More People of India Era WWII

Here are a few more of my grandmother's photographs of people form her time in India during WWII.

I find this one the most haunting image. A note on the back of the photo said this boy tended the pyres at one the the cremation ghats. He is wearing skulls around his neck.

Water buffalo cart

I think this must be a constable.

Smiling friends

Paper mache artist

Street barber giving a customer a shave

The most heartbreaking image is this little boy digging through the trash for food.

India Era WWII part 2- People of India

Since there were so many photographs from Mima's time in India, I decided to sort them into three broad categories: 1. People of India, 2. Sights of India, 3. Pictures involving the U.S. Military. Here are a few of my favorite images to start off the first category.

A snake charmer

Dancing bear and monkey

A "blind" beggar (a note on the back said she later learned he was not blind after all)

People bathing outdoors

The back of the photo said this woman was an actress.

India Era WWII part 1

When my grandmother, "Mima", passed away March of last year, my family discovered a treasure trove of old photographs stored in a cardboard box on a shelf. A majority of the images are from the time she spent in India while serving with the Red Cross during WWII. I took on the task of scanning hundreds of photographs and storing them properly in an archive box. I'm amazed that the photos held up as well as they did since they spent years sitting in the Florida humidity with little protection. There were faint penciled notes on the back of many of the pictures, mostly stating where the photo was taken or a brief fact or opinion about the subject. Probably the most fascinating are the photos of my Mima herself, as a woman in her early 20s having the adventure of her young life. I especially love the pictures of her and my handsome grandfather, whom she met and fell in love with while in India.

I'd like to start sharing some of these images with you. The best place to start is probably with a few of my favorites.

Here is Mima with Grandpa looking very handsome in his uniform.

Mima showing off her adventurous side




I love this one of Mima with her camera. Mima and Grandpa are responsible for my love of photography.

Mima with a very silly, happy friend.

I'll be sharing more photographs later. I'd like to parcel them out in small servings instead of one giant photo post.

Another Blog! Oh Boy.

Well, OK. I'm starting a blog. Why do I feel the need to set up yet another "thingie" on the internet? Well, facebook is nice and all but it just doesn't cut it when I have something to say that is more than just a quick blurb about my life or a link I find worth sharing. Anything more in depth I share tends to get lost in the stream of status updates. My Livejournal account tends to be an outlet for those times I need to be more candid about my life and thoughts, since I can make my posts there "friends-only".

So, here I go. I suspect I'll mostly be rambling about photography, music and food. If you like one or more of those things, feel free to keep reading.