly access the large roads on each side

Amanda tells us more about Wellington Cross Road (“Murder Lane”).

This narrow, pedestrian, lane was likely originally a conservancy lane, providing side access to large Bungalows on either side. As the properties were divided and new structures were built, most of the low boundary walls were replaced by high ones, hiding the lane from view.

According to long-time neighbours, this factor, combined with a lack of lighting at night made the lane attractive to miscreants who would gather, drink, and sometimes pass-out and be found lying there in the morning. These unsavoury gatherings led to the false rumour of a murder. Neighbours speak of battling hard to get proper lighting for the lane and scare off the trouble-causers. Now the lane is well-lit and very safe. Hopefully, the rumour can now be laid to rest!

The largest Shia Mosque in Bangalore

We planned a walk to the only Shia masjid of Bangalore Masjid-e-Askari on 17^th of March 2019.

 Covering ourselves with colourful Dupattas, we entered the 110 years old Masjid which was built with the founding principles “to bring people together in the spirit of brotherhood and unity” . Masjid-e-Askari is a tribute to Persian trader Aga Ali Asker, the brain behind many architecturally-rich heritage structures in Bengaluru, who had left a princely sum of Rupees 800 for this purpose.

Prayer hall in the Mosque

The prayer room is in the central complex and is a large , barren, carpeted area.

On the side is the structure which houses the library and a replica of "Mecca" . As we walked in the interiors we made with beautifully cut and placed glass pieces of different shapes to form geometric patterns. The walls and ceilings were colourfully designed to give us a mesmerizing effect of Muslim architecture.

The entrance to the library

Children tried to replicate the geometric patterned art of work on the cloth using, colour papers cut in to small bits.  The kids had a great time and a lot of their impressions can be seen in the artwork they have put up !! 

Interiors of the floors above the library

Our Exhibit is on the 31^st of March and then on the 6^th and 7^th of April. Do join us, we start in the park.

Please do reach out to Tanya ( 98451 31025) or Cauvery (99720 45903) to join us for the displays !!

Amanda speaks

This mosque is named for Aga Ali Asker, an important and successful 19th-century Persian horse trader. Aga Ali Asker came from Shiraz with a consignment of horses and settled in Bangalore in 1824. He eventually bought large tracts of land in various parts of Bangalore Cantonment. He stabled his horses in Richmond Town and, according to Mr. Shyama Rao, had up to 700 horses.  He died in 1891 and bequeathed Rs. 800 and an area of his property for the construction of this Persian style mosque for Bangalore's Shia community. 

The mosque was built by his sons and completed in 1909. It was renovated in the 1930s by Aga Ali Asker's grandson, Sir Mirza Ismail, the dewan of Mysuru. The mosque was recently expanded with the addition of a building clad in dark marble which houses a library that is open to the public. It is the center of the Shia community in Bangalore and hosts the Muharram programs every year. Muharram is a period of mourning commemorating the Martyrdom of the Prophet's grandson and his family.

Johnson Market - the visit into the past

On 10^th March 2019, we the Mums and children started to walk to explore one of the Bangalore’s prominent place in Richmond Town the” Johnson Market”. Everyone were excited to know about this place and children got the briefing from Amanda. 
Johnson's Market was a huge horse stable belonging to Aga Ali Asker, a rich businessman from Persia, who owned large tracts of land around Richmond Town.

Fruits and Vegetable vendors now occupy the corridors 

Where the horses stood

As we look into the beautiful designs made on the top entrance of the building, it reminded us about the Indo Persian exchange of architecture, with a combination of motifs.

The entrance of the old stables 

We had a chance to taste the Khova Naan from Makkah café which is one of the best-sold product at the market. Children walked with curious eyes and were delighted to see how the market building, built in 1929, is still being used, with new occupants - the vendors-  selling the much-needed vegetables, fruits and meat.

The center of the market building has a huge roof with octagonal structure and children were quizzed with their geometry knowledge on shapes. This must have been the central source of good support and ventilation for the structure.

This visit gave all of us a sense of living in the past (which is always so fun to imagine) with all the military regiments, British officers around, best horses being traded by merchants.

Fish and Meat vendors within the structure

Shops line the outside of the structure of the former stable

Our Exhibit is on the 31^st of March and then on the 6^th and 7^th of April. Do join us, we start in the park.

Please do reach out to Tanya ( 98451 31025) or Cauvery (99720 45903) to join us for the displays !!

Amanda shares

The current Indo-Saracenic building was constructed in 1929 on the site of former stables that were no longer fully occupied due to the rise of the automobile. A local market, known as “Richmond Town Market’ had sprung up in the area. According to historical accounts, The new ‘Johnson Market’ building was constructed under the behest of the then Diwan of Mysore, Sir Mirza Ismail, grandson of the famous horse trader, Ali Asker. The market takes its name from a former British Civil servant, who we assume helped facilitate its construction. It was built both as a smaller-scale stable and to house market stalls, with room for small shops along the outside. 

Some of the notable market vendors include the Makkah Cafe and the ‘Golden Fish Stall,’ which, according to the descendants of the original owners, has been in operation for around 100 years, predating the building itself. The structure is currently in poor repair and has been slated for demolition in the near future.

The last of the mohicans.. The Old Bungalow

To quote from https://aturquoisecloud.wordpress.com/2011/02/06/the-monkey-top-trail/ ,  "Across Bangalore Cantonment, there soon emerged two predominant styles. One was the classical bungalow, with its stately columns, flat roof and wide portico running along the length of the house. The other was defined by the `Monkey Top’ with its characteristic A shaped pointed hood and canopy of clay tiles over a window with flat slats above shuttered windows. Each slat ended in a small, intricate, embellished detail. This feature was very well suited to the climate of Bangalore and protected the house from uninvited sunlight in the summer months and surreptitious rain during the grey monsoons. Often, there was a complementary, harmonious colour palette – white walls, terracotta coloured tiles and slats that were usually painted Bottle Green.

Urban legend has it that they were built to ward off monkeys but this may not be so, as there seems to have been plenty of space for the marauders to sit and devour fruits anyway !"

And we got to meet the owner of one bungalow, the redoubtable old Mr Nath ... nearing a 100 years himself. He loves his home and was happy to tell us how the neighborhood had evolved. Recounting his journey and bonding with his home, he regaled the kids with stories of the many Christmas trees which were replaced with fruit and flower trees and the 4 British families which had inhabited the property before them.

The garden was in the front of the house and the courtyard was at the back of the main house - very typical of the British constructions in Richmond Town. Post-independence, most of the Anglo-Indian families re-located to UK (if they had citizenship) or to Australia (where it was easy to pick up citizenship).

It was interesting to see the structure at the back which was once the kitchen area and now serves as a studio.

The 'Monkey Top" style characterizes Mr. Nath's bungalow.

The kids walked in and fell in love with 'the magic car'. 

The long columns hold up the roof in the front to make up a drive-way used for carriages and cars to park and allow the owners to enter the house without getting wet (in the old times, Bangalore rains used to start by the end of March and early April) 

Photo 1 - the old car 

Photo 2 - Mr Nath and the kids 

Photo 3 - the ceiling tiles have designs 

Photo 4 - The ceilings are so very high 

Our Exhibit is on the 31^st of March and then on the 6^th and 7^th of April. Do join us, we start in the park.

Please do reach out to Tanya ( 98451 31025) or Cauvery (99720 45903) to join us for the displays !!

Amanda says about the Old Bungalow  

This early 20th-century bungalow may date as early as 1900. It is the last standing among 6 or 7 of similar design that used to line either side of the street. Each bungalow stood at the center of a large parcel of land with front, side, and rear yards, with outbuildings that included the kitchen, stable and residential cottages for domestic workers at the back. The floor plan of these villas was similar. A covered, front veranda, hidden from street view by open wood trellis-work, met an arched driveway. The main entrance would lead to a large, high-ceilinged sitting room with a second door to the large dining room behind it. The bedrooms, each with its own bathroom, were placed on either side of these two main rooms. Each bathroom would also have a side door leading outside so that in the days before modern plumbing, any waste, or ‘night soil,’ could be directly collected.