Karen Xavier's Photography

Pretty Gate...

2012-01-29T06:58:00.000-08:00

Caught sight of this ornamental gate while walking around town...

Hanging lanterns...

2012-01-18T11:23:00.000-08:00

I was in Bangalore recently and this little knick knack place stopped me in my tracks... they had such pretty colourful lanterns on display. Check them out...

Faint glow...

2012-01-09T12:35:00.000-08:00

There were some left over serial lights and mom just spread them over a bunch of decorative flowers in a vase. The effect was beautiful as seen below... the soft mesmerizing glow changed the mood of the room, made it more magical and dreamy.

Christmas at home...

2011-12-17T02:55:00.000-08:00

A few pictures taken this Christmas...

The crib and the tree

The nativity scene...

The wise men following the star...

The tree...

My room, with a paper doily wreath...

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.

Intriguing deities...

2011-12-10T00:15:00.000-08:00

Saw these deities on display and they are intriguing... especially the elephant god perusing a book.

A picture of rotund bliss....

The Buddha reclining...

The elephant god again with numerous hands...

The elephant god with many heads...

Colourful Lamps

2011-11-25T11:15:00.001-08:00

So I saw these pretty pretty cotton lamps on display and I fell for them... the variety and the colours, they could brighten up any space.

These cream ones are my favourite...

Even these colourful ones are so nice...

I like the middle green one here, I don't know why I never bought any.

Even these noodle like lamps will look great with a soft light shining in them...

Indian Handicrafts...

2011-11-14T14:14:00.001-08:00

Saw these at Mahabalipuram, pretty neat... right? I like the shapes and patterns of these objects...

A closer view... as usual please click on the picture to enlarge it.

Mahabalipuram: The Lion, the Temples and the Pallavas

2011-11-08T10:27:00.000-08:00

So this is the monolithic lion sculpture, he does look prehistoric with those curved fangs. Check out the temples in the background and the lovely dancing figures engraved into them. The Pallavas must have been a really patient race... do click on the picture for a larger view.

Mahabalipuram: Bas Relief

2011-10-25T02:05:00.000-07:00

To tell you the truth, these kinda creeped me out... I don't know why but it was sorta unnerving watching this bas relief work as the sun was setting in the horizon. I don't think I would be able to cross this place at night...

But they do look nice, considering the work that has gone into sculpting them onto the side of a huge rock. Click on the pictures to enlarge them....

Mahabalipuram: The Goddess & her cherubs

2011-10-20T02:12:00.000-07:00

Here is the goddess inside the temple, surrounded by her Indian looking cherubs. I have no clue what the person crouching in the corner is doing, looks like a dance pose to me.

Mahabalipuram: Temple Entrance

2011-10-11T11:35:00.000-07:00

This is the entrance to another small temple... the deity (in the center) is enveloped in shadows. You'll see her more clearly tomorrow, she has got a fantastic shape... click on the picture for a clearer view.

Other pictures in the Mahabalipuram series
First Glance
Graceful Sentries
Rock Elephant
Temple Carvings

Mahabalipuram: Temple Carvings

2011-10-09T02:29:00.000-07:00

The place is strewn with carved temples like this... you can see one in the background too. Notice the base is solid rock, these ancient people must have really worked hard to create these monuments. Please click on the picture to enlarge it.

Other pictures in the Mahabalipuram series
First Glance
Graceful Sentries
Rock Elephant
Temple Entrance

Mahabalipuram: Rock Elephant

2011-10-07T10:04:00.000-07:00

Imagine carving this out of a solid chunk of rock... Aaron Ralston would appreciate the effort that has gone into this ancient sculpture. Check out the folds on its ears, do click on the picture for a better view.

Other pictures in the Mahabalipuram series..
First Glance
Graceful Sentries
Temple Carvings
Temple Entrance

Mahabalipuram: Graceful Sentries

2011-10-06T00:26:00.000-07:00

These sculpted figures adorn one side of the temple wall, one guy even has his hand resting on an animal that kinda looks like a lion.

There's some sort of a pattern here, the guy with the beast must be a figure of authority. Flanking him are two couples and then a solitary figure. They are so slender and graceful... they seem like a calm and beautiful race. (Click on the pictures to enlarge them)

Other pictures in the Mahabalipuram series...

Mahabalipuram: First Glance

2011-10-04T13:05:00.000-07:00

The next few posts will feature pictures from my recent trip to Mahabalipuram, which is famous for its shore temples and other massive carvings by an ancient race called the Pallavas that ruled the region in the 7th century. These ancient monuments are mostly rock cut and monolithic, depicting various gods and the people of that era. It must have taken many men working patiently together to create these awe inducing relics of an ancient civilization.

Calvin and Hobbes Birthday Cake...

2011-09-26T07:42:00.000-07:00

I celebrated my birthday over the weekend with this amazing calvin and hobbes cake. I love Calvin, he cracks me up, his parents are pretty funny too. This is a photo cake, you send the bakery a picture and they somehow print it onto the cake using a sugar and cornstarch mixture. I loved this chocolate truffle cake, every bite was sinfully good.

Pretty neat, huh...

Milky Way...

2011-09-19T11:31:00.001-07:00

Milky Way is another nice hangout place, the ice creams here are wonderfully light and soft. It's not luxuriously thick or creamy, so if you're on a diet this is a good place to visit.

Ordered a waffle cone with crunchy choco ice cream and raspberry ice cream, both were pretty good. They have sandwiches and other starters too.

Flower Carpets...

2011-09-10T02:43:00.000-07:00

Onam (the festival of Kerala) was celebrated a few days back, and these designs made of flowers are a defining feature of the festival. Houses, offices and other institutions are decorated with elaborate and colourful flower designs on Onam.

Here is your Mother...

2011-09-06T22:58:00.000-07:00

Stopped by a church on the way home and saw this grotto of our Lady and St. Bernadette. The writing above Virgin Mary is in Tamil and it reads 'Here is your Mother.' Please click on the picture for a larger view.

A Hindu Festival...

2011-09-03T11:18:00.000-07:00

So it's the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi and at every corner you see Ganesh idols like this. This festival goes on for ten days and there is a lot of dancing and drama on the streets. He is the elephant headed god, history has it that Lord Shiva (Ganesh's father) accidentally beheaded his son and then replaced his head with that of an elephant's. As usual click on the picture for a larger view.

This is home...

2011-08-29T01:27:00.000-07:00

Was away for a few days, had gone home to see my folks. Took this picture from the train as it was creeping into my hometown Nagercoil. Those rolling hills and the green paddy fields are characteristic in my region... I can never tire of this sight. The air is also so clean and inviting, not like the city, clogged with vehicle fumes and dust. Click on the picture for a larger view.

Taking in the warm sunny wind...

2011-08-20T02:06:00.000-07:00

Wrap around skirts drying in the sun... yeah, I know, such an inconsequential picture, but somehow I like it.

A lot can happen over coffee...

2011-08-17T18:12:00.000-07:00

So the previous post shows where to hangout in villages, this one shows the coolest hangout place in a city like Madras, India.

Cafe Coffee Day outlets, like this are seen all over Madras... and they are so tastefully and peacefully set up. The seating is rather cosy with quaint wicker furniture and wooden chairs. The food is pretty good too, its the same stuff you usually get at great hangout places like sinfully good chocolate cakes, brownies, a variety of coffee concoctions and sandwiches.

The ultimate way to relax in villages...

2011-08-14T01:50:00.000-07:00

Canals like this are quite common in my hometown, they make a great hangout place... and the running water gives a healthy massage to the body. Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Water is the driver of Nature. Leonardo da Vinci

A Hindu Goddess

2011-08-09T01:03:00.000-07:00

So this temple festival is going on near my place, this four handed goddess made of serial lights marks the road that leads to the temple. This goddess called Mariamman (Mother Mari) is the goddess of disease and rain. At her festival, the devotees walk on burning hot coals to prove their undying devotion to her.

Candle light...

2011-07-20T00:20:00.000-07:00

I saw this candle holder at a shop and knew I had to buy it...

Those intricate patterns are pretty neat...
Enchanting, right...

The smiling bug...

2011-07-18T02:27:00.000-07:00

I found this yellow dot running around in my room, and picked it up. It was a yellow and black stripped bug and it looked like it was smiling... really. Click on the picture to enlarge it, then you can see an insect smiling...

Memories of December...

2011-07-15T05:39:00.000-07:00

So while going through some old pictures, I came across this beautiful one... the soft lights of the Christmas tree seen through an embroidered curtain. I remember I had just finished preparing something for Antonio to eat and as I was walking back to my bedroom, the glowing lights stopped me in my tracks and for some reason the whole beauty of it made me inexplicably happy... the whole season of Christmas has this effect on me. Anyway, I wanted to capture the moment, and this is the result.

Pensive by the Firelight...

2010-01-22T06:54:00.000-08:00

Fire is fascinating, watching the flames leap and devour the twigs you feed them is somehow relaxing. Here is a picture of a lady in a pensive mood, cooking something and staring into the orange glow.

To poke a wood fire is more solid enjoyment than almost anything else in the world.

Charles Dudley Warner

Lakes near home...

2010-01-12T21:02:00.000-08:00

I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,

I hear it the deep heart's core.

William Butler Yeats

Chapel on the rocks...

2010-01-10T09:31:00.000-08:00

This chapel looks nice nestled up there like a beacon of faith, I should visit it when I go home next.So then, anyone who hears these words of mine and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock. Mathew 7:24

Smells like sunshine...

2009-12-03T01:26:00.000-08:00

It's been raining continuously here and as much as I like the rains, I don't like the way my clothes smell when I dry them indoors. So when the sun showed up the other day in all its splendor, I quickly washed my clothes and dried them outside... and they went back to smelling so clean and warm like sunshine.

A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.

Steve Martin

A friendly neighbour...

2009-12-03T01:19:00.000-08:00

With the destruction of boundaries...

You get to meet friendly neighbours... like Princy.

Princy is a cute little thing...

Love your neighbour, yet don't pull down your hedge.

Benjamin Franklin

Oil Burnt Art...

2009-11-20T06:55:00.000-08:00

A few drops of hot boiling oil splashed on my hand while frying chicken for my strictly non vegetarian husband. Here I've drawn flowers round the burned spots... my first ever oil burnt art and I hope the last.

Art is man's expression of his joy in labour.

Henry A. Kissinger

An obscure spiritual figure of the 18th century

2009-10-15T23:34:00.000-07:00

My folks at home went to this awesome place at Aralvaimozhi, where Devasahayam Pillai is believed to have been martyred. He's apparently a great spiritual figure of the 18th century who suffered martyrdom for Christ... no one's really sure of it though, which is actually weird cause St. Francis Xavier arrived in the 16th century and his name is still alive and active in my hometown. They have a huge feast in his honour every December and pilgrims throng the area and the schools remain closed... the whole town is practically devoted to St. Xavier, but a man of the 18th century they find hard to remember... beats me.

Anyway, my sister sent these pix's and my mom asked me why they weren't up in my photography blog and I said 'Only the pictures I take go on my blog'. My mom told me not to act too smart and to put these pictures up here... so here they are.

Isn't this nice, the hills, the clouds and a turret...

This could easily pass off as a church in Italy... very pretty.

Isn't this spectacular... similar to the one in Brazil.

Bell Rock: It seems when Devasahayam was being murdered, huge chunks of rocks started tumbling down the side of the hill making a sound like that of a church bell ringing, kinda like a death knell.

The rock you see en caged below is apparently one of those 'bell ringing rocks', if you strike it with another stone it makes a ringing sound, whereas when the other nearby boulders are struck, you hear a normal rock on rock sound.

The church...

The view from the church...

I am definitely going here the next time I am home...

Droopy Tongue

2009-10-03T13:20:00.000-07:00

Saw this fella at the beach a few days back...

The more I see of man, the more I like dogs.

Mme. de Stael

On the river banks...

2009-10-02T02:58:00.000-07:00

These were taken in Kerala, just standing there and taking in the sheer beauty of the place was overwhelming...

Love is the river of life in the world.

Henry Ward Beecher

Boulders galore...

2009-09-25T06:13:00.000-07:00

Muttom beach (back home) is characterized by huge boulders that lie all over the place... I like this little fishing hamlet.

My heart is full of longing
For the secret of the sea,
And the heart of the great ocean
Sends a thrilling pulse through me.
Henry Wordsworth Longfellow.

Uncle and Niece...

2009-09-14T09:40:00.000-07:00

I like this picture... Tonio and baby Michelle. He likes to play with her and she seems to like him, she smiles when he is around (must be the resemblance to her dad). This picture was taken on my mobile phone hence the less than perfect image.

Babies are such a nice way to start people.

Don Herrold

Look what I saw, while hanging up the clothes to dry...

2009-09-01T00:47:00.000-07:00

Every creature is a word of God

Meister Eckhart

Fergie all decked up

2009-08-20T00:10:00.001-07:00

This darling little mutt (Fergie) makes me laugh, she is all love. Here after the makeup, we had to lure her with one of her toy bottles to stand still... that's why the heart felt longing in her big brown eyes.

Who can resist such soulful eyes, she's one hugable dog... I miss* her.* Don't worry, she is still alive and kicking... and from what I hear happily pregnant too. We had to give her away, so many things were happening (back home) and there was nobody to take care of her.

A dog is not 'almost human' and I know of no greater insult to the canine race than to describe it as such.

John Holmes

The Windmills Welcome...

2009-08-18T22:33:00.000-07:00

The windmills near home... resembling sentinels that loom protectively in the distance along with those rolling hills.

A light wind swept over the corn, and all nature laughed in the sunshine.

Anne Bronte

Kids and summer...

2009-08-18T02:37:00.000-07:00

Here you see a typical temple pond where a few kids are playing and trying to beat the summer heat in Kanyakumari (my hometown).

Looks like they caught something in their cloth net... kids and summer are an exciting combination, and if you happen to grow up in the countryside, you can bet nothing could be more exhilarating.

A new found blogger buddy - Meri, who is into interior designing and the like did a post on Outdoor Spaces and I sent her these pictures of a typical Indian-village-outdoorsy shot, you can check them out at her blog here.

When I was a little kid, of course, I was brown all summer. That's because I was free as a bird- nothing to do but catch bugs all day.

Roy Blount Jr.

God's cotton candy...

2009-08-17T10:38:00.001-07:00

These pictures were taken when I was on my way to Bombay to attend Tina's (my cousin) wedding...

I especially love this picture below, reminds me of the 'care bears'... those distinct swirls of curly cloud look like God's own cotton candy.

Those clouds are angels' robes.

Charles Kingsley