The go itch struck us again, after all it had been 2 whole months since nosotros had gotten away - hence nosotros decided a quick weekend getaway to Bhandardhara, Maharashtra (180 kms from Mumbai).
After whizzing on the Bombay Nasik Expressway (NH3, multi lane, smoothen drive), nosotros cutting off at the Ghoti Toll to the Nagpur-Aurangabad-Mumbai Highway (bumpy, unmarried lane exactly alongside groovy countryside views)!
Enjoying the countryside on this road (even ameliorate inwards monsoon, exactly non bad inwards winters either), nosotros crossed a huge 'maidan' (ground) alongside what looked similar a gzillion people as well as wait.. also cattle!
It was a cattle fair - people from the neighbouring villages had gathered to purchase or sell cattle. Truckloads of cattle (literally) of all sizes, breed as well as color were offloaded on this ground. People seemed to induce got camped upwards in that place for a twain of days. To run into the sheer set out of cattle in that place was a 'moo-ing' experience!
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| Cattle of all breed & sizes made the Cattle Fair a colorful sight! |
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| People seemed to induce got camped upwards at the Cattle Fair for some days |
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| Cattle existence brought in, inwards trucks & tempos from neighboring villages |
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| A describe of shops sold diverse adornments for cattle |
Remembering nosotros had a goal to hit, nosotros drove farther on.. H5N1 few kilometres ahead - on a barren landscape inwards the backdrop of a scarcely light-green loma - was a piddling hut.
On the outskirts of Ghoti village, this mud hut had cattle & poultry to a greater extent than or less it, chillies & beans set out to dry, 2 not-so-lush trees providing shade from the scorching Sun as well as the lady of the work solid busy inwards the courtyard. The brownish barren beauty of the hut compelled us to halt..
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| The piddling mud hut |
The lady must've been inwards her 60's. Sitting exterior her hut, she was flattening out cow-dung into discs hence it could hold out used for cooking (and other) fires... Bio unloosen energy at its best - done inwards nigh hamlet homes inwards India.
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| The quondam lady making cow-dung cakes as well as leaving them out to dry |
'Aamhi hya govri baghu shakto ka?', I asked her ('Do yous hear if nosotros run into the moo-cow dung cakes that yous are laying out?')
She was thrilled to host us.. She fifty-fifty taught our iv yr quondam fille to brand cow-dung cakes inwards iii slow steps: mix cow-dung alongside straw, flatten it into cakes past times manus as well as exit the cow-dung cakes inwards the Sun to dry.
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Our fille trying her manus at making cow-dung cakes nether able supervision
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The cow-dung past times the agency has other utilities besides apart from bio fuel - moisture moo-cow dung is spread across the walls as well as floors of hamlet huts which dries upwards to brand solid walls & floors. It is also used equally agricultural manure.
The lady as well as hence took us to a calf tied to a greater extent than or less the tree exterior her hut as well as nosotros fed it some hay.
After the piddling 'activity class' (that's what our fille idea it was), the lady took our fille nigh the hut as well as washed her hands off a bucket of water. I afterwards realised how generous that was since all the H2O she had inwards her work solid were 2-3 bucketfuls (perhaps from a H2O heart or a flow some distance away).
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| Washing the moo-cow dung off their hands |
She was sort plenty to accept us within her hut - 8 sq mtrs, housed half-dozen household unit of measurement members. She introduced us to her household unit of measurement as well as offered us a sort of khichdi (steamed rice alongside pulses) made on her indigenous 'choola' (cooking stove).
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Their humble abode - alongside meals cooked on the indigenous 'choola'
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Much equally nosotros were tempted, nosotros politely refused, non wanting to 'eat into' the family's part of lunch.
We thanked her for her courtesy as well as bid the household unit of measurement proficient bye, glad to induce got experienced some business office of their life. What seemed brownish & barren to us was maybe aureate for them!
With that, nosotros drove ahead to Bhandardhara. But indeed equally the platitude goes - the journeying was equally interesting equally the destination..!