Happiness Perfume

I was gifted this tiny bottle wrapped with love,
As I gingerly opened it, there was a note for me-
"Hope this adds to your enchanting treasure-trove!
I wish you a whiff of magic & may you live happily!"

(Image by Emergency Brake via Flickr/Creative Commons.)

Her Shoes

"And this is where he caught her after a long chase..." the tour-guide mentioned waving her hand.

"Lover's Point!" the sign-board informed.

"Yes! King Raj proposed to Rani here! She agreed to be his queen!"

"Did she have any choice?" I remarked looking at the steep fall ahead into the sea...

"Why did she run all the way here on this rugged path?" I wondered aloud trying to put myself in her shoes.

"The romantic setting!" the tour-guide winked.

PHOTO PROMPT submitted by Courtney Wright.

Bottled Fantasy

The artist was surprised to see his creation outside his window.

His latest painting was out there as a canvas in the sky.

He had chosen his theme as colourful buildings with dazzling stars.

PHOTO PROMPT ©Jill Wisoff

They had finally acknowledged his artistic talent!

Save Water

Life started on Planet Earth thanks to water; for life, water is main.
In today's world, towards water incomprehensible is the disdain...

"Rain-water harvesting" & "conserving water" sounds lame?
Why for such efforts of judicious water-usage aren't we game?

Dripping taps, open pipes... allowing water to flow down the drain...
"Water is wealth", "Water is precious" & we all pray for the rain.

I am still learning to save water, are you? Please share water conservation tips.

Rush To The Top Of The World

"Are you nuts?", "Do you know what seems exciting, you may despise?"
They try to talk her out of her "stupidity" lest things go wrong & she dies...

She says, "Of course! This is my dream. I speak the truth; I hate lies!"
"I want to go to the top of the world & jump to the earth, yet rise!"

Attempting to kiss the sky, eyeing for the stars with stars in her eyes,
She races towards her dreams in her true form without any disguise!

This is where she has always wanted to be, fulfilling dreams is nice!
Rush & race to the top of the world is a sweet feeling that adds spice!

Source

How To Recover Deleted Photos From Android Phone?

Last month, I discovered to my shock and dismay that all the photographs and videos in the 'Gallery' & 'Camera-roll' on my Android Phone were missing. But, the other folders like Screenshots etc. were intact.

I was back from a trip where I had clicked many pics and captured several videos. My phone's memory was almost full. I started getting warning messages. Then, one fine day, they had all disappeared...

I have two mobile phones and as the memory of one phone was already full, I had used this Android phone to save photos especially of the last half of my trip. I felt terrible to find those pictures along with pics taken in the last few months were missing. Perhaps, it is a way in which the Android phone unburdens itself and automatically frees memory by simply deleting the 'Gallery' data?

I was midway in my second April #AToZChallenge #BlogchatterA2Z in which I was writing A to Z posts about Odisha, India- including the travel places I had visited. 
My mind was heavy as I had documented my trip by clicking pictures of sign-boards and information-boards. Now, how would I write my posts? 

'Pictures speak more than a thousand words'. 

 "Those pics are important. I have to retrieve them." I requested myself to go for Mission Photos Recovery.

I contacted the phone's registered service-centre. They refused saying that they can only update the phone's software that would erase my existing data. 

I checked with the other phone-service stores. The moment they heard that pics were lost from the 'Gallery' i.e. the internal phone memory, they shook their head and expressed their inability. Had the data been lost/deleted from external storage like SD card, they could have attempted to be saviour.

How to restore/recover/retrieve deleted pictures? 

I started searching online for help.

Hut On The Hill

The river looked deep and tough to cross.

She had to get to the other side that had steep steps leading to the hill-top.

She had to get to the witch's hut.

PHOTO PROMPT © Karen Rawson

Ekamra Van Bhubaneswar #AToZChallenge

Bhubaneswar has many beautiful and well-maintained gardens and parks like Nandankanan and Ekamra Van to name a few.

Ekamra Van is an impressive garden in the Old Town area of Bhubaneswar. Located on the Western bank of the Bindusagar tank, Ekamra Van has over 200 medicinal plants and trees. 
The garden was opened for the public in 2009.

Nandankanan Zoological Park #AToZChallenge

Nandankanan is a beautiful Zoological Park that was established on 29 December, 1960, in Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha.
The name 'Nandankanan' literally means the 'Garden of Heaven'.
Nandankanan is a combination of Zoo, Sanctuary and Botanical Garden.

Source: Nandankanan Website

Nandankanan is located amidst the lush green Chandaka Forest along the banks of the Kanjia Lake. The beautiful natural settings and the flora and fauna make Nandankanan one of the best parks and sanctuaries of India. The Park covers an area of about 362.1 hectares and the Sanctuary covers 437 hectares.

Utkala, Kalinga, Orissa - Some Names of Odisha #AToZChallenge

Odisha was constituted on April 1,1936, as Utkala.

April 1st is celebrated as Utkala Dibasa i.e. Odisha Day.

The word 'Utkala' means 'Utkarsha Kala' or 'the land of exquisite art & craft'.

History refers to Odisha in many names - Kalinga, Utkal, Odra, Kosala, Tosali, Kangoda, Udavisau, Odyadesa, ...

Kalinga is a famous name of Odisha thanks to the Kalinga War. In fact, some refer to Odisha as Kalinga even today!
(At the venue of the Peace Run at Lumbini, Nepal in 2017, they introduced me and Budhia Singh as belonging to Kalinga!)

In the 2018 annual lecture of Sambad and Aama Odisha held on 28th April i.e. on Swabhiman Dibasa, researcher Shri R.Balakrishnan shared: "The word 'Kalinga' means 'a piece of cloth or garment'. This proves how ancient the handlooms are. Odisha has always been known for its weavers and artisans. Kalinga finds mention in the ancient Tamil literature too."

Between the 11th and 16th centuries, in place of the name Kalinga, the old tribal name 'Odra Desha'/'Udra' began to be used. 

Gradually, the name was transformed into Odisha (or Udisha, or Udisa), which in English was named 'Orissa'.

The spelling -'Orissa' was widely used.
An acrobatic foot archer named Orissa Kelly has been named after Orissa.

Many Geography books, Atlas, Maps and Tourism Guides still have 'Orissa' as the spelling of Odisha.
Even some newspapers  and Central Government Offices still have "Orissa" in their names.
(After I contacted @CCidOrissaIndia, they simply changed the place name to Odisha, but the office name still has "Orissa")

C CID Bureau Crime Control Investigation Department Officials C CID Intelligence Headquarters Bhubaneswar, Orissa India
All Crime Cases Investigation Department Of India
All Social Work Organisation Of India
Har Jurm Se Aage Har Jurm Ke Khilaaf C CID
9412314148, 9808919663 pic.twitter.com/AVJZrza4Hc

— C CID Orissa, Odisha India (@CCidOrissaIndia) May 2, 2018

Many are not aware that the spelling of 'Orissa' has been changed to 'Odisha' in 2011.
The Rajya Sabha passed the Orissa (the Alteration of Name) Bill and adopted the Constitution 113th Amendment Bill after a debate where members said the name-change was a "process of decolonisation as the Britishers had changed the Indian names of cities and states."

@arvindpadhee @odisha_tourism Videos & advertising pamphlets etc in d past & even present maps still hv Orissa.Identity crisis@rocking_amsa

— Dr. Anita Sabat (@anitaexplorer) October 12, 2014

The language of Odisha that was previously known as 'Oriya' (before the name-change of the state) is now 'Odia'.

Since Kalinga is linked to Odisha's maritime glory, and Utkala refers to the rich artistic excellence, the two names are still widely used and well-known.

There are many companies and brands that have Kalinga and Utkala in their names including some recent startups like our company's brand- Utkalamrita.

Post for my second #atozchallenge. U for Utkala.

My Theme is- "Odisha- The Soul of Incredible India".
Odisha is a state in the eastern part of India. Have you visited Odisha and India? 

I am sharing some glimpses from Odisha. Do keep reading and discovering!