Tongkonan

Torajan dwelling in South Sulawesi, Indonesia.  Known locally as tongkonan, Torajan houses have large, boat-shaped roofs and walls and gables that are carefully painted with intricate geometric patterns. Although this house has a roof of sheet metal, tongkonan are traditionally roofed with palm thatch.  

Om Mani Padme Hum

Prayer wheels at the Boudhanath Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal. Each wheel is inscribed with the Sanskrit characters for the mantra Om Mani Padme Hum, which is usually translated as "jewel in the lotus". The mantra is associated with Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, and by reciting the mantra - or turning the prayer wheels to "broadcast" the characters which express it - waves of compassion emanate in all directions. Generating considerable merit for the practitioner. And purifying bad kharma. [NOTE: Apart from what the words mean, the sounds of reciting this six syllable mantra are said to resonant vibrations that help "tune" a human being toward enlightenment].

More Rhinos

A mother and baby one-horned rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) at daybreak in Royal Chitwan National Park, Nepal (see Rhinos). Photo was taken from safely on top of an elephant (see Elephants in the Mist). [NOTE: It's worth mentioning that I know nothing about rhinos.  I was actually in Nepal to look at what rhinos - and the portage elephants used in the tourist industry - eat, and what that does to the forest]. 

Amla

Soliga tribesman harvesting amla (Phyllanthus emblica) fruits in the Biligirirangan Hills (BR) of Karnataka, India. The astringent fruits, known as Indian gooseberry in English, are eaten raw, dried, or cooked, and used in shampoos, hair oils, inks, as a mordant for fixing dyes, and in a variety of different Ayurvedic medicinal preparations. [NOTE: Amla fruits taste a bit medicinal, and they are frequently soaked in salt water and tumeric to make them more palatable]. 

No Hardhat, No Goggles, No Gloves, No Shoes

Village tree felling with a large Stihl chainsaw in the Kapuas Hulu district of West Kalimantan (see Danau Sentarum). Even bigger problems for local loggers? No gasoline. No kreteks. [NOTE: Stihl recommends this protective gear when operating their chain saws. Follow the links to the luminous yellow hard hats with built-in googles and face protector].

Tamarind Trees

The road from Coimbatore to Kotagiri (see Kotagiri Landscape and Kotagiri Tea Estates) is lined with large tamarind trees (Tamarindus indica L.). Each of the trees has a number and two white bands painted on the trunk. This, I was told, is part of a government concession system in which local people can harvest the tamarind fruits, but only from designated groups of trees in certain years.  I wonder who is in charge of the tree painting?