This majestically colorful bird is a delight to watch. A mid air acrobat with fifty shades of blue.
-Resident-
‘Green Bee Eater’
The technicolor bird with the characteristic band of black over the eyes.
Feasts on bees, caught on the fly.
-Resident-
'The Bulbul Trinity'
Pretty garden birds, actively prowling the garden the year round. Melodious voice adds to their appeal.
3 kinds found on campus - White Spectacled, White Eared, and Red Vented.
-Resident-
'Red Wattled Lapwing'
The uber alert. In Tamil 'aalkatti'-one who points out people.
Shrill and unmistakable ‘Did you do it? Did you? Did you?’ calls. Can be seen on the lawns anytime of day and night.
-Resident-
'Indian Silverbill'
Small, long-tailed finch with a chunky body and short, stout silver bill.
In short, cute.
-Resident-
'House Sparrow'
No list can be complete without this homely 'Chidiya'.
Thankfully abundant in Oman, although its populations have declined elsewhere.
'Crested Lark'
The flying singer.
Beautiful crest on its head, it has a curious habit of flying 100 ft up in the air and singing its heart out.
-Neighbourhood Resident-
'Golden Oriole'
Mature birds are dazzling in yellow with a black eye-band. Sings hauntingly and soothingly from tree tops.
Stops in Muscat on its way between Europe and Africa.
-Visitor-
'Spotted Flycatcher'
A passage migrant. Travels between Europe and northern Africa. Stops by at the India House for a break.
-Visitor-
'Isabelline Shrike'
Sandy colored, medium sized Shrike with a typical batman mask. Passage migrant through Oman.
-Visitor-
'Purple Sunbird'
Vivacious in metallic blue, this is one of the smallest yet most visible birds on campus. A rabble rouser with its sweet but incessant calls.
'Rufous Tailed Scrub Robin'
Sandy-brown songbird with a long rufous tail tipped black and white, often held cocked.
Seen on passage migration between Europe and Africa.
-Visitor-
'White Wagtail'
Striking black and white bird that breeds in Europe and winters in Africa, stopping by in Oman. Often seen foraging in the lawns.
-Visitor-
'Whimbrel'
A not-so-common shorebird, with a long decurved bill. Sometimes drops in at India House during winter from the beach.
-Visitor-
'Sandpiper'
An elegant small shore bird, with constantly bobbing tail. Seems very comfortable as a day visitor to the campus.
Honorable Mentions
3 most ubiquitous birds on India House are:
Common Myna - the neighborhood aunt & chatterbox
House Crow - local wiseman and ruffian
Laughing Dove - scare-a-boo commoner
-Resident-
End 🧵
The list of avian friends calling India House home is much longer.
Together they share this ecological space with the few humans that live here and but for them, the India House in Muscat wouldn't be as scenic and bucolic as it proudly is.
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They are not as famous as the blockbuster rock carvings of Ajanta and Ellora, but Udaigiri caves near Bhopal house a priceless collection of rock art, dating back to over 1500 years.
The cave art at Udaigiri was commissioned by King Chandragupta Vikramaditya to commemorate his victory over the Shakas.
The iconography is one of the earliest in Hinduism and includes some very interesting depictions of Vaishnavism, Shaivism & Shaktism, all at one place.
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The iconographic centerpiece is this colossal sculpture of Vishnu in his Varaha or man-boar avatar, rescuing mother earth from the cosmic ocean.
The ‘Houses’ of Delhi – Princely Embassies in an Imperial Capital
[THREAD]
Visitors to Delhi are familiar with the ubiquitous ‘Houses’ – Hyderabad House, Patiala House et al. But most are unfamiliar with their history. Who built them & why?
A short expose for the curious few..
The more famous of the ‘Houses’ are those perched around the India Gate – Hyderabad, Baroda, Patiala, Jaipur and Bikaner.
There are several others dotting the leafy roads of Lutyens Delhi – Dholpur and Mandi to name a few.
2/n
As the names would suggest to any reader of history, these Houses represented the ‘Provinces’ or more accurately the ‘Princely States’ that existed pre-independence. In reality, these were the ‘Embassies’ of princely states at the British imperial Capital at New Delhi.
The archetypal haunted mansion, this remarkably well preserved hunting lodge is located deep inside the Delhi ridge. This is also the famous abode of the ‘Jungle Prince’ Ali Raza or Cyrus from Awadh who reportedly lived here till his death in 2017.
-contd-
1b. Malcha Mahal
The riveting story in @nytimes by @EllenBarryNYT on the Malcha Mahal and the mysterious if eccentric Awadh family who made it their home for decades is an absolute page turner.
One of the 6 lovingly restored monuments by @AKF_India in the delightful @sundernursery. The collapsed dome and the verdant setting lends an ethereal quality to this palace. Why is it called Batashewala? Well there's a Bada Batashewala next door.
2. ‘Khooni Darwaza’
Built by Sher Shah Suri, also called Kabuli Darwaza.
This innocuous looking Gate on Bahadur Shah Zafar Road hides a gory past. This is where Dara Shukoh’s head was displayed and where Maj Hodson murdered Mughal Emperor’s sons in 1857.