The Church of Nossa Senhora de Saúde (Our Lady of Health) in the village of Sancoale, Goa, was built in 1606 and destroyed in a fire in 1834. All that remains today is the shell of its façade. It enjoys a delightful setting by the Zuari river, and the ruins provide clues to what must have been a magnificent edifice.

I photographed the site several times over a number of years. The first image below was taken handheld on a dark monsoon morning from the bridge across the Zuari river.

Nossa Senhora de Saúde at Sancoale, Goa
5D, 300L f/4 IS

First rays of the rising sun
5D, 300L f/4 IS

The remains
5D Mark II, TS-E 24L II

Ruins of Nossa Senhora de Saúde
5D Mark II, Zeiss ZE 50 f/2 MP

Frontispiece
5D, 24-105L

These are candids of Goan ladies taken during a leisurely morning spent in the villages of Narve and Chorão.

Crossing
5D, 300L f/4 IS

Waiting
5D, 300L f/4 IS

Walking
5D, 300L f/4 IS

This is the third and final installment in the Taj Mahal sequence.

The Taj is seen at its refulgent best in the moments immediately after sunrise and preceding sundown when the marble glows in the honeyed light of the sun. Outside of these two fleeting windows, the exterior of the monument takes on a flat, white patina that is less interesting to the photographer. A monochromatic treatment is appropriate to the first image below, taken mid-morning from the balcony of the Amarvilas hotel.

Taj Mahal
5D, 300L f/4 IS

Thou shalt not clean or spellcheck the sign outside the entrance to the mausoleum.

Photography Prohibted (sic)
5D, 17-40L

December is a festive time in the historic village of Old Goa, now a World Heritage site. Sé Cathedral was elevated to the rank of a cathedral in 1533, and the final structure was completed in 1619. It is the largest church in India.

The second image below was taken from the hill at the Chapel of Mount Mary overlooking the Mandovi river. To the left of the frame is the Church of St Francis of Assisi.

Sé Cathedral, Old Goa
5D Mark II, TS-E 17L

First rays of the morning sun
5D, 300L f/4 IS

I have a good recollection of the Goan gentry of my young days, of their modes of dress, speech and mannerisms, of the old world charm, adapted from the Portuguese and synthesized into a uniquely Goan composite. That kind of codger is today a rare sight in Panjim. Likewise, the hardy Goan of the working class has been transformed by the times although a few still cling to the old ways – but surely not for long – even as their grandchildren conquer the new worlds of Facebook and Twitter.

These images were made while waiting for a sunset shoot in the village of Saligao. The 300mm telephoto lens enabled enough separation from the men for a candid shot. The mellow orange of the late evening sun was a bonus. As is my wont, I try to engage my subjects once the photographs are secure in my bag.

Julio Rodrigues wearing his loincloth (in Goa, called the caxtti) was returning with bags of livestock feed. For a tinge of nostalgia, notice the Hercules logo on his old bicycle. In the second image we see Jagannath Morajkar trudging home after an honest day’s work. There is something very Goan to their look, and soon sights like these will exist only in our memory.

On the way home: Julio Rodrigues
5D Mark II, 300L f/4 IS

Day's end: Jagannath Morajkar
5D Mark II, 300L f/4 IS

Jagannath Morajkar
5D Mark II, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

When the sun sets this evening, it will close out the first decade of this century. The image below was made in February 2008 in the village of Canaguinim in south Goa. The elevated plateau here has a spectacular view of the setting sun over the Arabian Sea.

Sunset viewed from the Canaguinim plateau, Goa
5D, 300L f/4 IS

I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me. - Shri Isaac Newton

Some pebbles picked up by my camera on my morning constitutionals at the Agonda beach in Canacona, the southernmost taluka of Goa.

Yoga
5D, 300L f/4 IS

Pranayama
5D, 35L

Romance
5D, 300L f/4

Nirvana
5D, 35L

Ponte de Linhares, the causeway joining Panjim and Ribandar, was built in 1633, and is acknowledged as a signal feat of engineering. Measuring just under 3 kms in length, the route is flanked by River Mandovi on one side and salt pans embedded in Khazan lands – a remarkable indigenous hydrologic system predating the Portuguese, designed to control tidal flow – on the other.

For centuries Ponte de Linhares has held Goans in thrall with its visually soothing panoramas. But in the past 10 years, the explosion in motor traffic and the haphazard birth of hideous concrete structures on the overlooking hills have destroyed the beauty of the area and turned it into an eyesore.

These images were taken over a period of 3 years in varied weather and lighting conditions; the archival photographs adduced provide a ready historical perspective.

Click here for earlier installments of Panjim Promenade.

River Mandovi is seen on the left from the Panjim end of the causeway.

Ponte de Linhares from Panjim side
5D, 300L f/4 IS

This image was taken soon after sunrise from the hill in Ribandar. To the left of the causeway is the Khazan land with its salt pans – tiny mounds of crystallized salt are seen on the lower left.

Post-sunrise Ponte de Linhares looking from Ribandar towards Panjim
5D, 300L f/4 IS

The disgusting legacy of our deplorable builders and politicos in plain sight, looking over the Mandovi bridge (another Third World dud) from Panjim towards Ribandar. Notice the old white chapel of Our Lady of Remedios at the foot of the hill at the other end of Ponte de Linhares. You will see it again in the archival photographs.

Late evening view of Mandovi bridge and Ponte de Linhares from Panjim
5D, 300L f/4 IS

Ponte de Linhares from Panjim on a monsoon morning
5D Mark II, 70-200L f/2.8 IS II

Ponte de Linhares
5D, 300L f/4L IS

In this c. 1900 view from the hill near the current High Court in Panjim, both the Mandovi river and the Khazan salt pans are seen in their pristine condition. Look carefully for the Remedios chapel at the far end. This and the next image are photographs of photographs from the Souza & Paul collection now in the custody of Central Library in Panjim.

Ponte de Linhares c.1900 (Central Library Archives)
5D, 24-105L

Ponte de Linhares c.1900 - entrance into Panjim (Central Library Archives)
5D, 24-105L

The final two images are photographs of photographs from the book Postais Antigos do Estado da Índia by João Loureiro (sponsored by Fundação Macau, 1998).

Ponte de Linhares c.1900 - entrance into Panjim
5D Mark II, Zeiss 50 f/2 MP

Here the Remedios chapel in Ribandar is clearly seen. Take note of the unmolested hilltop and compare with image #3 above.

Ponte de Linhares c.1900 - looking towards Ribandar
5D Mark II, Zeiss 50 f/2 MP

Go here for earlier installments of Panjim Promenade.

Around 10 miles in length and 440 metres high, Látrabjarg in Iceland is considered among the world’s greatest bird cliffs. We got there a little after 10 pm last night. It is a wondrous sight.

Látrabjarg was the scene of the dramatic rescue of the British trawler Dhoon in 1947. (Hint to the curious: use Google.)

Puffins at Látrabjarg bird cliffs, Iceland
5D Mark II, 300L f/4 IS

Puffin at Látrabjarg, Iceland
5D Mark II, 300L f/4 IS

Puffin
5D Mark II, 70-200L f/2.8 IS II

Moonrise over the Trona Pinnacles.

Moonrise at Trona Pinnacles
5D Mark II, 70-200L f/2.8 IS II

After my first magical evening, I made two more jaunts to the Trona Pinnacles later that same week hoping to frame other perspectives especially from the far south end of the lake bed. Unfortunately, on both these occasions the light was nothing to feel good about. Furthermore the intensity of the wind gusts made setting up of the tripod very difficult so I walked around and explored handheld compositions with the 300mm telephoto.

Lunarscape at Trona Pinnacles
5D Mark II, 300L f/4 IS