Time Travels Ltd.

  Tungrymbai (Fermented Soyabean) Have you ever wondered why a dog's sense of smell is so good?  If you were to ask this question to anyone in Meghalaya (the wettest place on earth), he/she would attribute it to 'Tungrymbai' or fermented beans! Tungrymbai is a popular indigenous Khasi food prepared by fermenting soybeans. Fermented beans is actually a popular food item in the culinary tradition of Northeast India. It is known as 'kinema' among the Nepalis of Darjeeling and Sikkim, 'axone' among the Sema Nagas and 'hawaijar' in Manipur.  For fermenting the Khasi Tungrymbai, dried beans are washed and boiled for about 1-3 hours till they soften. The beans are then placed on fresh salem(phrynium pubinerve Bl) leaves spread inside a bamboo basket. The beans are wrapped, and hot red charcoals put on top of it. The beans are covered again with another layer of salem. Finally, the beans are put...

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Planet Cancer

A Future without Buzz |Rock Bee Hunting in the Saramati Range of Nagaland | Honey Bees pollinate about one third of our food crops including our flowers and fodders. It has been celebrated in art and culture throughout history for providing us with this valuable service. Belonging to the genus ‘apis’ scientists estimate there are thousands of species of bees in the world. The most common to us being Apis Cerena, Apis Mellifera, Apis Florea and Apis Dorsata/Laborosia. The species that is the focus of this piece is the species A.Dorsata/Laborosia or commonly referred to as ‘rock-bees’ Rock Bee Hunting: An Ancient Art Rock bees or the giant Himalayan honey bee as it is called is mostly found in the tropical and sub-tropical forest and native to South Asia and South-East Asia . As the name suggests they hang and build their hives in some of the tallest mountains and giant cliff hangings. Most of the rock bee sites tend to be located in areas of high altitude approximat...