Imagination may be my favorite personal asset...

Reading is the best way to pass time.  I love it.  I am so glad Hemben and Daxaben used to take us to Tom Green County Library.

My latest read (Thanks Rameshbhai!)...

Istanbul it is...

Yesterday, we pre-booked flights from Nairobi to Istanbul and then Istanbul to DC (both direct flights!) on Turkish Airlines.  Get this-we have seven days to review (the price is locked in now) and then can book it with our credit card.  AND we can cancel any time before the flight for NO FEE!  And we will break even on the cost so it doesn't cost us any more to make this detour around Cairo.

So do not fear family and friends...we will not walk like Egyptians this year (though it is a HUGE disappointment).  But, Srin was convinced by my dire need to see Turkey when he found this ticket.  YAY!  So we will end this amazing journey with another unique location. 

Bombay Rocks!

I love Mumbai!  I want to move here.

We are staying with Ramesh, who is Srin's grad school roommate and certainly one of his best friends.  He is now a professor at Indian Institute of Technology.  Here we are at the Gateway of India, which is where George V and Queen Mary set foot on Indian soil.

 Behind us is the Taj Hotel, one of the attacked hotels (the other was Oberoi) in 2008. 

Farewell Bengaluru...

It's been a good trip overall. Mostly centered around family, it was a time to get to know the cousins, aunties, and uncles. The Century and Cricket clubs gave for good times. And a nice lunch with Srin's mom's side at MTR (a family tradition apparently) rounded out the trip.

On our last night at the Cricket Club in Bengaluru with Vathsa, et al

Sprinkled with bits of shopping (4 or 5 shirts and counting) in 4th block, 9th block, Mahatma Ghandi (MG) Road, and Brigade Road, Bangalore is a bustling city perfect for young and old alike. The weather is phenomenal right now but the traffic stinks.

Uncle's side of the family (mostly all of them)

Some of Auntie's side (Her brother Raja Uncle and his family)

There are rich and there are poor. Developed and developing. Here we checked out the Shastry School for the Deaf and Dumb. As promised on our honeyfood, part of our donation went to this school. They house 35 of their 130 students who cannot hear or speak. They provide education, supplies, clothing, hearing aids, and food free of charge to the kids and their families. In fact, Asha Seattle and Arizona have supported them for 10 years now. One of Srin's uncles set us up to talk to them and we are honored to help them out. Let's hope for some change in this world.

Here are some shots of South India that intrigued me...



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Mysore Majesty...

Well, I have had my fair bit of South India, huh?

 Mmmm...Yummy fresh young coconut.  I love how they cut part of the shell to use as a spoon.  So resourceful.

So much has happened these last few days that I can hardly contain it to one blog. Let's see...where should I start? The government and its laissez-faire-attitude-on-crack? The roads and their ability to make body parts bounce as if detached from whole? The famous Maddur Vadas? I salivate at the thought.

Let's actually start with Mysore silk. Ooooh silk...saris...shopping. You see-this small town that used to be its own state prior to Independence is famous for many reasons. First and foremost for me is their silk. Okay and the royalty. Back when India was ruled by rajas (kings), Mysore was home to the royal family in the Mysore Palace.

 

Moving on...Let's discuss how we finally got to Mysore. Being a fluid plan, it took days to decide among the choices: Kerala was almost a surefire (that was my first choice) until we thought about Chennai, Pondicherry, and of course our eventual choice, Mysore. After numerous dicussion and a walk in Lalbahg, Mysore was chosen (Srin's maternal uncle lives there so that was a plus). The decisions don't end of course! Then there was Bandipur, Mercara, and Kabini parks. Ask one person and get one recommendation. Ask another and get another recommendation (and a stark reason why the previous recommendation was totally the wrong one). Eventually, we landed on Bandipur National Park. Next decision was what time to get there. Go early to get your safari tickets and then hang out-Sounds like great advice right? We check the web and sure enough-there is a safari at 5:00 at 100 Rs/person for the bus and a personal jeep for 1750 Rs. Great-Jeep it is and we will get there around noon, get our tickets, and eat/walk.

This is where the government discussion begins. Ticket counter is closed from 9AM-4PM (prime hours huh?). Nowhere is the information made available except in front of the counter. There is no jeep safari either. Oh and no elephant rides any more (like their website says). Oh and if you do want a jeep, they will "find one" for a mere 5000 Rs. Oh and the entrance rate tripled two days prior-of course the website is out of date. Not that I mind paying-I mean I am all about stimulating the economy as I did in Vietnam and Cambodia. It's just so INDIA!

Nevertheless, we waited our 5 hours and got tickets and went forest-bound in hopes of seeing India's wildlife. We saw one wild elephant, sambars, deer, peacocks, and monkeys.

The day before brought us to KRS, where the city puts on a light show and a dancing fountain. It was very pretty and well kept. Of course, apparently it is not as good as it was in 1986, when there were more lights, etc.

Combined with shopping for a gift of a sari from my in-laws and a visit to Srin's uncle's place, that was our trip to Mysore.

We like to describe our entire trip as a temple tour since we saw so many.  This was our last one at dusk. 

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Top 10 Thoughts from My Trip to Tirupithi...

Tirupithi in Andhra Pradesh is home to apparently the world's largest pilgramage site of any religion. The Balaji/Venkateswara Temple attracts tens of thousands (100,000 to be exact) of devotees a day, bringing in earnest donations to Him in faith that wishes and hopes are granted. To my amazement, donations amount to a whopping 3 croes per DAY! That's $600,000 USD. The line to spend 3 seconds in prayer takes up to 24 hours, winding through four levels of "Q" space. If you want a true Indian experience, go to Tirupithi. You will leave behind personal space and take new meaning to "push and be pushed".

And if you do make the pilgramage, follow this advice. Don't say someone did not warn you.

1. Go with a local if you can. If not, go with someone who knows the local language Telegu. At the least, know Hindi. English, Gujarati, Kannada, etc will not suffice. Lucky for us, Srinidhi's dad speaks Telegu, Kannada, Hindi, and English. Phew.

2. The ride can take 7 hours from Bangalore. Don't let anyone tell you 5 hours maximum. Sure, traffic in Bangalore and one small break account for just over an hour but that still misses the mark.

3. It's hot even in winter but cool at nights. Come prepared. But don't wear shorts unless you are not of Indian origin. Western people can get away with it probably (even the sari warning below...that is not for you). Conservative in the States is apparently liberal to them...

4. Get over your fear of foot-fungus-ingrown-toenail-nastiness. You will walk on the same ground barefoot as millions of others, with spit, glass, rocks, and all.

5. If you are female, just wear a sari. Don't mind the rules. Even if they say it is not required. You will avoid questions (or remarks...) such as 'what world did she come from' in languages that may as well be Lao to your ears. And if you choose to defy my advice, just don't wear a dhoti in place of an ohdni (dupatta). It's just wrong. The Goddess of Fashion will judge you.

6. Don't forget to look straight ahead when the pushing gets real (and spectacular). It will be your only shot at seeing Him. After all, that is why you came. And I would hedge my bets you may not come again.

7. Always (always) test your driver's phone and always be sure HE is also topped off. Sure-it is not your job but you will be the one stuck looking for him in a sea of thousands looking just like him. And most likely, your stuff will be in his car.

8. Oh yeah, don't forget to write down his license plate number. Apparently, some Indian police may care just enough to help you find him. Not that we would know any of this from personal experience.... Right?

9. Enjoy the food. It is yummy and cheap.

10. Enjoy the view up and down the hill to the temple. It's amazing. Rolling hills...aerial views of the city...cleanliness...good roads.

Probably my most striking experience was seeing (actually feeling) that people really believe. I mean the faith was palpable. Transfixing almost. Even women readily give their hair (for real...wicked bald) when wishes come true. These people don't know I am watching...this was not an act. They truly have a faith that I have yet to see in the Western world (even having grown up in part of the Bible belt). And it is a benign faith. They do not wish to make you or me believe. They simply believe.

For the record, we only spent 2 hours in line. Thank you to not going during the weekend and paying the max of 300 Rs/person (~$6.50-$7 USD). I may not come again, but I am glad I came once. It seems to be the type of pilgramage people like us make only once in a lifetime.

I leave you with one last thought. Why may I not use my camera to capture the temple? I am pretty sure God is fine with being photographed... Thus, I have no artistic pictures to share with you. Only my sarcasm and written experiences.

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In Mumbai...

And thoroughly enjoying myself.  More posts about Bangalore, Tirupiti (Andra Pradesh), and Mysore to come.  As for Egypt, we considered so many choices:  Morocco, Greece, and Turkey topping off the charts.  I plan to run the Athens marathon so my choice is Turkey (Casablanca was ridiculously expensive).  The good news?  Even if Egypt Air won't refund us (right now, they are only offering refunds for tickets booked until February 28th and ours is March 19th), we have REFUNDABLE tickets!  Yes!  So it would only cost $200 total to cancel.  Phew.  Will update you all soon!

In the meantime, here is my latest read (Thank you Sathe!).  I totally recommend it-reading it felt like reading my blog almost, except I felt less accomplished.