Taken December 21, 2013 in Kuala Lumpur.
The Malaysian and U.S. flags have a common ancestor in the East India Company (specifically the British EIC) flag which flew from 1707 to 1801. Hence, their similar design scheme. The Malaysian flag has one more bar, but started off with two fewer than the US flag. (On the US flag the 13 bars represent the original colonies, but in the Malaysian flag they represent the number of states–which has grown.)
Taken November 23, 2013 in Belur, India
This may be my last Daily Photo post for almost a month. If I do get any in, they’ll be sporadic. However, upon my return I will have lots of new posting fodder from Malaysia and Thailand.
Taken December 7, 2013 on Commercial Street in Bangalore.
This is one of the more ornate and less modern storefronts on Commercial Street.
Commercial Street is the heart of a market district in central Bangalore. It’s a short street that runs parallel to, and a few blocks north of, MG Road.
Taken October 16, 2013 in Delhi.
The India Gate honors 70,000 Indians who died during World War I fighting on behalf of the United Kingdom. Beneath the arch is India’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
It’s India’s answer to the Arc de Triomphe, and it sits at the opposite end of the Rajpath from the President’s house, i.e. the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Like the President’s house, the Gate was designed by Edwin Lutyens, a famous British architect.
The India Gate is among the must-see sights for visitors to New Delhi.
Taken October 13, 2013 at Fatehpur Sikri.
Red sandstone dominates the scene at Fatehpur Sikri, a 16th century Mughal city near Agra. The architecture is beautiful, but the view can be a bit drab. There are two areas where this monotony of hue is broken. One is the white marble in the Tomb of Salim Chishti (as well as some decorative accent white marble on the mosque itself.) The other is this little garden which inserts a field of green and rose-red into the mix.
Taken November 2013 at Queen’s Restaurant in Bangalore
I took this in a dimly lit Bangalore restaurant with a cellphone. Needless to say, it did not turn out well, but it’s something different for a Sunday. My chicken tikka came with a cool tomato lantern. It looks like something that fell out of Iron Man’s chest in this photo, but was a pleasant piece of ambiance in person.
Queen’s is a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant on Church St. I’ve found the food to be consistently good, though the decor might keep the faint-of-heart out.
Taken October 15 in Delhi
Connaught Place is a bulls-eye in the heart of Delhi. The inner circle is Rajiv Chowk and the outermost loop is Indira Chowk. The name Connaught obviously goes back to India’s colonial past. It was named for the first Duke of Connaught, Prince Arthur. Today it’s a popular hangout, has one of the busiest Metro stations in the city, contains a keyhole shaped park, and is surrounded by many corporate headquarters. Careful though, it also has one of the highest concentrations of shysters and con men in the city.
Taken October 2012 at Wat Phnom in Phnom Penh.
How come the noun “incense” means “a substance that releases a strong fragrance when burned,” but in its adjectival or verbal form it means to be, or make someone, extremely angry.
It’s not a rhetorical question, people. If you’ve got an answer, let me know.
Taken at the Mysore Zoo on November 29, 2013.
I took this photo at Mysore zoo through the chain link fence, but got focus on the leopard.
Taken November 23 at Hoysaleshwara Temple in Halebidu
For almost 900 years poor schlubs have had to scrub their way around this temple, washing its ornate carvings.
I wonder how similar or different the workers of past generations looked? Obviously, they didn’t have molded plastic water jugs, but the pottery version might have looked similar (not the day-glo lime green one, but certainly the brick-colored one.) No dress shirts or ball caps back then, but the turbans and sarongs are probably not so out-of-place.
Of course, the scaffolding, rough-cut wood lashed together, gives it an ancient feel.
Probably, the most striking difference is the female job foreman.
Tiger Riding for Beginners 