Elan vital or other people's trades

Yadhuvansh Singh explains to our team  as he has done for tourists for 42 years now the history of Nalanda

Sociologist Susan Visvanathan sits under an ancient tree in Nalanda. If only more could be planted for the pilgrims and tourists on the wayside.

Rich farmland in Nalanda district, sugarcane, bajra and mangoes grow abundantly here

Ninety kms to Patna on a hot dusty road with traffic jam at every bend

The tarmac is so hot that punctures are frequent or so we are told.

47 degrees and the pillion rider has a Kerala muslin called Yamuna Ganga to protect the face.

The driver is totally puzzled at the traffic staring at him in odd location

Tyre has popped again, but the lone tree on the road looks like its 600 years old

The ancient tree is host to lots of other plants

Work on the bridge over the river Ganges continues

The  Ganges river in summer

Heat haze over the river

Outside the railway station at dusk. The temple plays Hindu Bhajans in the morning, and Buddhist shlokas in the evening on megaphones.

Barber keeps a traditional customer at ease under the blitzkreig of advertising which is just beginning to hide the enclaves of the poor.

Keeping calm in Patna is a state of mind. People do take the clamour of the traffic in their stride.

A merchant does his accounts in the evening

Cooks and waiters in a working class eatery. The poor eat well if left alone, they look after each other, and there is brisk trade in fresh cooked food, particularly fried  river fish.

Archeypical tea shop

And these are fresh fried kachoris for the vegetarians

Sands of time, the river will look different in the monsoon.