Yes, my favourite topic. Rainbows. Nature's greatest creation, or so I'd like to think. :P And this article is full of just that. Ever since I've come to Glasgow, I've seen many a rainbow. Which has made me come to believe that Glasgow is special. I've not seen so many rainbows since... ever! In school, we learned that rainbows were made up of 7 colours - ROYGBIV (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet) (and we had that mnemonic to remember: Roy Of York Gained Battle In Vain.) and in Bahasa Malaysia (merah, jingga, kuning, hijau, biru, indigo, ungu) (and the mnemonic we remembered for it in Malay was [don't laugh!]! :P Michael Jackson Killed His Brother In USA. [All the kids, unsurprisingly remembered our rainbow colours, henceforth in school.])

And just to inject a bit of science in this post for intellectual posterity ;) , here's a link to read more on how rainbows are formed. Rainbows and its basics. See, my posts are also good for the kids! :P

Right, enough of the rainbow rants... we all know what you've really come here for... the pictures!

this photo was taken by my friend, P, who's an avid photographer. Just had to share it with y'all. :)



A base of a German rainbow.Peer carefully at the pic, you can *just* about see it.



A better pic of that German rainbow. :) I took this picture!



I was pleasantly surprised when I woke up one Sunday morning and saw a rainbow in my room. I felt so blessed!



This was another (compact) rainbow I found in my room when I came home from class one day. I think it was formed from my rainbow pencil case (which you can see in the picture) but I'd like to think that it's something better than that. (Now you can see I like raibow colours a lot - even my pencil case si like that! :P



Divine rainbow light. Same rainbow but a closeup.



The day I saw a double rainbow. It was a good day, in spite of me feeling a little pensive that day.



The double rainbow closeup. I stood watching it until it faded away into the evening light.

The Lotos-Eaters

"Courage!" he said, and pointed toward the land,
"This mounting wave will roll us shoreward soon."
In the afternoon they came unto a land
In which it seemèd always afternoon.
All round the coast the languid air did swoon,
Breathing like one that hath a weary dream.
Full-faced above the valley stood the moon;
And, like a downward smoke, the slender stream
Along the cliff to fall and pause and fall did seem.


A land of streams! some, like a downward smoke,
Slow-dropping veils of thinnest lawn, did go;
And some through wavering lights and shadows broke,
Rolling a slumbrous sheet of foam below.
They saw the gleaming river seaward flow
From the inner land; far off, three mountaintops,
Three silent pinnacles of aged snow,
Stood sunset-flush'd; and, dew'd with showery drops,
Up-clomb the shadowy pine above the woven copse.


The charmèd sunset linger'd low adown
In the red West: through mountain clefts the dale
Was seen far inland, and the yellow down
Border'd with palm, and many a winding vale
And meadow, set with slender galingale;
A land where all things always seem'd the same!
And round about the keel with faces pale,
Dark faces pale against that rosy flame,
The mild-eyed melancholy Lotos-eaters came.


Branches they bore of that enchanted stem,
Laden with flower and fruit, whereof they gave
To each, but whoso did receive of them
And taste, to him the gushing of the wave
Far far away did seem to mourn and rave
On alien shores; and if his fellow spake,
His voice was thin, as voices from the grave;
And deep-asleep he seem'd, yet all awake,
And music in his ears his beating heart did make.


They sat them down upon the yellow sand,
Between the sun and moon upon the shore;
And sweet it was to dream of Fatherland,
Of child, and wife, and slave; but evermore
Most weary seem'd the sea, weary the oar,
Weary the wandering fields of barren foam,
Then some one said, "We will return no more";
And all at once they sang, "Our island home
Is far beyond the wave; we will no longer roam."

- Lord Alfred Tennyson