The world's most unusual homes

Picture shows garden gnomes in front of a handmade house at a private garden in Lindau at lake Constance. The first garden gnomes were introduced to the United Kingdom in 1847 by Sir Charles Isham, when he brought 21 terracotta figures back from a trip to Germany. Garden gnomes are a popular accessory in many German gardens



A girl peers through a garden gnomes house window at a private garden in Lindau at lake Constance.



Craftsman Evgeny Smolik walks through the richly ornamented gates of his house in the Siberian village of Irbeyskoe some 180 km (112 miles) east of Krasnoyarsk. Smolik, a self-educated craftsman, adorned his 19th century village house and its interior with a wide range of wood carvings and hand crafted furniture in fantasy designs that are inspired by the traditional Russian Lubok print, surrealism, fairy tales and his personal sense of humour.



A cat sits on a post in front of Evgeny Smolik's house



A tourist walks to a yurt in Tengeri Desert, on the outskirts of Zhongwei, China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.



A man walks after praying outside a floating shack on a fish farm on the delta of the Nile River.



Potential buyers stand with an agent on the balcony of a three-bedroom home made from four old shipping containers in Sydney. The two-storey mobile home also includes two bathrooms, timber floors, air-conditioning, a kitchen, laundry, balcony and sewage treatment tank, which can be pulled apart in less than a day for ease of transportation.



Agent Bob Allan walks through the three-bedroom home made from shipping containers.



A woman from the ethnic Hazara minority stands in front of her cave home in Bamiyan, some 240 km (150 miles) northwest of Kabul.



A worker decorates a house with ceramic chips in Tianjin. The house cost some 500 million yuan ($65 million) to build and contains more than 400 million pieces of porcelain.



A lavatory-shaped home is seen in this computer graphic image released in Seoul.



Thierry Atta sweeps the courtyard of his house built in the shape of a crocodile in Ivory Coast's capital Abidjan.



A view of about 70 domes houses, which were built by U.S. based Domes for the World, for villagers who lost their houses to an earthquake in Sumberharjo village, near Indonesia's ancient city of Yogyakarta.



General view of a tree-house in Le Pian Medoc, southwestern France.



Brazilian artists Tiago Primo (top) and his brother Gabriel hang out at a wall in Rio de Janeiro. The bizarre vertical "house" built on a climbing wall by the artists has been drawing the attention of thousands who walk by the installation in the city's downtown neighbourhood.



A general view shows homes in the village of Kandovan, 650 km northwest of Tehran. Kandovan is a village where homes are dug out of the rock formations in the foothills of the Sahand mountain.



A house partially built in the shape of an airplane is seen in Abuja.



Zhao Zhenli, 54, stands at the entrance to his cave where he lives in Gao Ling at the outskirts of Xi'an at Northwest China's Shaanxi province. The caves were dug and still in use for residential purposes since at least 200 years ago, a local resident said.



Shi Hao, 17, watches television in the cave where he lives in Gao Ling at the outskirts of Xi'an in Shaanxi province.



Residents climb into their houses atop gravestones inside a cemetery in Manila. Many poor urban dwellers make their homes in public cemeteries, converting abandoned tombs and mausoleums into houses.



Dolores Cruz watches television inside her makeshift house next to a tomb inside a cemetery in Manila.



A Romanian boy looks at a flood-damaged house in the village of Agas, 330km northeast of Bucharest.



Chen Yu prepares supper as his wife Zhang sits on the bed at home, in a waste cellar used to store vegetables in Changchun.



A Kosovo Albanian child sits outside his grandfather's house with a car door used for a window in Pristina.

Reliance Industries Q2 net profit rises 28 percent

New Delhi, Oct 30 (IANS) Reliance Industries Saturday reported a 28 percent rise in net profit for the second quarter ended Sep 30 at Rs.4,923 crore as against Rs.3,852 crore earned during the like period of the last fiscal.

The total income during the July-September quarter increased 22.5 percent to Rs.58,151 crore from Rs.47,476 crore during the corresponding period of the previous year, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The total expenses of the company for the quarter under review stood at Rs.51,460 crore from Rs.42,063 crore during the like period last fiscal.

At the Bombay Stock Exchange, the shares of the company were up 1.18 percent to trade at Rs.1,095.80.

©Indo-Asian News Service

Sri Lanka thrash Australia

Australian captain Michael Clarke again failed with the bat as his side lost their first Twenty20 game at home in their one-off international against Sri Lanka at the WACA Ground in Perth on Sunday.



After winning the toss and batting first, the home side featuring only four players expected to play key roles in the upcoming Ashes series, struggled to 8-133, after slumping to 5-43 in the 11th over.

Sri Lanka cruised to 3-133 in reply, winning with 21 balls to spare, inflicting Australia's first home defeat in 11 matches.

Clarke went into the game under pressure to retain his spot in the Australian side in the shortest form of the game, as he is averaging just over 20 in the format.

He promoted himself to the top of the order and the move very nearly backfired on the second ball he faced, with an inside edge just missing the stumps.

Clarke should then have been run out on two, when he was sent back by strike Dave Warner and was well out of his ground as the throw by Tillakaratne Dilshan from close range somehow missed.

The 29-year-old briefly looked as if he would capitalise on the good fortune, hitting Dilhara Fernando through mid-wicket for four, before lofting Muttiah Muralitharan, playing his last game in Perth, down the ground for six in the next over.



But on 16, his luck ran out when he lobbed a mistimed drive off Thisara Perera (2-22) down to long on, where a back-pedalling Dilhara Fernando -- who had started the Australian rot when he had Warner caught at mid-off for two - misjudged the flight of the ball but stuck out his right hand to cleanly snare a remarkable catch.

Clarke had faced 19 balls, and his departure left the home side struggling at 2-22.

It got much worse though, with Perera then claiming Test opener Shane Watson for four and David Hussey (7) and Cameron White (8) both going cheaply as Australia collapsed to 5-43.

Brad Haddin (35) and Steven Smith (34) then came to the rescue, their 66-run partnership at least giving Australia a modestly competitive total to defend, before both fell in quick succession to Suraj Randiv, who impressed with 3-25 with his off-spinners.

The Sri Lankans had few problems overhauling the total, with captain Kumar Sangakkara unbeaten on 44 and Dilshan making 41.

Source: Indian Express

Delhi to have six new Metro lines

New Delhi: Delhi is expected to get additional 108 km of Metro lines in Phase III with the government suggesting two more lines to the six already planned. While the six new lines will be around 69 km long, the two lines suggested by Delhi government will be 39 km long. The Delhi Metro will now start preparing detailed projects on the two new suggested lines.



The government has suggested an Outer Ring Road route connecting Badli with Sector 18 in Noida through Uttam Nagar, Dhaula Kuan and GK II. Since this line is a completely new proposal, the DMRC will have to prepare a detailed project report of the route.

The other modification suggested is a 7-km link connecting Rajouri Garden to Dhaula Kuan. The Delhi Metro had proposed two corridors -- Rajouri Garden to Mukundpur and Dhaula Kuan to Anand Vihar -- both of which have been approved by the Cabinet, which suggested that both corridors be linked, said the officials .

The government has also asked the DMRC to reconsider the proposed Ashok Park-Delhi Gate corridor as two Metro corridors already run parallel to this and a light rail transit system is being planned on the same route. "We have asked the DMRC to reconsider this route. We feel that this corridor can be avoided as there are lines feeding this area. However, this is only a suggestion and the DMRC can re-examine it," Transport Commissioner and Secretary R K Verma told (Indian Express) Newsline.

The Dwarka Sector 9 to Noida/ Anand Vihar line and Inderlok-Mundka line run parallel to this proposed corridor. But sources said the new line was proposed as this has been identified as a densely populated area with high ridership possibilities.




Though the corridors proposed by the DMRC and the suggestions made by the Transport department were approved by the Cabinet on October 11, the DMRC received the notification on approvals and changes last Wednesday. DMRC Director (Projects) Kumar Keshav said, "We have received the suggestions and are looking into them. A detailed project report has to be done on the new lines suggested by the government."

Sources said that Delhi Metro officials were largely in agreement with the changes proposed. The link from Rajouri Garden to Dhaula Kuan was to be considered at a later stage by DMRC and hence wasn't proposed for the initial Phase III lines. However, with the government insisting that the line be considered, DMRC has been in agreement with the decision.

Meanwhile, geo-technical and topographical surveys are being conducted for the Central Secretariat-ITO and Jahangirpuri-Badli corridors which are expected to be expedited first in line. All the lines, however, have to go through Cabinet approvals once again after the routes are finalised and then through the Group of Ministers, following which the funding will be decided.

Source: The Indian Express

Master the art of living

Stress results from a wrong definition of life. For most people life stands for 'Living in Fear Everyday'. Insecurities and fears lead you to ignore the positives leading to a loss of self-belief. The way out of this negative spiral is to change the definition of life to 'Living in Freedom Everyday'.



By making the right choices, you attract positive people and opportunities. Given our busy schedules, it might not always be possible to pursue any single form of wellness. But you can make small changes from various forms. Motivational speaker and life coach Santosh Joshi gives some easily do-able tips.

In touch with your inner self

Master this simple meditation technique. You can do this while travelling in a bus, train or flight, or even at work. And you only need 15 minutes.

- Sit in a comfortable chair.
- Take a few deep breaths. Focus on the breath going in and out.
- Imagine that your whole body, every pore and cell is breathing. (This helps draw cosmic energy.)




Imbibe the power of music

Sound vibrations stir our inner being. Play spiritual music, hymns and chants as and when you can. Listen to such music while working out or jogging; your mind wouldn't wander then.



Be around nature

Invest in making your living zone a green area by planting trees. Try and sign up for nature walks once in a while. Else, try and walk barefoot every day for 15 minutes at your nearest park. It's a simple way to connect with nature. The earth element has the capacity to take away negativity.



Have vibrant colours around

Colour therapy is getting popular by the day. Colours emit vibrations that affect our psyche. Eg: Yellow gives confidence, red signifies security, orange signifies emotional balance and blue improves communication and intuition. Explore its benefits in daily life. Change your drapes, bed sheets, pillow covers, etc. with primary colours or any colour that makes you happy. Light coloured candles. Wear more vibrant hues. Choose outfits depending on the way you want to project yourself.



Indulge in some laughter therapy

No need to join a laughter club, just try and have a good laugh at least 10 minutes a day. It opens up blocked energy patterns, releases feel-good hormones and is even good for certain aches and pains. So rent your favourite DVDs or comedy shows and laugh out loud.



Energise your house

Light a candle or diya every morning and evening. Fire has capacity to burn negative energies. Fill your house with fragrance and aromas that relax the mind. Try and have a water body. Also have open windows; the flow of air takes away negative energy.



Inner child therapy

Each person has an inner child within him/her. Do things you used to as a child -- be it clay modeling, doodling, drawing with colour pencils/crayons or even jumping into a puddle. They help you get rid of inhibitions and help you explore new areas of life.



Press the right points

Based on acupressure, stimulating pressure points reduces stress. During stress, immediately press points around your eyes, your ear lobes and the point between your nose and lips. These points have a direct connection to nerve endings that control feelings of unease. Also keep pressing your palms to get immediate relief.



Healthy lifestyle

The point about good sleep, healthy diet and exercise cannot be emphasised enough. If you can't stick to a routine, at least adopt a few good practices. Like having a 'fruit day' occasionally to cleanse the body. Or drinking enough water to flush out toxins. Another tip is to count your steps while walking, it improves concentration. Finally, have gratitude; gratitude fills us with positive energy.



Clear clutter

Clear your home, work station and even your car. Most importantly, clear your mind. Clutter creates blocks in the flow of energy within you. When these blocks remain for long, it spreads all over your body and mind leaving you in a forever irritable and snappy mood.

Source: Circle2Corner.com

Gibbs book opens a pandora's box in SA cricket

Johannesburg: Stories about sexual orgies, marijuana sessions and the dominance of a group of senior players in South Africa cricket squad have been exposed in out of favour opener Herschelle Gibbs' autobiography, which is releasing on Monday.



The weekly 'Sunday Times' carried excerpts from Gibbs' book, a day before its release.

The book graphically details the sexual exploits of the controversial player who has been in trouble for his late night binges and drunken driving charges, as well as leading players in smoking pot in the West Indies.

Gibbs, who just last week confessed that he would have to work very hard to return to the national squad, could also incur the ire of fellow players after writing in his book that the Proteas are dominated by a clique of older players.

"The team has been criticised for being run by a group of senior players - Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis, Mark Boucher, and more recently, AB de Villiers," Gibbs wrote.



"This inner circle splits the team in two and makes any chance of developing true team spirit among the Proteas impossible," said Gibbs, adding that former national coach Mickey Arthur had often bowed to them after trying to take them on.

"Simply put, without Graeme's backing, he didn't have much influence over the guys. In the end, Graeme was simply too powerful."

Gibbs also disclosed how the squad never regained its spirit after former captain Hansie Cronje, now deceased, got a life ban following his admission to match-fixing that was first uncovered by Indian authorities.

"Things were never the same. I sympathised with Shaun Pollock (who took over from Cronje). He had a tough time filling Hansie's shoes and gluing the team together. But the Proteas never had that same togetherness under Polly (Pollock). He never socialised with boys too much."

Gibbs was one of the co-accused with Cronje and Henry Williams, after allegations of match-fixing in Nagpur. He was suspended for six months after that, but still respects the late South African skipper.



"(Despite) the cloud that hangs over his legacy, I can tell you that I've never played with anyone who possessed such a die-hard attitude to winning," Gibbs stated.

The poor performance of the national team in recent years also came under fire from Gibbs, who was himself blamed for contributing to that.

"We've got to admit that the Proteas have underachieved in international cricket over the past decade."

Gibbs summed up his own indiscretions, which included a confession to pulling out some of his wife Tenielle Povey's hair while he was driving during a fight.

"As explosive as my batting can be, it hasn't quite matched the pyrotechnics of my life off the field," Gibbs wrote.

Source: PTI

Making of 'Endhiran'