Photo Of The Day: Diwali Is Coming Soon

by Jessica Marati on

Though Diwali – India‘s festival of lights – is more than a month away, decorations are already starting to spread through the capital of Delhi. According to Flickr user The Delhi Way, the city will be soon be “glittering in ferry lights, diyas and candles” – traditional symbols of the Hindu holiday, which are intended to make the goddess Lakshmi feel welcome. Other Diwali traditions include wearing new clothes, sharing sweets with family and lighting firecrackers to drive off evil spirits.

Do you have any photos from traditional fall festivals? Upload your shots to the Gadling Flickr Pool and your image could be selected as our Photo of the Day.

Brazen Poaching Of Rare Rhinoceros Species In India

by Sean McLachlan on


Two recent poaching incidents reveal the dangers faced by India’s rare animals, even when they are supposedly under protection.

The BBC reports that a one-horned rhino was shot in Assam when it wandered out of Kaziranga National Park. Poachers took its horn but the animal did not die. Park staff are now trying to save it. The park is home to about two-thirds of the world’s population of one-horned rhinos, which number in total fewer than 3,000 individuals. Thirteen of the animals have been poached in the park in the past nine months.

On the same day, the BBC reported the poaching of a tiger in a zoo. Poachers entered the Itanagar zoo in Arunachal Pradesh and hacked a female tiger into half a dozen pieces before being scared off by the security guards, who had been away eating dinner.

The Times of India reports that several employees have been fired over the zoo incident. No arrests have been made in either crime.

Poaching is a major problem in many countries because of the high demand for animal parts as trophies and for use in traditional medicine.

[Photo courtesy Mandeep Singh]

The Greatest Photo I Never Took

by Sean McLachlan on


The Iranians love Ferris wheels. When I spent a month in Iran back in 1994 I saw them everywhere. The parks in the big cities had the big, brightly painted ones we’re familiar with in the West. Smaller towns and villages had more modest Ferris wheels, some small enough that they could be cranked by hand.

I saw dozens of them. The one that stands out most in my memory was in a dusty little roadside village I passed through while riding a bus. The village was nothing more than a few dozen houses lined up on either side of the highway. This was Iran, though, and so it had its own Ferris wheel. It was homemade out of unpainted boards and had four seats that looked like they were old footlockers. An old man was cranking it around and around for the little local boys and girls, who all had big smiles on their faces as they went up, around, down and up again.

While I only saw it for a moment, it remains one of my most vivid memories of Iran. I wish I could show you a photo but I was zipping by in a bus and so I never got the shot. Instead, here’s a photo Tracy Hunter took in India. This Ferris wheel is about the same size.

While we’re on the subject of travel photography, is there a shot you missed that remains stuck in your mind? Tell us about it in the comments section!

Photo Of The Day: Delhi Spice Market

by Meg Nesterov on


You can probably tell without any caption that this photo was taken in India, in Old Delhi‘s Khari Baoli spice market. The combination of bright colors and southeast Asian architecture is uniquely Indian, just hinting at the history and bustle contained within the walls, as the market is the largest in Asia and has been in operation since the 17th century. Flickr user The Delhi Way gives us a “taste” of what’s inside, even without showing any food or spices, and beautifully frames the scene.

Share your favorite travel photos for a future Photo Of The Day by adding them to the Gadling Flickr pool.

McDonald’s To Open Vegetarian-Only Restaurant

by Jessica Festa on

When people talk about greasy fries and bad-for-you burgers, the conversation inevitably always leads to McDonald’s. No matter what initiatives the chain seems to implement, they’re always touted as the most unhealthy restaurant on the planet. This may soon change, as the eatery plans to open its first vegetarian-only restaurant in northern India‘s Amritsar early next year.

The marketing plan is to take local Indian favorites and put a “McDonald’s twist” on them.

Apparently, some of their international cuisine is pretty tasty. In fact, around-the world traveler “Dancing Matt” Harding told USA Today the McArabia – a seasoned and pita-wrapped lamb kebab he ate in Marrakesh, Morocco, and Dubai, U.A.E. – was “the best thing I’ve ever eaten at McDonald’s. If it were offered in my homeland, I might actually eat at McDonald’s.”

The initiative isn’t too different from McDonald’s usual approach, although they’ve never gone completely vegetarian. However, in many countries around the world they do try to incorporate local flavors. For example, in Japan they offer “Ume Nuggets,” Chicken McNuggets with sour plum sauce and fries with seaweed, barbecue or Italian basil seasoning. Additionally, in France you can order an “M Burger,” which comes with Emmenthal cheese on a ciabatta-style roll that is baked in a stone over.

What do you think of McDonald’s plan for a vegetarian-only eatery?

[Image via stock.xchng]