Odisha boasts of a rich cultural heritage and a vibrant artistic tradition. The state offers a wide range of shopping options for tourists who want to take home a piece of its arts and crafts. Here are some of the best souvenirs to buy from Odisha: 1. Stone sculptures: Odisha is one of the few […]
Gotipua: The Ancient and Graceful Dance of Odisha
Odisha, is home to a rich and diverse cultural heritage. One of the most fascinating aspects of its culture is the Gotipua dance, a traditional dance form that has been performed for centuries by young boys who dress as women to praise Jagannath and Krishna, the supreme deities of Odisha. The origin of Gotipua can […]
GB’s BLOG 16
GB’s Blog No 16 On 3rd August, during a short visit to Kolkata, my sister presented a box of Jigsaw puzzle pieces to Ishaan (Matuiti), my 3 year old grandson. The special character of the puzzle, remembered by my sister as Matuiti’s passion, searched and procured, was the depiction of heavy machinery and equipment […]
Trees R Us
GB’s Blog No 15 Something new: A Walk-A-Talk on the healing power of trees Many of our guests, over the last few years, had shown a genuine interest in the plant and tree wealth of Svanir. They wanted to know what some fancied tree or plant was, how we achieved a jungle look in our […]
Blackswan Walking Tour
Recently Blackswan 2nd single album ‘That Karma” was released. The music video was entirely shot in Bhubaneswar, Odisha showcasing the beauty of Bhubaneswar Old Town and Shanti Stupa. This song marks the debut of India’s first K-pop idol Sriya Lenka, who also hails from Odisha. In the new music video, the members of BLACKSWAN are […]
Grand Parenting
GB’s Blog No 14 Couple of days ago, I was taught a lesson. Having been brought up in a world where routines, schedules, and orderliness ranks very high in the order of proper behaviour I was trying through a learning activity to instill such values in my three year old grandson. I was stumped when […]
My 73rd Birthday
GB’s Blog No 13 Do you remember your birthday? I do, but not individually, yearly. When I was in primary and lower middle school, I used to look forward to my birthday; the annual family gathering when I knew I would be gifted philately, that year’s music recording (on 78 rpm vinyl discs), followed by […]
Are you the Gardner?
Guestly notes 4 I was thrilled and honoured to note that two guests from the north west coast of Europe were impressed with the garden we had developed at Svanir, our homestay. “We like the mix of conventional flowering plants within the overall ambience of wilderness”, one of them said. There is no doubt that […]
The Zen factor of our model of wilderness homestay.
GB’s Blog No 12 All these years, after observing eco tourism sites including homestays, I had come to believe that its success boiled down to something very mundane and impersonal – conventional marketing and advertising, proficient staffing and a lean management structure that would generate a well balanced account book with regular profits. How wrong […]
Exam Fever?
Guestly Notes 3 One of my favourite times at Svanir is when guests gather around in the evening under the shady canopy of Karanja and Neem to share stories about their life and travels. Recently one of our guests Deb (Debapriya Dasgupta) shared a humorous story about his father, Debashis. He tells us that after […]