Sunday afternoon

We really like the walk around the lake. Yesterday our friend Inge came along and we took some pictures along the way.

Catch of the day

Termite hill next to a temple

Eating

On their way home

Cute kitten at the 'go down'

Look there (photo by Inge)

photo by Inge



Lake Walkathon

This morning we participated in the Lake Walkathon, a walk around lake Doddanekundi (behind Adarsh Vista) to create awareness of all the work that has been done to preserve the lake.
About a year ago the whole lake was emptied, islands were created and sewage inlets closed. The sides of the lake were reinforced with stone blocks and drains and walkways are being created.
There used to be a lot more lakes around Bangalore, that served as water reservoirs, and rain water would flow to the lakes through the storm water drains during monsoon season. Unfortunately many lakes have been drained and the land is used to build houses or apartment blocks on. That, in combination with the lack of maintenance on the drainage systems, leads to more and more flooding during the monsoon season. Not a good development.

Doddanekundi lake looks nice, but it has caused a fair bit of discomfort to us too. The smell can be almost unbearable at times (caused by the sewage) and the mosquitos that breed in the stagnant water are a real pest. Let's hope that the work that is being done will solve those problems.

The walk this morning was very nice and we plan to go for a walk around 'our' lake more often.

The official ceremony was still in full swing when we arrived: speeches. We decided to start our walk before the whole crowd would go and we went in the opposite direction.

Valentines heart in the lake?

A different view on Adarsh Vista

Adriaan



The part where the sewage is still flowing (not into the lake anymore) and garbage is being dumped

Adarsh Vista from the other side of the lake

A workers' camp along the railroad

Fast asleep

Clothes are being sorted to be ironed

A little temple at the side of the road

TG for duct tape!

Our house here in India is huge and has super high ceilings (up to 8 meters!). Those high ceilings are great in summer, since warm air rises and it keeps the house a bit cooler, but they are a pain in the @#$ when it comes to changing light bulbs or cleaning the fans.
We have a window in our bedroom that is leaking when it rains. I have had it 'fixed' a few years ago, but that event still gives me nightmares (people hanging upside down from the roof top) so now we just put some towels under it when it rains.
It turns out that the window is made out of two pieces. I figured that out on a windy night this week, when I heard it rattle and saw it move back and forth. It looked like it could break or fall down any minute, so something needed to be done about it.

I don't know much about DIY, but I do know that everything can be fixed with duct tape :-)

Only problem: the window is at four meters and we don't own a ladder that is long enough to reach. So out we went to rent a bamboo ladder down the street at the sum of INR 250/= (3,50 euro) and took it home. That was the easy part...


The ladder-rental place down the road ('our' ladder is the one on the left)

That roof rack was a great investment

The first puzzle was to get the ladder inside the house and upstairs. We decided it would be best to haul it up to the balcony instead of going through the house.

Joshua and Vincent, wondering what they have gotten themselves in to

And it is upstairs

and inside

They say men are bad at estimating length, but I am not that good at it either apparently. It turned out the ladder was a bit too tall to stand upright....

How are we going to do this?

Almost there

So we finally got the ladder in the right position, the top leaning on the windowsill and the bottom firmly against the wall. The only thing left for me was to climb up there with the duct tape and scissors to fix the problem.
I got half way up the ladder and it started to bend so much that I decided to send one of the boys up, since they are much lighter than I (aren't I a great mother to leave the scary and dangerous stuff to my kids?).

Ruben went up and managed to put the tape on the glass.

Child labour

Beautiful!

PS

In case you are wondering why the boys are home on a Friday: it's sportsday at school and the smart @#$-es made sure they didn't get selected for any of the events... I am such a good mother for keeping them home and out of the sun.

Improvement!

Garbage is a big problem in India and unfortunately many people just throw their garbage in the street or literally over their fence. Garbage segregation is compulsory (I have 5 bins in my kitchen!), but outside of the gated communities not many people seem to care (or willing/able to pay for the garbage collection).

Down the main road from our complex this used to be the daily sight:

Breakfast!

Garbage was dumped on the sidewalk, spilling over on the street. Cows and dogs would come over for breakfast, tearing open the plastic bags and making an even bigger mess. Later in the day a truck would come to collect most of it.

Last week this sign appeared at that same spot:

It is a start

And it got even better! Look at what I saw this morning:

WOW!

No inspiration

I have no inspiration to write, but I do have a nice photo :-)

ready to cross the road

Winter

Janakiram Layout

Finally, after 3 years, I came along on one of the walks though the Janakiram layout, where Anu is based. Tuesdays and Saturdays are 'water days', the only two days of the week when water is coming from the taps in the street. Time to collect water for the coming days and to wash and clean!

Collecting water

Heavy load



Washing



Scrubbing



One of the streets



Sales man



Cute baby



Fast asleep



Iron

Painted face

Breakfast

Why aren't you in school?