Heard and read a lot about Mahim Nature Park(MNP)at Dharavi and wondered whether it would be a good place to take my students for a nature trail as they are only accustomed to visiting malls and resorts in their free time as that is where their parents prefer to take them.I decided to find out for myself by going for a photo walk cum nature trail to Mahim Nature Park with the Moments Shoot group one week-end.
We met at Sion station and had breakfast at a nearby restaurant.A poster on the wall depicting Mumbai and the interesting places in it at the hotel caught my fancy.We were a small group of about seven and we took autos to reach MNP. A few school buses parked outside the park made us realise that there was some programme for kids there that Saturday.We booked our tickets and ventured inside.We began our trail and walked along the periphery of the park which was paved.There was a thick growth of trees and it was a calm and quiet place to be in.We walked on taking in the beauty of nature which we hardly get to witness in our concrete jungles.A few kids were also seen running about and creating a ruckus.Why blame kids when even a group of teenagers was seen talking and shouting aloud while on a walk at the park.I wish there were some guides to take the students around on the nature trail so the kids can learn something on their nature trails and not just run about.
Anyway,we walked on and took some time out for photo ops.At a point there was a lot of stink and we realised that the nearby hutment dwellers came to the park to relieve themselves.It was a pity to see that the park was not in the best of shape and needed a lot of maintenance.There was an opening at the north-end of the park where we saw the little kids and heaps of garbage.Little kids were playing in gay abandon in the garbage heap.They were swinging from trees and having a gala time.When they saw us with our cameras they posed like professional models for us.They were really really street-smart! After clicking pictures as we walked ahead one of them came to ask us money for posing for pictures!I gave them a few chocolates and we continued our trail.There were many potted plants also around and we could see many butterflies.A couple of my friends were lucky enough to see a snake which I sadly missed!
Soon we came back to the entrance and walked towards the programme area.There were many stalls put up by some local schools.The children were many students too who were participating in the fancy dress competition.They were dressed up as animals,birds,water,etc. Bittu Sehgal the editor of Sanctuary Magazine was there to encourage the kids.He is really good with what he does and I have always been impressed by his dedication towards environmental conservation.The main attraction was a bunch of school kids who were dressed as tigers......how cute and colourful they looked !
We spent some time clicking photographs of the kids and the activities in progress and made our way to the main gate once again.But wait....the fun did not end there!We made our way back to Sion station in autos and then headed towards the famous eatery-Gurukrupa which is near SIES college.It was crowded with its loyal foodies. This place is famous as being the one that supplies their special yummy samosas to the city's theatres. We ordered the pattice and samosa which was served with piping hot chhole.....Wow!!!The taste was superb.Some of us had gulab jamuns(hot-hot!) and rabdi.The menu card was interesting with an array of dishes that I would surely like to taste.....some other day for sure!We thought of ending our photo walk with ice-cream but unfortunately the ice-cream section was closed.That brought us to the end of yet another interesting photo walk and nature trail.
Moments captured on camera.....with some photo contributions of my fellow photo walk enthusiasts.
We met at Sion station and had breakfast at a nearby restaurant.A poster on the wall depicting Mumbai and the interesting places in it at the hotel caught my fancy.We were a small group of about seven and we took autos to reach MNP. A few school buses parked outside the park made us realise that there was some programme for kids there that Saturday.We booked our tickets and ventured inside.We began our trail and walked along the periphery of the park which was paved.There was a thick growth of trees and it was a calm and quiet place to be in.We walked on taking in the beauty of nature which we hardly get to witness in our concrete jungles.A few kids were also seen running about and creating a ruckus.Why blame kids when even a group of teenagers was seen talking and shouting aloud while on a walk at the park.I wish there were some guides to take the students around on the nature trail so the kids can learn something on their nature trails and not just run about.
Anyway,we walked on and took some time out for photo ops.At a point there was a lot of stink and we realised that the nearby hutment dwellers came to the park to relieve themselves.It was a pity to see that the park was not in the best of shape and needed a lot of maintenance.There was an opening at the north-end of the park where we saw the little kids and heaps of garbage.Little kids were playing in gay abandon in the garbage heap.They were swinging from trees and having a gala time.When they saw us with our cameras they posed like professional models for us.They were really really street-smart! After clicking pictures as we walked ahead one of them came to ask us money for posing for pictures!I gave them a few chocolates and we continued our trail.There were many potted plants also around and we could see many butterflies.A couple of my friends were lucky enough to see a snake which I sadly missed!
Soon we came back to the entrance and walked towards the programme area.There were many stalls put up by some local schools.The children were many students too who were participating in the fancy dress competition.They were dressed up as animals,birds,water,etc. Bittu Sehgal the editor of Sanctuary Magazine was there to encourage the kids.He is really good with what he does and I have always been impressed by his dedication towards environmental conservation.The main attraction was a bunch of school kids who were dressed as tigers......how cute and colourful they looked !
We spent some time clicking photographs of the kids and the activities in progress and made our way to the main gate once again.But wait....the fun did not end there!We made our way back to Sion station in autos and then headed towards the famous eatery-Gurukrupa which is near SIES college.It was crowded with its loyal foodies. This place is famous as being the one that supplies their special yummy samosas to the city's theatres. We ordered the pattice and samosa which was served with piping hot chhole.....Wow!!!The taste was superb.Some of us had gulab jamuns(hot-hot!) and rabdi.The menu card was interesting with an array of dishes that I would surely like to taste.....some other day for sure!We thought of ending our photo walk with ice-cream but unfortunately the ice-cream section was closed.That brought us to the end of yet another interesting photo walk and nature trail.
Moments captured on camera.....with some photo contributions of my fellow photo walk enthusiasts.
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