Summer, Rain and the Abandoned Lake

In Bangalore, the weather has become so unpredictable this summer. One moment the sun looks like it will make a Joshi Fry or Barbecued Joshi out of me if I venture out, and the next moment the clouds gather and threaten to lash the city.  Most of the time it turns out to be all bark and no bite, but the rain gauge, nevertheless, has recorded highest rainfall in 40 years.

When the Sun is shy of showing himself, I sometimes tramp across the vast stretch of barren land in front of my house to the lake (Begur Lake) at the other end which has long been abandoned. I sit on the lakeshore under the grey leaden sky with the caressing wind gently swirling around me. It feels like heaven.

Sounds cool right?, I also have to tell you the heaven-like feeling is only until the clouds starts rumbling. It becomes hell once the lighting starts flashing across the sky and I start running northwards, homebound at 50 miles per hour, while my lungi flies southwards. My wife, once, looking out at the open field caught me running with my lungi fluttering ferociously in the gusty wind and when I reached home, she quipped, “I thought I just saw Superman!!”

Outside my window – leaves washed in the glory of an afternoon Sun

Grey clouds – a view from Decathlon on the Sarjapur Road

Begur Lake – the one I’m talking about. Only a few hundred meters walk from my house. Rain clouds brewing above.

sometimes my daughter joins me (only on the days I chose to wear pants)

I live in this unfashionable locality. Picture taken from the Lake towards the general direction of my house which is hiding behind the front row. On a side note, this area is fast developing and that means this green stretch will soon disappear! Sad, but can’t help it.

P.S: Today, as I post this, let me break the news that somebody, yesterday morning (8th May 2011), found a Buddha statue presumed to be over 700 years old from this lake (in pic 3 and 4). Police suspect the statue might have been stolen and dumped into the lake for safe-keeping (good idea). You may hear more about this in the newspaper.

Also See:

Don’t miss this mind-boggling National Geographic group image in Flickr of Begur Lake taken by Abhi:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31540126@N04/3631159038/

Abhi’s Flickr photostream also has a wonderful rendition of the green fields, a much better version of my pic 5:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31540126@N04/3630344013/in/photostream/

P.S 2: It’s a shame that this beautiful lake had to endure negligence for years. Now there is good news that the  govt has decided to turn this lake into a tourist attraction.