On the way - Part 3

Continuing with our journey. . . . . . . Crossing the Holkar bridge was a real pain as it was very narrow and the traffic moved real slow, till they came up with an alternate wide bridge. I must say that the construction of the new bridge was pretty fast.

For those who want to know the past of this bridge, it was built by Madhu Rao Peshwa and named after Malhar Rao Holkar who was accustomed to pitching his tent in the vicinity. (the Holkars were the Maratha rulers of the Malwa region)

There is a water colour painting by Lester John Fredrick dated as back as 1870 showing how the bridge looked during a flood that happened in July 1870.

Picture source

I came across an old B&W photograph too, clicked maybe a century ago.

Picture source:

I tried to click a recent picture of the bridge from the same location.

One can visualize the passage of time by comparing the painting and the two photographs above. 

And to have a look at the new bridge that was built just an year ago, here is a view from the river bed. You can see the old bridge on the extreme left.

   

The city fathers planned well in advance and made this new bridge real wide with a bifurcation going to the highway via the Kirkee War Cemetery.  On some days we do take a detour from that side. (but we will explore that side later under the title Detour)

I appreciate the fact that very few trees were sacrificed to build this new bridge.

If you are lucky you will get to see some scullers rowing in the river

There are some washer men who wash their load of clothes, the traditional Indian way

And if you are really really lucky you may get to see these small birds moving around in hordes. It’s a wonderful sight to see a wave of yellow suddenly moving from one tree to another.

It is a lovely sight to see the new bridge disappearing into the jungle of trees.

And that takes us to one of my favourite roads of Pune. This road is lined with huge trees on either side giving ample shade.

Recently when I was clicking some pictures on this road, this vehicle overtook me and made the road all the more colourful.

At the end of this road there is this small quaint little Methodist church.

There is a dilapidated house that I see daily. I can’t help imagine how this house would have been a century ago. Could have been occupied by some British Military officer with his family, and an array of servants.

May be that tree could tell us some stories.  

Right next to this tree is an open playground. The best time to play football is on a rainy day and even if it is not pouring it is a lovely sight to see those youngsters engaged in a game of football.

But our love for cricket does not take a back seat. If you look closely you can see a game of cricket in progress in the midst the football players. (the guy in black stripes is bowling)

What do we call this?  Peaceful co-existence? 

To be continued in part 3.
For those who have missed out on Part-1 and Part-2.   

On the way - Part 2

Traveling is boring for some and it is all the more so when its a daily routine - namely going to work.
 Continuing with the journey . . . . . .  there is a broken culvert that we pass daily and the activity over there is any body’s guess. As the water over here is fresh and flowing, you get to see a lot of activity.

It could be a driver, who after having a bath washes his auto rickshaw

Or it could be someone cleaning his scooter  

Sometimes the vehicles carrying the green leafy vegetables make a stop over to wash their bunch of palak and methi (spinach and fenugreek), or it could be a physically challenged  man  who after having a bath , washes his clothes and hangs them out  to dry.

The National War Memorial has undergone a face lift recently.

It is a pleasant sight to see the well manicured lawns with the names  of the soldiers neatly listed down

The flag staff too has been changed to a longer one with a bigger flag. On the way back from work we get to see the flag being lowered with reverence. A procedure followed religiously before sunset.

Next to this War Memorial is a clock tower which rings at every hour. I was pleasantly surprised to hear the ring of the Big Ben when I was passing this  tower exactly at 18:00 hrs.

Those who want to know a little more about the Big Ben and its history, have a look at this video here.  Some interesting facts are given there. 

Every city in India with a military establishment has an RSI and Pune is one of them.

There is this institute “Botanical Survey of India” with  huge trees and a good mansion inside (from the British era). One day I must make it a point to visit and explore this place.

Pune has two rivers and I cross them six times in a day - thrice in the morning and thrice in the evening. In case you are wondering about it, here is a rough layout of how the river winds itself through the city.

The  Fitzgerald  bridge (commonly known as the Yerwada bridge or bund garden bridge) was wide and strong and it had a bund close to it. Its interesting to know that this bund was financed by Sir Jamsetji Jeejeebhoy and was named as Jamsetji Bund. It was created in 1853 to provide water for the poorer citizens of the city.

picture source

The above picture shows the bund. It was clicked by an unknown photographer way back in 1870

Now the bund has been demolished to create new bridges on either side.The Fitzgerald bridge still stands with a deserted look. There is a move to make it a walking plaza.  I tried to click a picture from the same point and you can see the new bridge in place of the bund.

Many Bollywood pictures were shot on this bund including the famous song sequence “aaja aayi bahaar…” from the movie Raajkumar starring  Shammi Kapoor and Sadhana.

From the bridge you can see the Tarakeshwar mandir on the hillock.

Below the bridge you can see a make shift dhobi ghat. It has been there for years, maybe due to the easy access to running water.

 Before we move on from the Bund Garden Bridge, lets have a look at how it looked in 1917. Here is a picture I came across which says: 

Poona, India. 1917. Members of the 1^st Australian Wireless Signal Squadron, Mesopotamian Expeditionary Force, relax in the gardens while on leave. They were possibly members of the Squadron Headquarters (HQS) or ‘A’ Station. 

You can see the Fitzgerald bridge behind.

Along the curved road to the Bombay Sappers you get to see a temple and a durgah co-existing with each other.

The view from inside the Kaila Chamunda mata mandir is great and one can see the flowing Mulla river from the window.

When ever there is a festivity in the Hajrat Shahdaval Baba Durgah you can see extra stalls coming up outside with some colourful items for sale.

It’s a common sight to see the young recruits crossing the road at the Bombay Sappers (which was earlier known as the BEG) This edifice (made with coloured tiles) looks great from far.

I was just counting the number of pictures in this post and I think it has crossed my self imposed rule of “keep it short and sweet”

So will be continuing the journey in part 3

On the way - part 1

Traveling is boring for some and it is all the more so when it’s a daily routine - namely going to work.

Whether you travel by a car or a bus, observing your surroundings and the daily activities can be really interesting.

To start with, its interesting to watch the morning walkers getting along with their brisk morning walk.

If you are lucky you get to see the fag end of the combined exercise activity  by the senior citizens. Everyday the leader keeps changing but the exercise goes on. And then there is the laughter club which some find very amusing.

    The church opposite the Race course is probably one of the oldest one in Pune.

And when you look at it from the other side of the race course, it’s the only landmark in the horizon.

The race course is one of those exciting places. You get to see the horses taken for the early morning training. The horses are wary of the traffic and the cacophony, so the trainer has a tough time holding on to them till they reach the tracks.

Once on the track they just sail through the morning routine of warming up and alternating between a trot and a gallop.

Its good to see people on tracks having their morning walk while the horses move in the opposite direction.

After a good work out they are back in their stables for a much required  rest.

There is a cross road named Victoria road right next to the race course The name of this road reminds me of my school days as our school in Bombay was situated on  Victoria Road (not far from Victoria Garden)  Of course Bombay is now Mumbai,  Victoria Road is Mustafa bazaar and Victoria Garden is Rani baug.

Right behind the Victoria Road sign is the Southern Command Riding school where young guys get their training.

Come summer vacation and you can see a lot of activity here where young boys and girls get a real feel of the horse and horse riding. 

Talking of the Race course you get to see a lot of activity there. Apart from the horses being trained, you come across joggers (who have a different track)

And there are some who do the Surya namaskar the right way -facing the rising sun.

Some believe in walking backwards as they say that it is a better form of exercise.

And after all this the juice vendor is always there to give you your choice of juice.

 I am always fascinated with this tangle of roots and trunks. Wonder how old it is, standing there right on the perimeter of the Empress Garden.

This Garden is one of the oldest in Pune and has some huge trees. Just a sideways glance is enough for one to appreciate the foliage and dense growth there.

From time to time Empress Garden holds some good exhibition cum sale of flowers and saplings. On such days you can expect a minor traffic jam in the evening.

These sugar cane vendors are getting ready with their stock for the day, anticipating the rise in the temperature. The complete contraption is made of wood and is very cost effective. The family pitches in as it requires minimum two people to run the show.

(this is getting to be a long one. . . . . .  so will be continued in part 2)