Why this blog is called "Gallimaufry".

gal-uh-MAW-free\, noun.

Originally meaning "a hash of various kinds of meats," "gallimaufry" comes from French galimafrée; in Old French, from the word galer, "to rejoice, to make merry"; in old English: gala + mafrer: "to eat much," and from Medieval Dutch maffelen: "to open one's mouth wide."

It's also a dish made by hashing up odds and ends of food; a heterogeneous mixture; a hodge-podge; a ragout; a confused jumble; a ridiculous medley; a promiscuous (!) assemblage of persons.

Those of you who know me, will, I’m sure, understand how well some of these phrases (barring the "promiscuous" bit!) fit me.

More importantly, this blog is an ode to my love for Shimla. I hope to show you this little town through my eyes. If you don't see too many people in it, forgive me, because I'm a little chary of turning this into a human zoo.

Stop by for a spell, look at my pictures, ask me questions about Shimla, if you wish. I shall try and answer them as best as I can. Let's be friends for a while....

8 May 2006

Yarrows


Home to several generations of officers from the Indian Audit and Accounts Service, Yarrows was probably so christened by a very homesick Scotsman! The genesis of this building is shrouded in mystery, but its current and former inhabitants are fond of claiming that it was constructed in the 19th century, was home to the Finance Secretary to the Viceroy of India and sometime summer residence of the Jinnah family. The first resident was someone called Lowndes and the architect Sir Herbert Baker.
The original Yarrows lies in Inverness, the Loch of Yarrows being somewhere close to the town of Wick. The name Yarrows is thought to come from the Norse 'Yar-howe' meaning 'mound of the fish-traps'...

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Could this 1860s stereoview have been taken in Shimla? What do you think?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/15693951@N00/4678629695/

Geetali said...

Dear Anonymous friend, I'm floored! This is indeed a view of the path leading from Chaura Maidan (where Hotel Cecil is located) to beloved Yarrows.
I cannot thank you enough for sharing this link. Could you please tell me a bit more about its genesis? I'll be very grateful.

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