NEW YORK CITY

 Loneliness grows around me when New York city sleeps. So does the snow. Even the wind gets off

from the ship and started walking on the shore of  New York . This is the translation of the beautiful

Tamil song from the film Sillunu oru kadhal  sung by the maestro A R Rahman. New York is a city

with beautiful day and night life. Here is a quick glance through  the major attractions in New York

city.

 Opened to traffic in 1907,Holland tunnel connects New jersey and New York,

the  two important states in America  across the Hudson River .

Holland Tunnel is  one among the two first  automobile tunnel built under a river.

 The Holland tunnel has a pioneering ventilation system to evacuate the carbon monoxide

 emissions from the vehicles. National Civil Engineering Landmark status was given to the tunnel

 by the American society of civil engineers in 1984. 

  One of the most photographed arts work in the world is the Charging bull located  near wall streets.
 New York's financial strength is symbolized by this 3-ton  bronze sculpture  of Wall street bull
or Bowling green bull, constructed after the 1987 stock market crash.

New York city is the most photographed city in the world, often described as the cultural

and financial capital of the world. New York city is mainly built by the  three islands of Manhattan,

Long Island and Staten Island. One can see traditional and modern architectural buildings

   juxtaposed in New York city.

The  American icon of freedom, The Statue of Liberty is located in Liberty Island,

  a small uninhabited island in the New York harbor. 

 New York harbor is one of the largest natural harbors in the world .

Statue of Liberty National Monument comprised of Statue of Liberty situated in Liberty Island

 and Immigration station at Ellis Island. Made with copper, this world famous statue of liberty was

 presented by France in 1880 to United States in celebration of friendship between the two countries.

Completed in 1883 ,Brooklyn bridge is an engineering marvel that connects  the boroughs 

 of Brooklyn with Manhattan. This historical land mark of New York city is the first steel

wire suspension bridge spanning a distance of 1595.5 ft.

Constructed in art deco style with 103  stories the Empire State Building was completed

in 1930  and stood as the tallest building in the world for around 40 years. ( Photo: Arasu)

 Empire State Building carries the nick name of New York, attracts around four million people annually. 

 From the observatories  on 82nd and 102th floor of the  Empire State Building,

 one can get a panoramic view of New York city.

Times Square is one of the busiest pedestrian intersections and  major commercial intersection

 in New York city. Time square acquired its name when the office of

 New York Times was shifted to the new sky scraper what was then known as Longacre Square.

WASHINGTON NATIONAL CATHEDRAL

.

 Located in Washington DC, the capital of United States, National Cathedral rest on the top

of Mount Saint Alban overlooking Potomac river.

National Cathedral is the sixth largest cathedral in the  world and the second largest in

the United States

 The design of the cathedral is mainly  adapted from the neo gothic style.Gothic architectural
style include details like  flying buttresses, vaulted ceilings and stained-glass windows.

It took almost 83 years to complete the construction of this cathedral.
The church witnessed two world wars, recession and the ebb and flow of funds
 from the laying of  corner stone in 1907 till the completion in1990.

The church consist of about 200 stained glass windows  which includes a space window

 that contains a fragment of lunar rock to honor man's landing on the moon.

The church is dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul

Beginning with Ronald Reagan’s second inauguration in 1985, presidential inaugural

prayer services have been held at the Cathedral except Bill Clinton .

   Numerous whimsical gargoyles and grotesque decorates the cathedral.

In architecture gargoyles are stone figures which contains a water spout
 through the mouth preventing rain water running down the walls .

  The cathedral was affected by the 5.8 scale Virginia Earthquake in 2011.

There is a circled pathway outside the cathedral .

The Five acre Olmsted Woods also lies in close proximity to the cathedral.

 The National cathedral is one of the most important land marks in DC from which
one can get a panoramic view of the city.

 

Location:3101 Wisconsin Avenue Northwest,

Washington, DC 20016

(202) 537-6200

LADY BUGS

Lady Bugs are cute little beetles also known as lady birds, lady cow or lady beetles. Their special shape

 and color with stylized spots made them  one of the favorite insects of children. 

Lady bugs are  not true bugs but beetles that eat the aphids which destroy crops and garden plants.

  Both male and female beetles are commonly referred to as lady bugs .     

Legend says that lady bugs saved the farmers  of middle ages in Europe by eating the pests that
 hassled their crops.From that day onwards farmers started calling  these beetles' Lady bugs'  as a
 gratitude to Virgin Mary  who send the bugs. The term lady is used  to denote Virgin Mary .

 These adorable little beetles comes in different colors, with and without spots. The lady bugs saved
the lemon and orange industry in California in 1800  from the insects ruining the whole grove.

Most of the lady bug species are considered as useful insects. The most common recorded species is the

seven spotted. They eat the pest that eat crops and is a real friend of farmers and gardeners.

 Many cultures considered these bugs lucky..

Location: Jefferson City, MO
 

Punnathur Kotta Elephant Sanctuary or Aanakotta in Kerala, India

Once the property of Punnathur Raja's, Punnathur kotta is now ruled by the elephants of Guruvayoor   SreeKrishna temple. This erstwhile palace compound is now home to more  than  60 elephants which include tuskers (male), mozha (tuskless) and
 cows (female).
 

  This unique elephant sanctuary is located at Thrissur district in Kerala

 at a distance of 3.8 kms North from the famous Guruvayoor temple.

 

                   Here one can see majestic tuskers of different ages and sizes grazing in a lushly green garden. 

All the jumbos seen here are the offerings made by devotees to lord Krishna.

  

 This fort complex consist of a 500 year old palace constructed by the erstwhile local rulers  known as Punnathur Raja's.

 The palace was constructed according to the    traditional  architectural style of Kerala  known as  Nalukettu,

 a style shaped by the climatic and geographical factors of the state.  

 Nalukettu is a traditional  rectangular style building  with sloping roof ,wooden carvings and a central courtyard  opened  to the sky. The  four sides of a Nalukettu  is named  according to its position  inside the building.The eastern side is called as Kizhakkini , western side known as Padinjattini , southern side as Thekkini  and the northern  side as Vadakkini.

   Punnathur fort was purchased by Guruvayoor Devasom Board in 1975 to house

 its elephants. All the elephants of Guruvayoor temple were shifted to Punnathur fort in 1975.

 This fort complex with acres of land also have a temple of Lord Shiva and Bhagavathy.

In Kerala, elephants are known as "Sahyaputra". Sahya means Western Ghats and Putra means son.

Starting from Satputra range in Gujarat the Western Ghats run parallel  to the west coast  of India and ends in

Kanyakumari  the southern most tip of India. Western Ghats borders the eastern side of Kerala.

 

 Elephants play a prominent role in the culture of India. The Hindu God Lord Ganesha

 is portrayed as a deity with an Elephant head. According to Hindu epics some gods

 like Indra ride on Elephant's back. The state emblem of Kerala also depicts  two elephants.

 

 With his majestic outlook and behavioral qualities Guruvayoor Kesavan is the most famous and celebrated elephant in Kerala history. He passed away in the auspicious Ekadasi day in 1976 after serving Guruvayoorappan  for a period of 54 years. Kesavan was immortalized by his 12 ft statue in front of   Panjajanyam rest house and also by a film  titled his name. His death anniversary is observed by paying floral tributes  by the elephants of Punnathur kotta on his statue.

                              Another major elephant attraction is Aanayottam or Elephant race which is  conducted  every year at Guruvayoor to mark the beginning  of 10 day temple festival.

 Those who visit Punnathur kotta can also witness mahouts bathing and massaging  the elephants with small stones and coconut husks. It is a pleasure to watch these beast enjoying their elaborate  bath. 

 Untamed elephants are housed in huge cage made of wood. One who visit Punnathur

Kotta can watch this cage  and mahout's training the elephants. 

People of Kerala are so crazy about elephants that no processions accompanying temple celebration will be completed without caparisoned elephants and orchestral feast known as Panchavadyam. The elephant decorations include gold or gold plated  Caparisons ( Nettipattom), bells, and necklaces. People mounted on the elephants hold special umbrella made of silk 

 known as Muthukuda, Swaying Venchamaram (white tuft) and Aalavattom made of peacock feathers.  

The biggest and most famous  temple festivals  in Kerala are Thrissur Pooram and  Aarattupuzha pooram . Though Arattupuzha pooram  is the oldest of all poorams with 61 caparisoned elephants,  Thrissur Pooram attracts more crowds with its 30 elephants 

 The tuskers of Punnathurkotta also get a 30 days of "Sukachikatsa" (treatment and health care with sumptuous and healthy food with complete rest ) during the month of July (Kerala monsoon). There is a special offering called Aaanyootu conducted  by Guruvayoor Devasom board  at Punnathur kotta.in which  elephants are fed with rice, plantain, jaggery and coconut.

 Punnathoor kotta is obviously a potential tourist destination for elephant lovers from all over the world.

 

 

 

 Address: Kottapadi Rd, Kerala, India
                 3.8 km from Guruvayoor temple
                 2.6 km from Mammiyoor temple
 

 

അപ്പൂപ്പൻതാടി MILK WEED SEED