A Photo-Ethnographic Study, Alaknanda River, Bhagirathi River, Himachal Pradesh, Mother Ganga, Parvati River, Uttar pradesh, Uttarakhand
Published on 31/01/2023
Comments 31

30 Moments that I was Grateful for in 2022: Last Visual Notes of the Year

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January of 2023 is going to get over today.

And for once I wanted to take out time to examine my last year’s archives before new year starts finding ways to create new journeys, i desired to assemble together those times; Journeys, though only handful they were, to keep them safe, here and create a reason to keep coming back, whenever needed to smile, over and over.

Hence for one last time before we leave it all to memory and ongoing Life:

One memory which will roam for long is going to be the death of my grandmother, and the times spent in the village along the river Ganges

Mother posing on the roof of an Ashram, on the banks of Ganga in Haridwar was a memorable time.



THE JOURNEY TO KASAR TEMPLE – ALMORA

The first assignment came to document the sacred Kasar Devi Temple in Almora and finding a new home there like my own family, where we took a detour to visit a remarkable museum dedicated to Govind Ballabh Pant in Almora City and above learning unlearning about the famous infamous Crank’s Ridge and about all the masters who visited this sacred land.



WALKING ALONG THE RIVER PARVATI

Parvati River flowing ferociously through the Himalayas

This village arrived after we passed the Parvati Stream on our way to a two day trek to Kheer Ganga in Himachal Pradesh



THE MOTERCYCLE DAYS With Pluto

Here we helped plant some 4 lac Plum, Orange and other forest plants at various sites in the upper Himalayas near Gopeshwar

A beautiful view of River Alaknanda flowing through the valley, as seen from a village called Bajeli.

This was a blessed time with my Old poet friend Sumanto, who had been practising Permaculture for last four years in the Himalayas. And was the same friend with whom I had trekked for days in search of the Magical Brahma Kamal Flower with last year. It just happened that we somehow found the key to the bike which was not ours, and which stood without an owner there at that time.

It was an evasive and such an involved time that I couldn’t dare myself to write about such an immersive journey in the divine land. But I must Soon.



THE JOURNEY BACK HOME: Migration of Two Dogs of Pluto

The abode: A place which must be residing within the heart of every Indian. Here, at Devprayag Alaknanda meeting Bhagirathi to make the mother who we call Ganga.

Passengers of the Migration.

The mighty Ganges taking a U-turn.

Migration of the two dogs of Pluto.

Sometimes I contemplate in awe of our engineers who work at Border Road Organisation for making roads at an insane altitude and sustaining it against all nature odds. Here stopped to look at the marvellous beauty this scape provided.

This last image of the big trees that surrounded this space was my way to bid goodbye to my coach, not of basketball.



THE SCHOOL PICNIC

This year also came alive as we started having Kids back at school, even though at a price but to be able to sustain a dwindling School Project, and to be able to bring them all to Picnic after 3 years of Corona was another memorable experience.



SOLAN TO CHAIL

Undoubtedly, the most important place to visit in Chail and if you are in Shimla, Mother Kali’s Temple in Chail.


But a year, Life is much more than constricting it in mere Photos. Just as Marco Polo once stated “I did not tell half of what I saw, for I knew I would not be believed.”

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Thank you.


If today is the first time you have arrived on The Road to Nara, you are heartily welcome ~ Namaste


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I will take this opportunity to introduce you to About me and importantly;

As a co-traveller, will take you through the Ten Lessons I learnt from several years on the road, before you coarse on your own Road to Nara.

Also read: Top 9 Most Read Posts of 2022


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You might also like to know about My Little School Project. If you wish to come over for a visit someday, that you must, you will be heartily welcome here

If you would like to contribute to my travels, you can please do so here


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If you have anything to share, or feel like saying a hello, please feel free to write to me at nara@road-to-nara.com

To visit other long-term photographic works, please visit here.


To follow my walks through the rural Indian Subcontinent, find me at 
Instagram | Facebook | Twitter


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31 Comments

  7. gabychops says

    This post vividly documents the essence of Narayan’s whole being, his love of traveling, and what its means to him. He would not survive in a 9 to 5 job and living in the same place. All the moments are about interesting, for a reason, places.
    He lists thirty, but I would hazard a guess that there are many more.
    The death of his beloved grandmother is the most important as he greatly loves his family. His grief-stricken face reminds me of the famous statement that grief is the price we pay for love. The positive thought here is that by writing, speaking, and thinking about his grandmother she is immortalized as passing on a person’s memory keeps them alive.
    The pictures of memorable visits, sometimes with his family to Ashrams and other temples provide respectful proof of how important is Hindu religion to India.
    The unforgettable visits to Almora, Kasar Temple, the unique museum, and especially, to the Himalayas, because they are the most sacred, soul affecting, place on earth.
    To be able to get to the mountains and have freedom and the excitement of the road one needs a motorcycle, Narayan’s preferred form of transport.
    It is obvious that at full speed, with the road stretching in front, he could go on riding to the edge of the world, if it wasn’t for the obligations at home.
    Memorable moments had to include, Narayan’s school, one of the best in the country, and the pictures of his children beautifully attired taken during the school’s excursion and a picnic show that this was also used as a patriotic history lesson and how thoughtful and well organized is his school.
    All the moments show Narayan’s dedication to illustrating India’s uniqueness
    and beauty of the country and its people.
    Thank you.

    Joanna

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Narayan Kaudinya says

      Thank you dearest Joanna. I smiled throughout reading your remarkable comment here and somethings are just unbelievable how you connected me with the motorcycle. That was actually and absolutely true.

      I will be more than content if in my lifetime I can achieve anything in India’s name.

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      • gabychops says

        Thank you, Narayan, for your wonderful reply. I think, you know how deep is our soul connection

        Which means I understand what the words you write or pictures you take really means.

        This is the reason that I know your future, and you will achieve everything that I predicted several times now. You do remember don’t you, Theodore Roosevelt saying:

        “Believe, and you are halfway there.”

        and another one

        “He Believed He Could So He Did!”

        I have direct line to the universe, and like some people can see what is invisible to others, I can see you achieving all aims that will make India proud of you. Just travel and write.

        Joanna

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  8. Michael Graeme says

    A remarkable year, Narayan, and such a pleasure reading of your adventures.

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  9. KK says

    A beautiful recollection of moments lived so passionately during the last year. This pictorial story is simply awesome, Narayan ji. My regards and best wishes for your adventurous life in 2023 as well.

    Like

    Reply
  10. Yetismith says

    Stunning photographs of the mountains, rivers and woods and of the people too. A wonderful snapshot of a year well spent. May this one be equally rewarding.

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