A pine cone for each morning walk....

Morning walk is meditative.

I try to sit, but strangely walking works better for me. 

Add a camera on my shoulder and I am sorted.

I don't have the cool Bangalore morning air on my face or the fragrance of Akash Mallige trailing behind me but strangely the beauty of nature reveals itself in various forms...

It's been steadily getting colder but I can't seem to let go of my habit of morning walks.

The path is winding.

The trees are bare.

Between the whizz of cars, I hear gentle rustling.

Rustling of leaves. 

Rustling of dry leaves, still stuck to the tree. 

Few trees here are yet to let go of their leaves. 

An old habit and a new one.

With every walk I pick up one tiny pine cone out of the many strewn under the trees.

I have a couple now:-)

Life is beautiful. We just need to open our eyes to see it.

I remind myself everyday:-)

White light...

White light.
The home is slowly coming together. We picked up sheer shades for the room with our kitchen table.
I love the diffused white light through it.
Serene.
I sit enveloped in a quiet space.
I write. I make lists.
Savoring the few moments before I set out to translate the words into actions.

We celebrated our first Halloween.
Strangers offered warm smiles and hot cider.
I delighted in the act of giving handful of candies.

The twinkling lights are coming home soon.
Our first Diwali in a new land.

It's all about the leaves...

My body and mind conspire against me to take a break from 10 days of unpacking and settling down.

I decide to give in.

Have been shooting on and off capturing few frames of the season.

Enjoy the season.

bright shadows...

oxymoron. yes.
bare warm home
uplifting fall.
our rented furniture.
bright shadows.

Apple picking. Grape stomping.

Last weekend was all about the goodness of fresh fruits and vibrant colours.
We drove down to Aamodt's Apple Farm, which is known to be the home of the Minnesotan Honeycrisp Apples.

The apples took on various delicious forms in the farm...

So many local varieties to choose from...

Sweet 16 variety was the apple of the day and we walked around the orchard trying to find the perfect ones, didn't succeed in that but found some really delicious ones.

Aamodt's Farm also houses the Saint Croix Vineyard.

Learnt about the grapes, the process of wine-making and also tasted some along with the freshly-baked Apple Cider Donuts. 

Mr.Sun was out in his full glory, bright blue Autumn Sky and a delightful band playing music.

The highlight of the trip was probably the grape stomping competition which had the crowds cheering as the competitors stomped the ripe grapes in old oak barrels, mashing them to pulp and squirting purple juice everywhere:-)

The color of the day was definitely purple!

(Images by Arch)

Men in pagaris...

When Priya drew a charcoal sketch of a young boy wearing a huge turban (pagri) recently, I realized I had shot men with many different styles of pagaris during our trip to Kutch in Gujarat and Shekawati in Rajasthan.

A pagari or turban is a long piece of unstitched cloth worn by men in  India, Pakistan & Bangladesh.

Each region has a particular style, color and size of wearing it.  

In hot desert climates like Gujarat & Rajasthan it protects the head from the heat...

 Pagaris are also a symbol of honor in many communities in India.

Read more here

Priya Sebastian hope you like the fact that a large number of Indian men still wear turbans!

(Images by Arch)

Walking around...

...collecting memories.

Crabapple Tree

Dandelion.

It is of the small joys and little pleasures that the greatest of our days are built.

~ Mary Anne Radmacher