Vedasri Siddamsetty

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Taking the environment extremely seriously the Canadians have a flair for life. Nature, for one is a treasured asset, and being very sensitive to the natural surrounds comes quite naturally for them Vancouverites too! The architecture of glass and steel is lodged with wood, materials that lend a stylish character to the city. Sparkly clean and well maintained parks, generous side-walks and brightly-lit streets, urban plazas and well-behaved traffic are just a few key points that define the city of Vancouver, it is no wonder then that the city tops the charts for it’s liveability index and is often rated as the best place to live in, because technically it’s a city that takes the term, living in sync with nature quite literally!

Giving the glitzy steel buildings a miss the first few days, one does better to head to the Capilano bridge, the Grouse mountain and the Stanley Park. And when satiated with a full course of natural splendour downtown Vancouver is an equally wonderful delight, all with its own Chinatown and all! South Indian, Chinese, Korean and French, if food is a measure of cosmopolitan-nature of a city, then Vancouver totally nails it!

Heading down to Capilano bridge and walking over the precariously strung tree-walks guarantees spectacular views of Elms and the oh-so-sweet smelling maples, and much lighter wild animals, no bears grizzly or not. The privately owned property boasts of some real fancy tensile suspension construction. Armed by notes chiding the defaulters or promoting sustainable living if not pointing out some really startling facts, the park is also equipped with a staying facility. A wonderful initiative over-looking a gurgling Capilano river. On display are also the very north American-significant totem pole collection.

While on the nature and wildlife trail, the cater-pillars, squirrels and more traditionally ground beavers make their presence felt, chipping away at the sturdy huge trees in the property. The greenery is immense with eco-love notes stapled onto barks of trees! A trend seen almost in all the parks of Vancouver including the near-by Grouse mountain. Also a very popular hiking trail for locals who walk about as a past-time. For the not-so adventurous there also is a cable-car lapping up equally stunning views. The Grouse Grind trail as it is called takes one through lonely quarters and literally puts one out in the jungle, technically! The absence of snow is missed though in the non-winter months, as the white peaks do add an element of wonder and beguile. The time taken to scale the Grouse mountain is a challenge, and the lungs are literally delighted for the rather large supply of oxygen!

The other park within the precincts of the city, the Stanley park is very affable, especially for children, with train rides, a zoo, an aquarium, certain cherishable monuments, or must I say perishable monuments, for example a hollowed out tree and an 8.8 km long sea-wall. Most of the houses in Vancouver, have boats parked alongside cars, just proof for the popularity of sailing in the cool shimmering waters. While a punjabi radio channel belts out desi numbers the expat population of Canada is quite remarkable. A Punjabi-origin Prime Minister may really not be that far away!

The sheer walkability and convenience of public transport aside, the succinent buildings and art galleries apart, the city of Vancouver’s close tryst with nature, the salubrious air and boon of an outdoorsy populace makes for one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The very thought of Vancouver, makes me want to pull out those running shoes and take a hike right away, the love for nature and fitness is mighty contagious I say!

Though I’d have to quote Einstein, “Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better”. – Albert Einstein

I’d rather quote an Angelo, “Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine”. – Anthony J. D’Angelo

The Vancouverites seem to apply both quite non-chalantly!

The impermance of things

causes many a wince

For forever we wonder

before we duly surrender

As we break our bread

for the beauty of dining

 

Engaging wholly the dread

instead of simply whining

Many things done and said

in time for all the shining

In our eulogy to the dead

may we not forget the living

 

But the Japs know best

amongst all the rest

In all their glorious culture

the brakes and acupuncture

The beauty of imperfection

is given more than a mention

 

The broken pots mended

with gold and silver gilded

Transforming forever

while turning the lever

From the besotted past

to the effervescent future

 

Saving the best for the last

minus the beguiling torture

The beauty is in the now

for there are lawns to mow

No where a splendid low

is ever replaced by a wow

 

The transient nature of things

tides over all the misgivings

Ensuring a life of wonder

one of total surrender

To the might and plight

without much of a fight

 

Absorbing and feeling

the sensory beginnings

Amidst all the reeling

the joys of all winnings

Lies in the ever-changing

brick, mortar leavenings

 

Those turn of innings

ensuring blithe printings

Lest the words of the rabi

maketh a man of dobbie

In embracing the change

letting go all the fame

 

The lessons of the range

has no space for lame

Bustling with integrity

and all the nitty-gritties

The notion of wabi-sabi

of never a blessed sorry

 

For the wrong maketh right

the cracks let in the light

Whether in the kitsugi jars

or stories from land afar

The mistakes bring us near

the flaws and the arrears

 

Carving a beauty in sight

and memories sublime

There is boundless might

in kindness coming alive

Gluing together the pieces

celebrating with reeses

The impermance of time

with a wabi-sabi rhyme!

Though am totally smitten by Harvard, the university, the place, its only a part of the greater phenomenon called Boston! The Boston tea-party not sufficing, which was the first and the bravest attempt to oust the East India company, an event that sparked the American Revolution. Visiting Boston in the Fall season, is a visual treat ofcourse, but visiting a great photographer in Boston in the Fall season, means the unforgettable visual treats continue far into time, as I get to share the beautiful day many months later too!!

So here are a few clicks by the very talented mademoiselle, Sumedha and I can hardly summarise the beautiful fall colours we were treated to.

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Later strolling around the Boston Commons, we were treated to another visual spectacle, brides and bride-grooms by literally the dozens! Wedding magnets as I would love to tag Sumedha’s beautiful family, we saw a dozen or so couples taking wedding pictures all around in Boston commons, a park that is the pride of downtown Boston. Long-haired brides, short-hair brides, brides in white, brides in pastels and even a bride in spectacles, were all a part of that beautiful day. Taking in the scenery, the swans in the ponds, the brown carpet of leaves, and smiling to the posers, blue skies and rustling trees made up the pretty picture, the glorious scenery. Walking across Boston’s many cathedrals and the up-market shopping district, we landed up for a party of our own, minus the tea and plus the chocolate at the very effervescent Max Brenners! The chocolate man does know a lot about his trade. Settling in for a fondue, the fried banana was the most sinful of all the combinations, but strawberries a classic favorite! Milkshakes, spiced chocolate, fruit chocolates and you name it, its there. Though the universities and institutes of higher learning are the pride of Boston, it is also tremendously well-planned and charming of all the east-coast cities. The Charles river, a shimmering skyline and the Boston Commons ofcourse!

 

The halls of Harvard are much like the halls of Hogwarts, steeped in legend and full of wonder. Whether marching across the corridors of Gund Hall or sitting around in the Harvard Yard, or even sipping a tumbler of warm melted dark chocolate at Burdics, the Harvard University casts a spell to behold.

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Riding the swift and neat Acela Express operated by Amtrak, one is treated to gorgeous fall colours in the month of September as the train pulls through the precincts of Connecticut. New York, New Haven and Providence are few of the stops before reaching the Boston South Station. At the South station, one can easily swap to the Boston Metro and ride straight to the world’s most prestigious and inspiring institutions ever, the Harvard University! Covering an area of roughly 5000 acres, Harvard is home to about 7000 undergraduate students and 15000 post-graduate students. Just like any blue-blooded college its the Undergraduate years that are prided upon!! When one enters the portals as a naive 18 year old and leaves a moulded 22 year-old! In fact in the Harvard yard, the students are very careful to not cross one of the 4 gates leading in, superstitious about not being able to graduate if they do cross that portal!

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A very chirpy 20 year old, in her second year of Biotechnology guided us through the university, as she affably noted tales of the institution, belting out lesser known facts such as, the statue in the yard isnt that of John Harvard as is popularly believed, but of his nephew, since he wasnt alive when the statue was made, or how rubbing his toe would ensure a few years at Harvard for everyone! Or even how the Library was donated by a couple who’s son tragically died in the Titanic sink, or even how the buildings of Harvard also served as army barracks during the war, how women were never allowed to study there, until the war caused men to be pulled up to fight leaving all the educational institutions empty, thereby forcing Harvard to let in women! Never a dull moment at Harvard, I say, since it was established in 1636!!

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What impressed me the most at Harvard is how the institution looks as churning out well-rounded women and men, not focussing on any one aspect alone, and the vast array of resources that is offered, encouraging each and every person to think independently, never scorning or criticising but mostly suggesting and encouraging. The richness of its past is truly over-whelming, one that is even visible today, whether its at the architecture school or the med school or the business school. An absolute wonder. After walking all over the MIT campus, the longest corridor, Microsoft’s Frank O Gehry building, the MIT Design school, I was spell-bound by the sheer innovation in projects and the precise technology they all have access to. Kritika, a brilliant ‘Harvard beet’, studying at the GSD, and taking courses from MIT, chipped me in on some ideas and needless to say I was hooked!

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Every building on campus, whether Harvard or MIT or the host of other colleges in Boston is an architect’s delight! From the red-brick structure, with white trims of the Harvard Business school or the Stone-clad medical school, or the stunning glass and concrete extrusion of the Design school, the old and new architecture styles are blended in effortlessly, almost musically to form a cohesive whole. The Church on water, by Tadao Ando is another spectacular contemporary building on campus. If architecture shapes us, as Churchill famously remarked, I can only imagine what good it could do to the knowledge seekers in the vicinity!

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Ve-ri-tas is the university’s motto, translating from latin to truth, simple and stunning, truth. The under-graduate halls are the oldest buildings of the university, the dining hall inspiring Rowling’s Hogwarts one, truly befitting. After a healthy dose of glorious buildings, we walked down to the shimmering Charles River, watched the Boston skyline reflect in the shiny waters of twilight and crossed many a students walking about, a healthy mind can only reside in a healthy body after all! Holding on to that thought I quickly fished out my phone to note the number of kilometres we walked that day, it said 22!!! Knowing that fact, I was instantly hungry, hence proved that its all in the mind, hunger notwithstanding! Kritika and I then headed towards the most awesome hot chocolate place on campus, via a pit-stop at the student run bar(!) on campus. The usher or so, sat at the entrance reading a thick fat book on physics, taking a break she showed us in! And while some students ate, some drank, a few even sat filling out assignments, all in that den-like atmosphere, that shouted out, total chill! Crossing as we went, tennis courts, outdoor and indoor in pneumatic structures. The importance given to sports in Harvard is unfathomable, while rowing is the most popular in ivy leagues, tennis I saw comes close, as does running too! Moreover, a sporting body holds together a sporting mind! The library too is spectacular, I spent the next morning getting my hands on a couple of hard-bounds, finding it hard to put my nose in a book(?) in the majestic reading room. I found myself staring at the decor, the chair, the massive size of space and every other architectural detail employed in the library. Stunning as ever.

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The classes at the Gund Hall, the school of Design are crisp, well-drafted and informative, igniting countless minds. The design of the Gund hall, is definitely not exactly quaint or even good-looking, but the inside spaces are well-crafted and functional. The studio bonhomie felt in all architectural practices is instantly felt here. At the Gund hall on a Friday evening, it was time for the weekly beer and hot-dogs, well for a vegetarian teetotaller it meant some Apple juice and salty pretzel buns! But the atmosphere was electric and buzzing, considering that the practice lasts only in the design school across Harvard! The same evening, Kritika and her house-mates, a bunch of girls from different parts of the world, threw a house-party, including absolutely delicious food, warm scents from the oven, foot-tapping music, fun hosts and even funner guests. As the party wore on, we had a fortune-teller amidst us who watched us gaze into the crystal ball and told the bravest of us our fortunes! Well one does need some nerve to hear the future sometimes. Think of your question Kristine said, then gaze into the ball, she tossed a few coins around me, mumbled some mumbo-jumbo and waited. When I looked into the crystal ball I was told about how the oyster transforms a grain of sand into something spectacular as a pearl, transform your experiences she said. I blinked twice, obviously asking for clarity, the oyster she repeated is irked by the grain of sand but then it builds upon it, eventually turning it into something priceless, a pearl!! Ah I said, while I thought, oh ho, another grain of sand (irk!). But well then, the oyster wouldn’t have a reason to make the pearl if not for the sand, so well well. While I asked for answers to a multitude of life changing questions looking into the ball, mostly ranging from why and when, all the others apparently just wanted to know if their thesis would be accepted! Phd students I tell you 😀 So in the house-warming party, the roomies entertained their guests with their own respective skills, while one became the fortune-teller, one played the tabla flawlessly, another got the guests grooving to some desi beats and my dear friend played the bar-tender. What fun! The conversation varied from Quantico, which everyone loved, to the latest lab device procured, the living conditions of Zimbabwe, drugs which could be incorporated into chocolate bars (oh wow), river-rafting in Rishikesh and Shah Rukh Khan’s latest move! The quaint party was obviously a huge success and a whole lot of fun. I could almost imagine why one wouldn’t want to leave Harvard, also the thick dark hot chocolate at Burdics(!), a memory I will always treasure, the belgian waffle at Zinneken’s, and the mind-blowing Korean food in BonChon, the Bibimbap, the cannoli from Mike’s pastry, absolutely stunning, no wonder the commencements are made all fancy, to encourage the super-minds to graduate!

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A couple of days later as I settled in to read on my extra luxurious seat on the Amtrak, I was joined in by a crowd of Columbia University med-school students, returning to New York after a week-long conference at Harvard. Stylish as ever, they could easily pass off as fashion models than doctors!! Needless to say the carriage was buzzing with high IQ conversations and deep imprints of laughter. They shared stories of match-box apartments, wonders of existence, the latest fashion week tales and the fragility of the human body, down to the smallest atom! So real and yet so magical. Ivy Leagues I note, Harvard or Columbia or Yale, are worlds in themselves, inspiring architecture, legendary ladders, wondrous alumni, jaw-dropping credentials and more than ever, real, intelligent and well-rounded students who can flip an omelette and just as readily save the world, all with focus and a huge heart!

#a huge thanks to Kritika and Kiran!

 

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Walking across a brand new mall in immaculate Singapore, still largely unopened to the public I was first introduced to the talents of one Mr Chihuily. Set in a neat and tidy ceiling, all-white environment a burst of colour in a tizzy caught my attention. A chandelier that paled even the Venetian Murano glass, I was bewildered by the mastery and creativity of this glass-blower right in that steely lobby. It was so messy yet perfect, blasting away colour every angle, yet elegant and dazzling yet demure all at once. Like a good piece of art it was exciting and delightful sparking wonder and amazement. Soon after I returned to my usual workday though it did leave a lasting impression.

Now several years later I traversed upon the Chihuily museum in Seattle, all as a matter of chance. As we made our way to the Space Needle, sparks of bemused colour peeked through the branches. It brought forth all those wondrous excitement to discover the beauty of blown glass!

Dale Chihuily is an American glass sculptor and entrepreneur who is a master at his craft. As he walks about with an eye-patch, the imminent dangers of working with blown glass become very apparent, yet his high levels of technical skill with glass are palpable. Being well acquainted with the chandelier-like centre pieces in hotel lobbies or malls there is much excitement to see these beauties in the museum, but the themed collections are breath-taking. The Japanese inspired lanterns or the ceiling water-creatures and the animal-inspired art-work are beyond one’s imagination. The quality of glass, the bends, the turns are exceptionally well-done. Each installation is truly poetry. Chihuily works with his team, drawing up ideas for the next pieces of art on paper and displayed in the museum are some such working drawings! Except that they hardly look like working drawings! Working with such high temperatures, in a medium that is viscous and cooling it to change its constitution from liquid to solid is no easy task, but the rewards are multi-fold. Good things take time, but even greater things are worked in a matter of a few moments, a difference between oil-painting and blown-glass! Once glass is melted, the glass-blower has but very little time to craft his sculpture, literally making his strike when the iron is hot! Unlike the oil-painter who has more a few moments. This spontaneity in the craft is as beguiling as the final display of striking colours and reflective nature of glass. Light does play a huge part in enjoying glass-ware in general and the same applies to glass-sculpture including blown-glass.

Hugely inspired by nature, when the sculptures are set indoors they are beautiful, but when they are set outdoors amidst pretty flowers made by nature, they strike up an even more beautiful image, almost matching up to their inspirations! A walk in the park with several glass blooms standing up or a hugely optimistic sunny yellow and orange lighting floating overhead is a wonderful way to appreciate the beauty in art and in nature, all at once. There is after all great truth in beauty and beauty in truth. Getting blown-away by the blown-glass wonders is a must do, whether on the ancient island of Murano or in the busy suburbs of Seattle! And once the miracle of wonder sets in, glass can never be the same again!!

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The story of the American Freedom is largely incomplete without the Liberty Bell and a walk down America’s original capital city, Philadelphia. The land of opportunity as it stands today, the democracy that it is, and a nation of such pride, confidence and openness all started with the ringing of a bell. The Liberty bell. Symbolising true freedom for every soul, abolishing slavery and ensuring equal rights and opportunity, the liberty bell has a rich history just like its host city.

Not exactly the oldest city in the world, but a city steeped with American history, cobbled stone streets, red-brick buildings, in spirit symbolising a democratic state whose constitution was formed by a group of intellectuals drawing their roots from all over the world. One such man, fondly titled “Monsieur Electrique”, the man who discovered electricity, Benjamin Franklin. Playing a major role in the American freedom struggle Franklin earned popularity and hence the title during a visit to France missioned to ask for support against the colonial British on the American continent!

Eventually after several armed efforts, the new-age Americans successfully ousted the colonial rule off the continent and drafted a whole new constitution. The final battle is depicted in the very famous painting of, “Washington Crossing the Delaware”, wherein the father-figure of America and the first President, George Washington, crossed the Delaware river to catch the British soldiers unaware and thus defeated. Philadelphia, or Philly as it is fondly referred to has been host to several movements even after the very early freedom struggle and the formation of the super-country that the United States is today. The abolishing of slavery, women’s suffragate movement, equality among people, a strong sentiment that makes for an even stronger country is what truly is the spirit of the city. Though Americans are not a particularly specific race, they are people who are bound by common ideals, right from the out-set, a group of people tracing their origins from all over the world, all continents, some who came sooner and some later, but all who set-foot in a country that values liberty and equality above all else. A country with equal opportunity for all, a country with no minorities, a country with no reservations, no prejudices, but pride in the human race as such.

Love, may well be the soul of Philly, a city that has given voice, setting forth a debate and abolishing anything that seemed unfair as people evolved and reached new levels of understanding the value of life. Walking along the well manicured streets, sidewalks, we shared our visit to Philly with the Pope, a man who symbolises new vision and urges the Catholics and others in the world alike to truly love. “Have the courage to truly love”, a banner screamed out fluttering as it may on a lamp-post. Love does make the world go round, empathise, laugh, accept the misgivings, forgiving, thereby making the world get way better than it ever was.

As flashy buildings tower the once quaint and historically significant buildings, the city has long given over its power or vision to the now busy and important Washington DC or the ever gorgeous New York City, it does essentially hold on to the ideals about what the United States of America is really about. The old capital holds proof of the original states and the very many that joined in to form the now-strong 50 states union, the national flag that went through many a make-over over the years and the earliest settings where a new governance was flagged off. The french oligarchy were the greatest supporters of the vision of a new country with King Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and others offering monetary fuel for the American Revolution. Though taking the violent ways to a peaceful end, the spirit of the United States is one truly driven by liberty, equality and more truly about love, and Philly is one city that is a constant reminder of the noble ideals that gave birth to the most affable country in the world!

As for liberty, from the Statue welcoming immigrants off the Atlantic, the alloyed bell though cracked now, a hot-bed of political moves, activist rights, enormous debates, prides and falls, it is the basis of free will and yet it does ring a bell!

 

In a sprawling campus off the city of Seattle is the stunning Boeing Factory that amazes not only by its inner workings and all that it stores but also tremendously by its sheer size. The Future of flight as the aviation centre is aptly titled, the visit to the world’s most expansive building, the largest building in the world by volume, housing an area of 472 million cubic feet of area is simply breath-taking. Whilst most of us have taken an aircraft flying either an Airbus or Boeing, the factory that produces the Boeing series is a sight to watch. Welcoming all the incoming tourists the lobby boasts of flags representing all the countries whose airlines subscribe to the Boeing brand. Happily I identified the Indian tricolour also playing a quick game of identifying all the other flags waiting for our turn to tour the Boeing Everett factory floor.

A museum adjoining the lobby makes for an interesting display of the Boeing brand through the ages, videos, presentations, mock-ups and all else showing off with pride the Boeings all the way from 707 to 787, over the many decades that the company has been in business. The Dreamliner is displayed with utmost pride as is the innovation wing of the company that has invested in sustainable strategies including sustainable flight fuel to engines that exceed expectations or aircraft interiors with optimum in-flight conditions. A very interactive platform teaches the makings of the aircrafts blue-blooded Rolls-Royce engine while some crew take the crowd into an exercise modelled purely for an audience poll. The museum is all but a prelude to the factory floor that is indeed awe-inspiring.

As the guide fills in the crowd, the bus pulls into the biggest building by volume, the Everett Factory floor. The company he reiterates, takes great care of its employees with all the required necessities, including day-care and all else embedded within the campus. Entering the factory through one of the major tunnels, the seemingly mile-long walk terminates at an industrial elevator that lifts up a crowd just as easily to the viewing deck. The tunnels are marked with fire-pipes, chilled-water pipes and all the service connections all labelled neatly that enable smooth running of the enterprise. The factory floor is a sight with six 737-jets, the latest in the market, being readied for assembly all part by part. The visitors are led on to the highest mezzanine floor getting a high-view of the entire floor. Each part of the aircraft is assembled insulated, bolted, welded, fixed and moved to the next station in the assembly line. With clear precision and accurate workings. On another side, the assembled aircrafts are all painted and readied for inspection before delivery. Colourful tails stand out with a host of airlines ready for flight.

In this area, a section of the Boeing 747-jet is displayed, it is indeed quite precarious to know the thin divide between the warm comfortable seat and the outer troposphere. A few layers of insulation and a thin metal shell are the only protection we earthly beings have while we munch on those peanuts some 30000-ft up in the air. Visitors also do get a sneak-peak at the 737s, with the all new clear to opaque changing glass and sleeker interiors. While the inventors at Boeing toil away ideating, developing, designing and bringing to life, newer and faster birds, we all can look forward to another wonderful destination at a far-end of the globe, sipping on champagne and very oblivious to the fuel in the wings or our luggage about 10 feet under, savouring every moment, in-flight!

 

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Spinning at a height of over 667 feet the space needle was once the tallest building of Seattle and the tallest structure to the west of the Mississippi River. Built in 1962 for the world fair, it stands at 607′ height, withstands winds of about 200 miles per hour and earthquakes of about 9.1 magnitude, all equipped with 25 lightning rods! Super sleek and nimble-footed the Space Needle looks out into the Pacific Ocean and provides sweeping views of the Seattle skyline.

Arriving at the base of the tower and tucking away our ride at an appropriate parking stall we walked up to admire the structural ingenuity and the engineering feat that the tower represents. Envisioned by architect John Grahams the tower was conceptualised as a flying saucer tethered to the ground. The column profiles of the tower lend to it it’s very enviable hour-glass figure balancing the saucer with high dexterity.

Getting in line and atop the tower in precisely 41 seconds, the circular viewing deck opens up for a lovely view of the city. All romantics will inevitably remember the Sleepless in Seattle moments, and the tower as the setting does a great job of enlivening romance in the atmosphere. Beauty inspired love, almost always, and beautiful architecture whether in steel, brick, glass or concrete, like all beautiful things inspires love.

Dodging selfie-sticks and poky elbows, I made my way to the protective rail letting the wind in my hair. The cascade range of snow-covered peaks of Washington state are visible from the viewing deck. Mount Rainier a gorgeous snow covered peak stared out at a distance, on a clear day, like that day, its the farthest that one can see from the tower. There are sunny days even in gloomy Seattle I thought, being lucky enough to check into the city when the sun was clearly in a mood to stay!

Unlike the Shanghai tower, the Space Needle hosts no bungee jumping expeditions, instead for the adventure junkies the climb to the top is an option as the 848-stair climb to the top is thrown open. Though thoroughly tempted, for once I took the lift! It would be a worthy climb to the top though if one has an inclination to it.

As families shuttered away capturing the moment and a distant horn of the cruise ship sounded I watched the sun-set far across the horizon. Watching the daily phenomena of sun-rise or sun-set is heart-warming, when a moment pauses and thoughts are set in motion. The sun-set from the Space Needle is a glorious sight indeed as all of the city is orchestrated into a melange of fall colours, a premonition to the ending of day, just another day!

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Off downtown Victoria and on the island making great use of the glorious weather and warmer climes thanks to the nearby pacific is the see-it-to-believe-it Butchart Gardens.

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A rose is a rose is a rose.

Just as an orchid is an orchid, a dandelion is a dandelion, a daffodil is a daffodil and a carnation, oh well, a carnation. A beautiful garden in full bloom is a paradise for sure, an inspiration to artists across the world, an inspiration to poets across time. From exquisite Mughal gardens to flamboyant Napolean ones, and just when in the Palace of Versailles I assumed it cannot possibly get better came the greatest sight of them all, the quintessentially majestic and surreptitiously doe-eyed, the Butchart Gardens. Setting an absolutely marvelous sight at every turn, the Butchart Garden exceed with the greatest of expectations. Beauty as they say lies in the eyes of the beholder, but Butchart is one that could possibly defy the bindings of even English Literature, its a place you cannot help but fall totally and impossibly in love with.

Located in the scenic country-side of the Saanich Peninsula we hopped onto a bus and furtively asked the driver to kindly let us know when the bus reaches the Butchart garden. Employing a highly robust tone he declared just as robustly, when we reach Butchart you will simply know. Winding through sleepy towns and the quiet countryside we werent assured of his declaration. However sleepy eyed and induced into complete relaxation by the weather, we didn’t need any heads up on reaching the famed garden! Like he said, we simply knew. A grand red rose with the words neatly emblem-ed brought to our notice at once dainty and magnificient Butchart Gardens.

The story of the Butchart Gardens is one of wonder and amazement, all great things have an even greater story, and this one is no less. Owned by the Butchart family, the site had its modest beginnings as a cement quarry used to dig out and process Portland cement by its then owner Robert Pim Butchart. For years the family quarried the land, digging out in the process rich limestone, a source of great wealth. After a whole lot of quarrying, exhausted in all the mineral deposits the land soon became quite useless. Useless for some are causes of great vision for others. Robert’s wife, Jennie Butchart, with her love for landscape and all things beautiful took interest in developing the now exhausted quarry into a sunken Japanese Garden first. The vision is marvelous as it stands today, a befitting transformation to a deeply misshapen cement quarry. Quarries are quite the opposite of a garden in terms of the environs or of beauty!

Developing the garden over ages and passing it on through generations the Butchart garden today boasts of a total of six gardens, a butterfly enclosure, a visitor’s centre, a charming carousel, a coffee shop, restaurants and a store for befitting merchandise. Apart from the earliest sunken garden, there are also the rose garden, the Japanese garden, the Italian Garden, the Mediterranean garden and the concert lawn walk. As we flitted flower to flower I cluelessly gathered the brochure understanding more about these beauties. As it goes the Gardens do not label flowers doing away with tardy signboards and thus they give out brochures for those interested in getting more information. Such is the power of beauty that it forces one to live precisely in the moment, the greatest boon of all in a time where the future or the past drown out the present moment.

While the line-up of roses make for a compelling stop at the buoyant Italian garden, where extremely good-natured buds show up with their pretty colors and magnificient fragrances, the Japanese garden is stripped down to a bare minimum, marked by an absence of flowers and sculptural trees and scrubs bent gently over time to form artwork in nature. But it is the sunken garden that literally takes your breath away with dainty waterfalls and an orchestrated creation. The garden we were told by a gardener at the Butchart sees 5 seasons of different blooms every year, while he himself travels across to different gardens across the world seeking inspiration and expertise to graft, plant and introduce new species at the Butchart. A butterfly park and a carousel steeped in an old-world charm are other features at the butchart. The gelato store at the Italian garden whips up excellent gelatos, the cherry-chocolate is exceptionally delicious while the restaurant serves a delicious spread to enjoy.

Offering loads of inspiration to botanists and amateur gardeners alike, seeds of seasonal and perennial species are available for sale amidst all other merchandise that makes a part of any tourist attraction. A garden is paradise believed the Mughals, who enjoyed creating quaint gardens just as much as they enjoyed patronizing architecture and creating a robust empire, the French also believed in the timeless beauty of gardens as did the Butcharts. A thing of beauty is joy forever and flowers are beautiful and hence full of joy. As I looked over a local florist store filled with artificial flowers I couldn’t help but think how a good copy or a good fake can never be even half as awesome as the original! Orchids, Lilies, Ferns and roses none striking an image as their original counterparts, none so glorious or beautiful. Even with the right proportions and colors they certainly do not make the cut. Beauty is never skin-deep! It may also have to do with the living aspect of it, wherein the liveliness, the changing nature of the flower makes it alive and truly beautiful. Change is beautiful, energy is beautiful, liveliness is beautiful, flowers are beautiful. Those qualities are what make a world of difference between the paper flowers sprayed with scents!

As we buzz through life, taking in the changes, sometimes embracing while sometimes defying, this new year, let’s take the time to stop and smell the roses for they are changing too!

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Named after the hugely powerful and affable queen of England and off Canada’s Pacific Coast and slighting over seven and a half square miles in area is lodged the Garden City of Victoria also fondly referred to as the City of the Newly weds and Nearly Deads! Thats mostly because the island county floating off the coast of Vancouver has a population that exceeds in the old-moneyed old people and the noveau-rich young bloods. Hugely expensive, even more than Vancouver, and super pretty, this island is blessed abundantly by exquisite flora and a temperature that fosters, believe it or not, nicety. While Canadians are mostly easy-going and extremely pleasant, Victorians from British Columbia are of the highest rung where behavior is concerned. Hat-tipping pleasantries of the past have been taken over by citizens who take genuine and a boastful pride of their glorious city. Attribute it to the time they spend in nature, playing a sport and paying utmost respect to nature in their living styles. Add to that a great taste in living.

While our very friendly chaperon chatted away how it’s the best place to women to grow up and live, I couldn’t help noticing architectural details around town. Neat and crisply finished all the buildings and town-planning in general are very quaint, stylish and environmentally inclined. B.C in Victoria B.C. stands for bring cash he jokes, instead of the legal British Columbia. The expense because the island, though insanely beautiful ferries across nearly everything for the absence of a road connection from mainland Canada, from Vancouver, about a hundred kilometers across. The distance and the intentional disconnect add to the island’s charm.

The age-old Empress Hotel and the British Columbia Parliament Building are sights in the inner harbor that also plays host to swanky and top-of-the-line yachts docking in. Every year the harbor attracts top yachting talent during the Swiftsure International Yacht Race. While we looked on Leonardo Di Caprio’s good-looking yacht docked snuggly while the actor shot for the upcoming flick, the Reverant in nearby Alaska. Lined in festivity the Parliament building looked every bit presentable. In the shopping quarters of Victoria I was totally smitten by the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory a store that boasted of the gourmet chocolate dipped apples apart from maple-flavored fudge brownies. A haven for the not-so-average chocolate enthusiast.

At the Craigdarroch Castle, the English-roots of British Columbia are keenly felt. The Victorian-era scottish-baronial mansion boasts of massive stained glass, ingenious structural prowess and views to behold. Not ancient by any means, it is a National Historic Site of Canada. A quick stop at the Canadian Tim Horton’s for delicious munchkins and hot coffee for the troop is a must-do too. A modern twist to the classic Canadian frontier! Driving the entourage up a hill one can catch a spectacular view of Victoria in the night with twinkling stars above and twinkling lights of a largely refined civilization below. The wonderful sublimation of nature and the art of fine living make up the cultural defines of Victoria. It’s one of those places that makes a lasting impression and charms with its finesse quite like none other. If not for all the acquisitions and achievements, being nice is after all is the mark of civility and hence of a civilization!

Laden with the crisp warm winds of the temperate climes, whiffs of maple in the air, with a lot of credit to the affable weather the niceness of Victoria is contagious, when you go be sure to grab your passport and donning the culture, be nice, after all it’s Victoria!