Acropolis is a Greek term, and refers generally to an elevated area in the centre of a city, acting as its focal point for cultural, religious, and civil activities. In particular, the term refers to the rocky hill at the centre of Athens, Greece, on which are located several ancient monuments, including the famous Parthenon, the temple for the Goddess …

You have no doubt heard stories about the wonderful endurance of camels plodding through the desert for days without a drink, living on the water stored in their humps. The claims for the camel’s endurance are often exaggerated but it is true that this animal can survive for several days without taking water. However, the camel does not fill its …

‘Jack of all trades, master of none’ is a figure of speech used with reference to a person who is competent with many skills but is not outstanding in any particular one. The phrase was in common use during the 1600s and was used as a term of praise. ‘Jack’ in those days was a generic term for ‘man’. Later, …

Tabla, Tambura and sitar have one thing common that they are all the traditional Indian Musical Instruments. Tabla is a drum, the sitar and tambura are stringed instruments.

The Spanish fiesta of San Joan dates back to the 14th century and has religious significance. The riders participating in it or caixers as they are called represent the social strata of the church, nobility, craftsmen and country people (mostly farmers).

The best thing to do is walk slowly away and not bother it. These animals don’t see you as a food item and they won’t see you as a threat if you leave them alone.

Charts are maps of the sea. As maps show distances, roads and railways, hills and woods and many other features of the land, so charts show distances over stretches of sea, the depth of the water round coasts, dangers to shipping such as rocks and sand banks, tidal currents, the position of lighthouses, marker buoys and other information vital to …

The mammoth fed entirely on plants. In other words, it was a herbivore – like its smaller relative, the elephant of today. These colossal animals, whose name has become another word for hugeness, must have needed a great amount of vegetation to keep themselves alive. In a broad sense, the name mammoth has come to be applied to any extinct …

Australia is the only continent where venomous snake species outnumber non-venomous ones. Australia is also home to the deadly box jelly and blue-ringed octopus.

∼ Varsha Sewlal