Varkala on a Summer Day !

Varkala on a Summer Day !, originally uploaded by ezee as hell out for a few days.

Varkala in the monsoons wears a deserted look sans the tourists.

The Arabian Sea beats some heavy spray onto the air and the land and there is almost no beach left.

The fishing boats are hauled to higher grounds and kept covered in plastic sheets and coconut leaf thatchings.

Looking at Cochin !

Looking at Cochin !, originally uploaded by ezee as hell out for a few days.

Of late, mine is a small universe. Not much traveling. Not too many outings.

Whatever I do is within the confines of this shot. This shot taken in a late evening while waiting for the ferry to start from Nettur to Thavera.

Kerala is blessed with an abundance of water. Sweet or saline, it is there everywhere that your eyes can travel.

Hello Sun !

Hello Sun !, originally uploaded by ezee as hellout for a few days.

Talking to the Sun!

Or perhaps a loved one somewhere, a gentleman on a boat describes the flaming reds of the beautiful sunset over the western waters of Cochin.

2008 - Monsoon Arrives in India !

2008 - Monsoon Arrives in India !, originally uploaded by ezee as hell out for a few days.

The much awaited monsoon arrived in the night. Don't trust the weather man !

An urban look at the rain fall activity over the waters of Thavera.

Lighting provided by the lightning flashes that accompanied the clouds.

Maybe more rain tonight.

28 May 2008

Bird on a Wire !

The white-throated kingfisher (scientific name: Halcyon smyrnensis, also known as the white-breasted kingfisher) is found in many European and Asian countries like Bulgaria, Turkey, India, Philippines, Israel, Egypt, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, etc. The population of birds found from Burma to the Greater Sundas are now lumped into fusca subspecies (the photo here shows a pair of fusca).

White-throated Kingfisher is a common species of a variety of habitats, mostly open country in the plains, but has been seen at 7500 ft in the Himalayas with trees, wires or other perches.

The White-throated Kingfisher breeds at the onset of Monsoons. In its courtship display the male perches near the female and spreads out the wings with bill raised high and displaying the white throat and front. Its nest is usually a tunnel (50 cm long or more) in an earth bank. Nest tunnels in a haystack have also been recorded. The eggs take 20 to 22 days to hatch and the chicks fledge in 19 days.

Outside the Window !

Outside the Window !, originally uploaded by ezee as hell out for a few days.

There are sunny skies and gently banking clouds. Lovely light and melodious sounds of birds in the trees.

Now the monsoon has begun and this which was reality just a few days ago is now a figment of my dream.

Much as I love the rains, but it is good bye to blue skies, for now.

Hark ! the Monsoons Come !

Hark ! the Monsoons Come !, originally uploaded by ezee as hell out for a few days.

This year the monsoons are much delayed.
Normally it is the last week of May when the rains come to Kerala. Though it did appear that it was so, it did not happen. Not much rain.
The skies cleared and the light was unbelievable for a few days.
These shots are adroit reminders of what the skies can be in Kerala.
Right now though it appears that the monsoons have set in, albeit on a sedate scale. - text by the original author.

The Derelict Harbour at Alleppey !

The Derelict Harbour at Alleppey !, originally uploaded by ezee as hell out for a few days.

Alleppey for everyone who travels to Kerala is the destination for the back water cruises.


Alleppey is a much older town compared to Cochin and it had a prosperous harbour once upon a time. This now lies ruined and is crumbling away as the harbour has been turned redundant by the comparatively newer Cochin port.


A building stands in solitary splendor and weathers the forces of nature. Surely it will get annihlated with time but for now it exists.

Roll On Down ! Gentle waters of Kerala.

Roll On Down ! Gentle waters of Kerala., originally uploaded by ezee as hell out for a few days.

A lovely light lit up the last section of the boat race at Panangad.

It had been grey and desultory all day but then Brave Helius broke through the pallid clouds and lit up this bevy of Kerala girls as they did a dance on the boat in a rhythm of languid grace.

The boat moves gently and with infinte leisure up the riverine waterways of Kerala.

Panangad is at the southern end of Cochin and it hosts a boat race for Onam. This shot taken during the boat race.

Demi Moore uses leach therapy for glowing skin

Hollywood actor Demi Moore recently admitted that she covered herself in blood-sucking leeches to keep her skin looking fresh and young. It is the secret of her glowing skin and beauty, she said. Weeks after Demi Moore publicly admitted to her undergoing leech therapy, the Department of Ayush (under the Health Ministry, Government of India) has decided to standardize and market leech therapy. There are many such ancient medicines systems often referred to as alternative medicines, herbal medicines, nature cure, holistic healing, etc., practiced in India and other Asian countries, and now in practice and demand in many other countries.

Leech therapy is an ancient technique in Unani medicine system. According to news reports, a high-level meeting of Unani medicine experts finalized the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) specifying rules that are to be followed by all leech therapists practicing in India.

The meeting attended by experts from National Institute of Unani Medicine (Bangalore), Research Institute of Unani Medicine (Srinagar), Aligarh and Kashmir University’s department of zoology, also finalized training modules to popularize leech therapy in four national Unani colleges at Bangalore, Aligarh, Delhi and Hyderabad. The Director of Central Council for Research in Unani Medicine, Mohammed Khalid Siddiqui, who chaired the meeting, said leech therapy had proved to be a highly effective technique against arthritis, sinusitis, migraine, hypertension and frostbite.

Experts say over 100 bioactive substances present in the saliva of the leech helps improve disease conditions through extraction of impure blood from human body (leech bites, hangs on the body and sucks blood). The meeting finalized treatment protocol and teaching models for Unani students interested in specializing in leech therapy. The technique had already gained tremendous acceptance among people in Jammu & Kashmir, coastal Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. Many people from other countries, including celebrities like Demi Moore, also endorse leech therapy. As such, the Council is planning to document the system of leech therapy and provide standard guidelines for all leech therapists. It also had plans to send the SOP to the Union Health Ministry for notifying.

“At present there are no defined procedures. Therefore, there is always the risk of quacks. To bring a regulation we are publishing a compilation for all leech therapists. We have also finished carrying out clinical trials to study the effect of leech therapy on various diseases”, he said.

The application of medicinal leeches, Hirudo medicinalis, for clearing poison was in fashion in Egypt around 2500 years ago. In 2004, use of blood sucking leeches was approved by the USFDA as a tool for healing skin grafts. The general indications for leech therapy are Inflammatory Reactions, Heart Diseases, Rheumatic Diseases, Tendovaginitis and Tendinitis, Venous Disease and Varicose Veins, Arthrosis, Arthritis, Muscle Tension, Antidyscratic therapy ( blood purification and regeneration) of toxicoses and mental, illnesses, Thrombosis and embolism, Passive congestions and spastic conditions, Vertebrogenic Pain Syndromes, Transudates and exudates.