Removing Water Lilies from Dal Lake

Removing Water Lilies from Dal Lake

FirstLook September/October 2018 PDF
- Photograph by Paula Bronstein
Categories
- Creatives
- Now

No matter what my assignment is, as a photojournalist, I usually keep a camera ready all day. You never know when there will be a chance to make an interesting image that can tell a different story.

I made this photo during a news assignment in Srinigar, capital of the part of Jammu and Kashmir controlled by India. I went to one of the most popular places for locals and tourists alike—Dal Lake. There, I hired a shikara, or small traditional boat, for a few hours. Although it’s an urban lake full of houseboats, commuters and pleasure-craft closer to its city side, in its farther reaches Dal Lake becomes more tranquil, and the peaks of the Zabarwan Range make a magnificent backdrop. Water lilies have long grown in the lake, and in recent years they have proliferated to cover more than five square kilometers, or about a quarter of the lake, proving a nuisance to boat traffic and a threat to ecological balance. To assist with their removal, shikarawalas, or small-boat owners, are often commissioned to help remove the plants and keep the waterways clear.

— Paula Bronstein

www.paulaphoto.com
Instagram: @pbbphoto Twitter: @paulaphoto

More

The Dialogues of Don Quixote

The Dialogues of Don Quixote

Written and photographed by Tom Verde

Amid the fearful turbulence of the 17th century, Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes invented a plot, characters and names that seemed innocently comical, but they cleverly cloaked his insistence that Spain recognize its historical diversity—and Don Quixote became the bestselling novel ever published.

Read

Creatives
History
People

Flavors: Nasi goreng

Flavors: Nasi goreng

Recipe by Troth Wells
Photograph courtesy Kam & Co. Denmark

A popular dish in Indonesia and Malaysia—and one that I often enjoyed when I lived for a year in Penang.

Read

FirstLook: Waleed’s Birthday

FirstLook: Waleed’s Birthday

Sanad, Bahrain
Photo by Khalid Alabbas

Everything is different this year. Including my father Waleed’s birthday. He works in Oman and comes home to Bahrain every weekend. As expected, his routine changed this year. When travel was banned he was stuck in Oman.

Read

Creatives

I Witness History: I, Innocent Asp

I Witness History: I, Innocent Asp

Written by Frank L. Holt
Illustrated by Norman MacDonald

You do not know the real me. The demise of Cleopatra is but one of your many slanders against my kind. Even Shakespeare in Antony and Cleopatra called me a “poor venomous fool.” But let’s examine the facts: I, the Egyptian asp, Naja haje, did not kill the queen.

Read

History

The Staying Power of 4stay

The Staying Power of 4stay

Written by Larry Luxner

As an 18-year-old from Tajikistan new to Washington, DC, Akobir Azamovich Akhmedov could barely afford the city’s high rents. A dozen years later, he is cofounder and CEO of 4stay, where his plug-and-play approach to long-term accommodations is reshaping the market.

Read

People

Of Spice, Home and Biryani

Of Spice, Home and Biryani

Written by Alia Yunis

Slow-cooked with meats, vegetables and spices that vary all across the subcontinent of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, biryani “speaks to love, time and patience” for those who grow up with it, and to dazzling, addictive blasts of flavor to everyone else. No wonder it’s a rising global food star.

Read

Tastes

Greetings from Cairo, USA

Greetings from Cairo, USA

Written by Jonathan Friedlander
Postcards courtesy of Jonathan Friedlander

Westward expansion of the United States in the 19th century coincided with the popularity of all things Egyptian. Beginning in 1808 some 25 villages, towns and cities throughout the country were named Cairo. Of them, Cairo, Illinois, became the largest, although today it is Cairo, Georgia, whose nearly 10,000 residents gives it that title. Five of the “American Cairos” produced picture postcards, mostly during the early 20th century: These included both Cairo, Illinois and Georgia, as well as the Cairos of West Virginia, New York and Nebraska. Today these postcards record what these communities—distinct in geography, economy and history but united by a name—regarded as points of pride.

Read

History
Places

Flavors: Cheese Parcels with Honey and Orange Reduction

Flavors: Cheese Parcels with Honey and Orange Reduction

Recipe by Fiona Dunlop
Photograph courtesy Hiltrud Schulz

While studying for a diploma in tourism, Diego crisscrossed the entire province of Almería, in Andalusia, Spain, and as a result, there is very little he doesn’t know about local specialties. This dish combines delicious textural contrast with subtle, sweet Moorish flavors. You need to complete the final stage just minutes before eating. Add whipped cream as an extra hit of sweet.

Read

Tastes

Displaying results 1-8 (of 223)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

To take advantage of all features on this website, it is recommended that you allow all cookies.

Read more