A journey by Grapevine Vintage Railroad

We recently undertook a journey on the Grapevine Vintage Railroad from Main Street Station of Grapevine to Fort Worth Stockyards. It is a 21 mile route which is part of the once St. Louis South Western Railway also called the 'The Cotton Belt Route'. It generally operates with a 1896 ear steam engine or a diesel engine. The steam locomotive is called 'Puffy' and is the oldest continuously operated steam loco in the south. The diesel locomotive is known and 'Vinny' and is of 1953 make. 

The coaches are from 1920s era and are well maintained. There is one which is air-conditioned and one which is open; no windows. Guests can choose from either of the options. The coaches are well maintained and there are few refreshment options available on-board as well.we

Main Street Station of Grapevine is a historic station which dates back to 1888. The Fort Worth Stockyards came up in late 1880s to stock cattle which the the railroads reached the region. The current Stockyards station is housed in a building which was originally built in 1912.

Reminiscing Durga Puja days

When I was young I really thought whether Durga Puja is the exclusive festival of Durgapur; my birth place. Obviously that is not so but to me and many alike the definition of Durga Puja is stilled limited to the boundaries of this small town of West Bengal. Every puja holiday, I have so far afforded,  has been spent in Durgapur only. It is beyond doubt that celebrations in Kolkata overshadows anything anywhere but the soul doesn't achieves satisfaction till the lungs breath air of the hometown.

The meaning and way of celebrating Durga Puja in Durgapur has changed with time. When I was young it would start with the initiation of the Puja holidays. Though the holidays would start from Panchami, books would be packed for good right from Mahalaya. Those were the days of no FM or YouTube, so if you want to listen to Birendra babu it has to be on All India Radio at 4:30 am on the day of Mahalaya. The Mahalaya on radio would be followed by one on Doordarshan 1 at around 6:30 am; a more logical time to get up specially on a holiday.

The period between Mahalaya to Panchami would be spent around the under-construction pandal of our para puja. Climbing the bamboo structure along-with playing  hide and seek around the pandal would comprise our evening games. My para puja at that time was Edison Madhyapalli which used to be held in the field of Balaka Manimela; the pandal wouldn't be dismantled before Laxmi Puja. On Panchami evening we would celebrate our school closure with a prolonged adda in the fields of Central Puja. The adda would not end before 9 or 9:30 pm; which was almost equivalent to past midnight in those days.

Storm Cloud Formations Today (10/09/2018)

Today morning observed some threatening storm cloud formations over the city. There were warnings of severe thunderstorm and local tornadoes. Rain lashed all through the day but nothing extreme took place. However the cloud images captured today are not surely of regular occurrence. 

Place: Allen, Texas

Date: 10/09/2018

Camera: Samsung J7 phone camera