BACK IN CHENNAI

We are home after six months.
Madras is hot, humid, noisy, crowded – and I love it!

We landed last week on a warm morning, though the pilot of the British Airways aircraft we flew by – had said ‘it was a not unpleasant morning’.

Yesterday we went courtesy our dear friends Doctor JB and Bhama, to a dance concert at the Music Academy. It was a rare programme, because it was a tribute to a living person, Lalgudi G. Jayaraman. Thamizh Maiyam had organized it and chosen a novel way to do it.
Leading and illustrious Bharatanatyam gurus and their disciples performed to the compositions of this great musician.

Chitra Viswesvaran, Sudharani Raghupathy, the Dhananjayans, Narasimhacharis, Radha and Leela Samson presented glitteringly choreographed events – following the traditional margam from Pushpanjali to the final thillana. Golden voiced S. P. Rahm, and Lalgudi’s daughter Viji led the vocals, and Aniruddha, Sudharani’s son, shone on the mridangam.
I was happy to see Aruna, my young friend from my newspaper days, on stage.
The cream of cultural Chennai was in the audience – there were as many artistes in the audience as on the stage.

It felt good to be back in the swing of cultural Chennai – the music season is only a few weeks away.

ST. PAUL'S FROM TATE'S

It is always interesting to read about a person you have met, or a place you have visited.
I was fascinated to read about the Dia Museum in Beacon,which we had visited when in New York, and its patron, (whom we have not met!) in the New York Times today.

When we visited the Tate Modern last week, the eye catching sculpture of the 30 ft. spider, by Louise Bourgeoise, reminded me instantly of the huge one we had seen in the Dia gallery. It is called Maman and has a pouch with eggs, made of solid marble.

Sankar took this picture, and what we see in the background is St. Paul's Cathedral across the Millenium Bridge.

I had mentioned the museum in my post A Museum, English Tea and Riverside Music.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/14/magazine/14dia-t.html?_r=1&ref=magazine&oref=slogin

MANCHESTER UNITED - A TRIP BACK

After nearly four decades, we were in Manchester.

It was a rendezvous with the past. En famille we took the fast train to Manchester and were there in two and a half-hours.

Our first stop was the University of Manchester from where my husband had taken his post graduate degree. It was then called UMIST. Though he did not meet anyone he knew (they had mostly gone away or retired), he was happy to visit his department and the room where he had worked. He also met the present Head of Department who was pleased to meet him, and even pulled out his thesis which he had presented in 1973.

Lunch was at a quiet Thai place - we were the only people there, possibly because it was a Friday and maybe because it was closer to 3 pm! The food was really good, and the service friendly. Baby especially enjoyed the noodles.

We also walked around the City Centre but found the place changed a lot. Trams were noisily chugging round - they weren't running when I used to work in Lewis's the huge store. And the store itself has gone now, taken over by another company.

It was a nice day and walking around was a pleasure.

'ON THE STREET WHERE YOU LIVE.......'

That is Baby on the steps of the house where their flat is in Kensington. Grandma stands guard.
And this is a view of the road seen from there