THE ARTISTIC HUES OF SALFORD

SALFORD MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY

Salford Museum and Art Gallery was on my list for a very long time. Situated right beside one of the College campuses, it should have been the first place that I ever visited. But it was not so. I have seen that what is closer to us is probably the last place to be visited. Though this was not the last place to be visited per say, it was however after scheduling and rescheduling this visit for over two months that I finally got a chance to see it. Being an Art Gallery one must keep in mind that photography is restricted. Even though here, museums and galleries do not impose strict restrictions on taking photographs, my principles forbade me to take photographs inside the gallery. I have however attached photographs from the museum.

The museum is a beautifully conceptualised piece of art in itself. It is a street complete with lampposts, birds, shops and houses. The museum depicts an evening scene of a street in an era gone by. At the door everyone is welcomed with clothes of the bygone era which they can put on and click photographs of themselves. On entering the street you would be welcomed by a shoe makers shop on your left and a candy shop on your right. Going further in, the street houses a blacksmith shop, a bakery, some antiquely designed drawing rooms of the elite and middle class households, a jewllery shop, a print machine, a toy shop and carriages. This entire part has no restrictions on photography and I have managed to get quite a few captures from this area.

CANDY SHOP

TOY SHOP

AN INTERIOR OF A HOUSE

A BAKERY-ISH DECOR

A DINING ROOM

A SHOE-SHOP

Next is the Victorian Gallery which houses some beautiful oil paintings from the Victorian era. In fact, one particular painting caught my attention. It was of Peel Park just beside my University Campus. The painting was from a time when only the park existed and there was no sign of any houses nearby. The painting depicted the visit of the Queen and the Prince to Peel Park. The Victorian Gallery also housed many sculptures.

The North Gallery on the other hand had an exhibition going on.

To commemorate the centenary of the Great War, there was also an exhibition about the War. The life and times of people on the warfront and in households, hospitals etc. The postcards and messages the soldiers sent back home were also displayed. The places they lived in, the food they ate – all have vivid mentions in the exhibition. Lastly, there was a Wall of Remembrance where people wrote little messages in memory of their near and dear ones who served in the War.

The Salford Museum and Art Gallery also hosts a gift shop and a café in the ground floor where you can sit over a cup of coffee and admire the interiors, think about purchasing some art souvenirs or postcards, or simply have a conversation about art with like minded people.

This Museum and Art Gallery was indeed very beautiful. In fact they have started a project of digitising over 8000 photographs from yesteryears. These memories would have been lost if they were only in print; thus, the need to digitally document and restore them wherever necessary in order to remember the rich heritage and culture of the place was necessary. I was truly impressed by the Gallery on the whole but specially by the Museum. Maybe someday I would go back again and try to take some more photographs of the museum!

Signing off until next time !

A DISPLAY AT THE MUSEUM

CITY COUNCIL COMES ALIVE WITH THE LIGHTS OF CHRISTMAS

7^th November 2015 saw a gathering of  thousands of people around Albert Square in the Manchester City Council to welcome the Season of Christmas by sharing the fun of lighting the Santa, followed by an amazing display of fireworks. My friends and I went there too and it was an experience worth remembering. I decided to walk up to the city council as it is not far from my apartment. Moreover I could peacefully take some snaps on the way (which I did).

LIGHTING UP THE STREETS

A DISPLAY ON THE STREETS

 When I reached the venue, Albert Square in the City Council there was a huge crowd (I had no idea that in some time the crowd would multiply even more). Everybody waited patiently in the queue to be let in. There was a stage built up where music was being played. The enter premise was being managed by professional event managers. After some time it started raining and quite heavily! While I waited for my friends I saw many umbrellas being blown away in the windy ambience. But the rain did not dampen the spirits of the people.

SANTA WAITING TO BE LIT UP

LIGHTS 

PEOPLE ENJOYING THEMSELVES

On the arrival of my friends, we realised we had almost two hours to kill before the lights were lit so we decided to take a little detour to grab a quick bite. When we arrived after our quick bite the crowd had multiplied to almost thousands of people. Everyone waited patiently for the lights. Children came with their parents and after waiting for a long time climbed onto the backs of their fathers. Friends were waiting for members of their gang to join them. But such was the crowd that they had to lift up umbrellas and glowing sparklers to indicate where they were in that multitude. Interestingly enough, there were many lights up at the same time and some poor fellows travelled from one indicator to the other in order to reunite with their friends.

KIDS CLIMBING ON THEIR PARENTS BACK

Exactly at 7:59:50 by the City Council Clock the countdown began 10….9…..5…..4….3…2….1 and the big Santa was lit up to all its glory. The fireworks which started then lasted for a good ten minutes. All around me cameras and mobile phones were recording the elegant display of fireworks.

LIGHTING UP THE BIG SANTA

FIREWORKS

FIREWORKS

LIGHTING UP THE SKY

 After the fireworks, the crowd started thinning out. But the festive season is far from over. This was the start of a month and a half long preparation for Christmas. The pubs had to work harder to serve many of those who came to witness the spectacular visual display and decided to stay back and have dinner. Christmas markets are being prepared which would open from the 14^th of November. These Christmas markets are world famous and I would definitely visit them and let you know how they are in the days to come.

CHRISTMAS MARKETS IN THE MAKING

VENUE AFTER THE LIGHTS WERE LIT 

HALLOWEEN @ WARWICK CASTLE

Halloween could never have been better for me, than celebrating it in one of the oldest castles of the UK. My celebrations took me on an unforgettable journey to the Warwick Castle. The Castle is situated at a distance of around 2.5 hours by road from Manchester. All throughout the early morning journey to the Castle I saw people around me take a nice nap as sleep was compromised on as they had to wake -up early in order to reach the pick-up point. Let me very honest, I too occasionally drifted off to sleep when I was not trying to get some good photographs evading the high reflection from the bus windows or when I was not listening to music and chatting with a friend from home.

 We reached Warwick after crossing Stratford, Keele and Birmingham at about 10:45 in the morning. With the cold wind brushing against our bodies, the moment we got out of the bus, all acts of sleepiness left us in an instant. We proceeded to get the tickets. The ticket counter is situated in a beautiful arena hosting a restaurant/café with indoor /outdoor seating and a gift shop in the same complex.

The Castle grounds are vastly spread and had various different activities taking place in it. The Hollow Haunted was a very interesting concept of walking though a trail with props and people dressed up as fairy-tale characters. While the Wolf of the Little Red Riding Hood seemed a bit too scary, the evil Step-Mother of Snow White obliged in being a part of the photographs people wanted with her. Going through the trail would once again transport you back to your childhood where you listened to fairy tales which are lost today in your busy world of academics and work.

Up next was a beautiful rose garden with seating arrangements. This place had nothing much to see except the myriad hues in the form of full bloomed roses.

Going further you would see archery and fencing grounds where mostly children come to play and learn the tactics of a medieval knight or an archer. These are paid trainings and one would have to pay a small amount (usually between £3 -£5) which is not included in the ticket.

 Moving forward from the fighting arena is when you actually enter the fortress. There is a beautiful light and sound display of the culture, occupation, military, art and craft of the medieval age which sheds light on the life and times of people who had resided in the grounds years ago.

Next is the Time Tower for which one has to climb some steep steps to enter a room which takes around 15 to 25 people at a time for a 15 minutes movie. This video makes you relive the castle grounds in its glorious days.

Right after the Time Tower, you can climb steeper steps and alleyways to reach the peak of the castle from where you get a bird’s eye- view of the entire castle grounds and off course of the Warwick County itself. The tower of the county church clearly stands out amidst rows of houses.

 Further in the lawn there were many different attractions like the bird show where a 4kg eagle named Archie was performing with his trainer. At some distance were the Halloween attractions, complete with a cauldron, a graveyard, a spell- maker, and some freaky friends. There was also a story –telling corner for the children.

People here came from all over the country to celebrate Halloween. They were dressed up as witches, wizards, banshees with all sorts of costumes and hair and face make-up. In fact, there were specialised make- up artists who were painting faces for a minimum fee.

The ghoulish music which played all over the fort through speakers could be heard right till the parking lot gate where a man holding a lantern was accompanied by a headless chap on a horse.

 The atmosphere created by the Warwick Castle clearly complemented the purpose of doing so. The people were warm and friendly and even when they were dressed up as Halloween spookers they never forgot to smile during each of the photographs taken with them.

Warwick Castle is a must visit for those who are planning a holiday in the UK or are planning a weekend trip while residing here. It is bound to mesmerize you. And yes, do not forget to pick up a souvenir for yourself!

REFLECTIONS OF A FESTIVE MIND

While everybody is busy immersing themselves in the slokas of Birendra Krishna Bhadra, I happen to be planning about editing my assignments and submitting them on time. For the last 15 years Pujo has been an essential part of my life. Every year, whether it be in school or in college Pujo for me used to start a month earlier than it was actually scheduled to take place. Right from going to Pujo shopping with my mother and excitedly discussing what my friends and I bought and from where to which place had great outfits in reasonable price or which brand was giving heavy discounts, none of these talks ever evaded us in Kolkata. 

All three years of my college life, there was a specific date reserved for lunch with my school friends. Ashtami was always earmarked for the yearly get together of a crazy trio (including me). 
In fact as the days of the Pujo came nearer, news always reached me which pandal was being made of what and we started planning with our friends to visit those pandals. One day was of course reserved for pandal hopping with my family.

Instant plans were also made when we were out of plans.I still remember a friend (as adventurous as me) calling me up in the morning saying that there is still one day of the pujo left and we had no plans. So it was decided we cant let this happen and met in an hour to enjoy the one day left before bhashaan.

Residing in an area which is the hotspot of Durga Puja in South Calcutta it is impossible to not miss it. In Bengali people say 'Ashche Bochor Abar Hobe' to reiterate that there would be double the fun next year. But I would say 'Ashche Bochor Hotei Hobe' to console myself by saying that next year I will have to make it for the Pujas. 

Here in Manchester there are a few places that host Pujas. But I would call it a silent festival as there are no Dhaakis to announce the onset of the Festival; there are no children playing the drums constantly near your ears; babies in the laps of their parents do not take to the blowing whistles , the noise of which starts blowing your mind after a certain while; there are no colourful balloons in the air and neither are there bubbles reflecting the colourful environment.Hardly do even a hundred people gather around for the celebrations.

But nevertheless, probably it would turn out that staying away from home and the festival for a year will make me enjoy it in a grand scale next year. So, I leave you guys with best wishes for this Pujo and a very advance Subho Bijoya . Hope you guys enjoy this year and some of you are kind enough to send some photographs (Wink). The photographs used in this post are from my archives of previous year's Pujo. 

OFF TO A NEW CITY : MANCHESTER DIARIES

Life takes a different turn when you decide to relocate to another country. Apart from the feeling of missing your house, bedroom, study table, friends and other objects of interests, you have to face the herculean task of facing what's waiting for you in the new country.  The people, the landscapes, the language, everything changes . Most importantly you have to start establishing connections and make friends all over again. But, this is part of your journey . In fact, I believe that relocation does not only correspond to physically moving to another place but mentally moving yourself and adapting to the newness of the place.

Most know why I am talking about relocation but for those who are unaware it is because I am having to go through the task of adjusting and settling down in Manchester after having taken the decision of relocating here for a year to complete my higher studies.

Manchester is one of the most beautiful places I have seen, not because geographically it is picturesque but also because the people play an immense role in making it look beautiful. The city flourishes because of the people who live in- Courtesy seems to be everyone's middle name. The smiling and cheerful faces even on the rainiest and darkest days in this city can brighten up anybody's day . 

To be really honest I have not been around the town in my sightseeing mode so as to start describing the city ; but there are some photogenic places which I have been able to capture at this stage through my lens. So, the photos in this post can best be considered as a prelude to what is to come. 

With new experiences and friends in this cosmopolitan city, hardly will there be a day when I would not have anything to share with you. But as of now I would leave you with some photographs so that you get an idea of what is to come in the following days.

TOWN HALL MANCHESTER NEAR THE CITY COUNCIL

EMPTY BENCHES NEAR THE TOWN HALL

BEAUTIFUL AND COLOURFUL  TREES OUTSIDE (SOMEBODY'S) WINDOW

RANDOM STREET PHOTO

STREET SHOT OUTSIDE MY WINDOW

STREET SHOT OUTSIDE MY WINDOW

CLOUDS OUTSIDE MY WINDOW