1-15-16
Accommodations in Bangalore were not nearly as enjoyable as our stay at Agastya, but not everything can go as planned. First thing in the morning, we packed our bags and headed onto the streets. Today was a day to be a tourist and enjoy the shops and sites of Bangalore. We started at Café Coffee Day, the Starbucks of Bangalore, and a place that we would encounter quite a few times throughout the day. Remember, we have to be careful where we eat, so at least here we know we are getting safe drinks. We made our first stop at a crafts store and I found a beautiful hand-made piece that I plan to use as a wall hanging. There were so many to pick from, hopefully you all like the one I picked… it was kinda early and I don’t exactly remember it haha.
Accommodations in Bangalore were not nearly as enjoyable as our stay at Agastya, but not everything can go as planned. First thing in the morning, we packed our bags and headed onto the streets. Today was a day to be a tourist and enjoy the shops and sites of Bangalore. We started at Café Coffee Day, the Starbucks of Bangalore, and a place that we would encounter quite a few times throughout the day. Remember, we have to be careful where we eat, so at least here we know we are getting safe drinks. We made our first stop at a crafts store and I found a beautiful hand-made piece that I plan to use as a wall hanging. There were so many to pick from, hopefully you all like the one I picked… it was kinda early and I don’t exactly remember it haha.
After a bit of wandering, we jumped in a car to take us to a few temples. Today is actually a holiday here, called Pongal. Pongal is a harvest festival, so many people decorate with sugar cane. A tradition of Pongal is to make rice and lentils and let the pot boil over. The dish ends up something very similar to the porridge that we ate at Agastya.
The first temple that we visited was the Bull Temple. First, you took your shoes off and left them outside. Then you walked in and some left their offerings to the large statue of the bull. It was a great time to be there because the Bull was grandly decorated with flowers. You then walk around the bull, some saying prayers at the back. When you reach the front, you can partake in the ritual of putting dye on your forehead (which you will see on most people many days). I decided to partake, although with my incredible lack of experience in putting the dye on my face made a less than beautiful little mark. But hey, I tried. On the way out, there are many people offering the traditional food that I had mentioned. |
We then went into the neighboring temple for Ganesha, the Hindu God with an elephant head. Inside, there were lots of people lined up to visit the deity. We went around the temple as well. They were pretty plain from the back, but the front and main area was nicely decorated. Outside, there were shrines for the other local deities who’s temple this wasn’t. Siddhartan explained that all of the local deities have their own temple with a shrine to all of the others. The experience was really great. While I felt awkward interrupting people’s prayers, I feel we saw a very good representation of the religion and temples in this area, especially since it is a holiday.
We headed back into the city to go to a mall for lunch. We had a traditional Thali lunch, which is from Gujarat, which is actually the state that the Ahmedabad University students are from. This is an experience that you would never get in America. There was no ordering. You sat down to a steel plate with lots of little silver bowls on it. As the meal went on, they filled each of those bowls and gave you more little plates with items on it, sauces and breads. The breads were actually coming hot out of the oven. The food was an arrangement of vegetarian dishes that represented the area. This included everything from curry dishes to something similar to a latke to desserts. It was all delicious and an insanely fun meal.
We went down a few flights and made it to FabIndia, what Siddhartan calls the Gap of India. I picked out a tunic that I look forward to wearing. We went through a few more shops in the mall before heading to Commercial Street. This was an area of shops and street vendors with everything from sarees to tchotchkes. We did a whole range of shopping, getting gifts and looking around. We even ran into Subhash. I tried on a sari and it looked very pretty, but not enough to warrant getting an expensive outfit that I had no opportunity to wear. After a lovely rest at another Café Coffee Day, this time with Assam tea, we headed to MG street. Siddhartan and I decided to go on a bit of an adventure for some last minute items. This gave us a great opportunity to reflect on the trip, the team and everything involved. Lots of things went very well and of course there are places to improve. I have really enjoyed getting to know Siddhartan in the past few weeks. I feel like I know him as a friend and not just an advisor. He gave me some great advice for moving forward. I think we will be a well united and well matched team for the semester to come.
We then sat down with Mary, Makhimba and Anna for Indo-Chinese. It was quite different from American Chinese, almost a different cuisine. Also, this was the first time experiencing a fancy dinner in India. At fancy restaurants, they serve you. So as the dishes come out, they put a bit of each one onto your plate. I have to say, it was an overall lovely day. We got along very well, saw a lot of Bangalore and got in some great shopping. I treated myself a bit, yes, but you have to do that every so often, right? After quick showers, we got into cars and headed to the airport.
Thank you for following me on this journey. I think the trip was a big success and we are now ready to jump into the new semester with regained energy and a fresh batch of new experience and knowledge.