The exception to the rule days when I get up really early is when I am traveling. It was August of 2009. I was visiting a friend who runs an NGO in Madhya Pradesh's Kaththewada block near Jhabua. Unlike the late riser that I have become now-a-days, there I woke up a little after sunrise.
Looking out of the window instantly brought me out of the slumber. I sought my camera and started capturing images of the bounty of nature around me. My friend's home is right in the middle of a fairly dense vegetation in a small village surrounded by hills.
It was a bright sunny morning after two days of continuous rains. The lush green carpet on the ground made for a soothing atmosphere. Birds chirping and squirrels running around just added that extra dash of being in harmony with nature.
And yet, it was so calm and sere. It was a visual treat. And I am sure, each one of you must have experienced such a thing sometime or the other.
I started exploring the nearby areas. If not for a morning walk, for capturing more images of the morning in a jungle and in general for being with nature.
First and the foremost thing that caught my attention was a variety of ficus. Was it a banyan tree? I am not sure. But the leaves did resemble that of the banyan tree, the bargad ka ped as we say in Hindi.
I simply loved the entangled roots/branches that formed a mesh around the main invisible trunk of the tree. The branches/roots of a banyan tree generally grow around it, very near and spread outwards. But in this case, these were actually strangling the trunk. But I was quickly told this too is common, specially in this variety of ficus. This particular tree was not a huge one with a large canopy. But ficus category trees are wonderful.
Time spent in the company of trees, a wonderful morning in the forest that I treasure till date.
Looking out of the window instantly brought me out of the slumber. I sought my camera and started capturing images of the bounty of nature around me. My friend's home is right in the middle of a fairly dense vegetation in a small village surrounded by hills.
And yet, it was so calm and sere. It was a visual treat. And I am sure, each one of you must have experienced such a thing sometime or the other.
I started exploring the nearby areas. If not for a morning walk, for capturing more images of the morning in a jungle and in general for being with nature.
First and the foremost thing that caught my attention was a variety of ficus. Was it a banyan tree? I am not sure. But the leaves did resemble that of the banyan tree, the bargad ka ped as we say in Hindi.
I simply loved the entangled roots/branches that formed a mesh around the main invisible trunk of the tree. The branches/roots of a banyan tree generally grow around it, very near and spread outwards. But in this case, these were actually strangling the trunk. But I was quickly told this too is common, specially in this variety of ficus. This particular tree was not a huge one with a large canopy. But ficus category trees are wonderful.
Time spent in the company of trees, a wonderful morning in the forest that I treasure till date.
