Newsflash!

Tomorrow's episode of Indian Idol may or may not be crashed by Cory He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, infamous party pest.

Today I went to the Taj...

No not the Taj Mahal, the Taj Mahal Hotel. It was built by a Parsi after he was refused entry to the previous most luxurious hotel in Bombay for being a 'native'. It is insanely opulent. I was eyeing out the toilets, thinking that a family of 20 could happily live in there. A man turned the tap on for me, squirted some soap into my hands, and gave me a towel when I'd finished washing my hands. There's a pool. I ordered an expresso, a chocolate brownie with a scoop of ice cream, and a bottle of mineral water. It came to 900 rupees (only $27, but I could eat for 10 days on that). It's one of those places, like the slums, that you just don't take pictures of while you're there. Maybe cause it's uncool, maybe cause it's more of a state-of-mind experience.

Some random pics taken in Mumbai...

Mmm 10 rupees (30c) for a plate of fruit, artfully crafted:


The Bombay Stock Exchange, where 3/4 the money in India is made. Note the red swastika on the white shade sculpture thingy.


Random mosque, taken from a taxi:


Another cricket shot on the Oval Maidan:


Mutated horns on a buffalo. Most of the 'beef' is from buffalo, they're kept in huge farms in the city and only used for meat once they die naturally. So now I'm a vegetarian.


Re: the wheelbarrow discussion earlier. Note this is a very light load, this guy was running down the street. I've seen them piled as high as a bus with goods.


A picture of a picture of an awesome float at a festival, wish I'd been there. Ganesha King Kong's friend!


My Van Gogh puzzle picture, taken in the Hanging Gardens. It's a happy little water-spout:

I'm trying to find my father's birth certificate

I ended up in this office, one in a whole building exactly the same. They said it could take up to a month, and I believe it.


It kind of reminds me of the filing system at my old work. Speaking of work, looks like they might have found a replacement:

Answer to 'yesterday's' quiz.

Yes, it was the vegemite. I wasn't even craving it that much until I saw it. I took it back to the hostel and gave everyone a try, the consensus was of course that it was disgusting. I left it in the common room and the next day it was gone! I thought if anything would be safe it would be that. Who would steal an Australian's vegemite? :(

While on the subject of national pride, here's a tattoo (de rigeur for backpackers) on my dorm-mate's back. Can you see what's wrong with it (I guess if he flexes his muscles he can simulate continental drift!)?

Does this look infected? Pt 2

Some more pics to track the progress of the disease.


Notice how the two middle blisters have joined up here. Any guesses on whether the third will join up too?

Don't mean to offend you, but...

Who are you Karin and Earl?

Does this look infected?

Staying at the Salvation Army can be fun, but you do invite all sorts of the wildlife into your bed (yes I'm on antibiotics).

Indian Idol, episode 1

Time for a new series called Indian Idol. Every now and then I will show a new Indian Idol, and at the end you get to vote for the best one.

First off, a snazzy little number that gave me the idea in a chemist. I was his first sale of the day, he took my money and kind of offered it in thanks to the Idol.


Next up, a lovely little shrine in a laundromat (well, doorway in an alley) that wanted twice as much money than they should have ("no sir, this is special wash").


To round off this episode and to give you some ideas for your own idol, this was on display in a taxi this morning. Note the slightly wilted flower.


See you all next time!

Quiz! Quiz!

This is a little shop in Crawford Market. Can you see I was buying here?

Answer tomorrow.

Cricket in India

Just when you think you get a handle on Indians and start to enjoy yourself, they throw something else in your face.

I paid 500 rupees for a seat at the match between the Mumbai Indians and the Bangalore Royal Challengers. My mistake was getting to Wank-a-day stadium 1/2 an hour before the match. Somehow about 1000 too many tickets were sold for the stand I was in. I had a seat number but there were no numbers on the benches. People who came late or couldn't get a seat were crammed into the aisles, moshpit style. Within five minutes my clothes were wet with sweat. I couldn't move at all. Outside the crowd somewhere, a cricket match was going on. My glasses started fogging up.

At half time I went to a drinks stand. This was the first time in a while I felt, well, superior. There were about 10 people in 'queue' at any one time, all desperately pushing and shoving to hold out their money to the drinks guy, yelling out "boss, boss" and making a kissy noise with their lips which I think is a call for attention in India. They'd come out soaked, sweaty, sore and tired.

Cricket in India is insane, people are over the top, go see a match but get there early.

Tips on haggling in India No. 2

Sometimes bargaining can be fun. As long as you know what something should cost, and you're in the mood for it, it's a nice little game to respectfully play with the seller. It's a game, and there are rules, and you get better and enjoy it more as you go along. Basically, they start too high, you start too low, then you move towards what it should be. Like cricket, this can be over quickly or in 5 days. I'm getting pretty good at the short version of the game, but it takes time to build up stamina for a test match.

Mind you, I'm feeling prety good about myself for getting a good price for a shirt on the street without walking away hating myself or the seller, but then I left it in a cab. But I still feel good.

Still no time to post, but...

Keep an eye out for me at the cricket tonight, I'll be in the Tendulkar stand, not sure what I'll be wearing (maybe an Aussie shirt if I can get one?)

A little birdy tells me that today is Julia's birthday

So happy birthday Julia, congrats on making to being a teenager. Don't grow up too fast.

Some more pics of Gosh...

(courtesy of Michael the German Photographer)

Family resemblance:


At one with the world, or constipated?

Update to the Jodhpur march post...

to be found here. I finally uploaded the movies.

Just a thought...

Wouldn't it make more sense to have the wheel of the wheelbarrow directly under the tray, rather than at the end where it makes it harder to lift?

Also, did you know that Britain's WWII debt to the US was only fully repaid in 2006?

What's so funny 'bout peace love and understanding?

(rant)

Travelling around, you hear whispers of places to go from slightly dubious hippy types. "You must go to Hampi/Pushkar man, it's beautiful and untouched and so chilled".

I of course, avoid these places like the plague. If you think the average hippy at home is smug, wait till you meet the hippy in India. They're almost unbearable.

(/rant)

Love and Marriage

So in India, an arranged marriage works like this. Your parents will go back to your home town to find parents of girls of the same caste (and let's not get too snooty about this, substitute caste for class and we're pretty similar). If both sets of parents agree, a meeting is organised where the man and woman get to go off and have a bit of a chat for 10 minutes or so. You don't discuss personal matters, just favourite movies, books etc... (and let's not get too snooty about this, either, how deep is the average conversation in a bar?)

If both partners like the other, the wedding is on. If one of them doesn't like the other, they tell their parents and it's off. Women get as much of a say as men in this. The person who told me this went through 20 prospective partners before finding the one he married (who is very nice). Indian marriages, on the whole, work. Perhaps because they're relieved of the burden of being what they call 'love matches'.

At least, this is how it was described to me by a moderately wealthy and higher caste jewellery store owner.

Trains, Planes and Automobiles

(Stock photo. I haven't seen this happen on a train yet)

It's impossible to go hungry or thirsty in India, as long as you have money I guess. Even on trains, at every stop people will come on selling tidbits, full meals, water, chai, whatever.

Travelling on trains is also a great way to meet people. People are curious about what you do at home, why you're here, are you married, etc... and will happily share bits of their lives.

I met an Interpol agent with some bullet wounds, a guy who invited me to stay with his family in Tamil Nadu, and another guy that shared with me the details of his arranged marriage.

Now read on...

They're drilling for a mythical river...

in Haryana.

Bombay Calling...

On the most insane itinerary ever, I'm back in Bombay for a fortnight, before heading up to Rajasthan again to see some places that I missed before. There are some good reasons for these movements, but they are boring.

The reasons for my lack of updates in Goa are:

a) Nothing much happens on a beach
b) It's quite hard to blog without electricity

It's also quite hard to take photos, but I did manage these two before the batteries ran out:

Mexican stand off between Goan Kitten and his parents:


'Arty' (where 'arty' means pressing the sepia button on my camera) photo taken on the beach:


So so long. It was nice to know ya, Goa.

Quiz! Quiz!

While I'm in Bombay, since I've already done all the touristy things, should I:

a) Enrol in a Judo/Yoga/Hindi/exercise course?
b) Go to Bollywood again (this at least covers my costs)?
c) Hang around Parsi areas looking shifty?
d) Other...?

Some Camel College knowledge

The drivers' Chai Tea recipe:

Get some water boiling.
2 cups of milk
2 spoons of tea
Crushed cardamon & peppercorns
Add sugar to taste.

The Postman Always Calls Twice

In Palolem someone told me the only post office was in Chowdi, about a 20 minute, 100 rupee rickshaw ride away. I bought a heap of bags to sell when I get back to Hobart, and wanted to post them home as I was leaving the next day. So I lugged them up the beach to the rickshaw, but when I got to Chowdi all the shops were closed for lunchtime (it was 3pm!).

Anyway, I go into the Post Office, which was open, and a guy there says they are closed for the day, I have to go back to Palolem, there is a Post Office on the beach, but I will have to pay 200 rupees extra there. So back I go to the beach, stomping around for a while before I find it.

In the beach Post Office, there was the same guy to take my money. He made it back before I did. I felt like I was in a Little Britain sketch where if I went into the butcher's it would be the same guy too, unless the Post Office guy said he was out to lunch

Uncle Gosh

Meet Gosh, ex-monk with an eye for the ladies, a simple way of life and a habit of laying his hands on people and healing them. He spends the summer living at Palolem, doing yoga courses, reiki, 'healing' etc...

I present before the court two pieces of evidence:

Evidentiary fact no. 1:

Alex had an upset stomach his whole time in India, Gosh lays his hands on him and the next day his stomach returns to normal.

Evidentiary fact no. 2:

After spending 200 rupees for a yoga course and getting a bad back that lasts for 5 days (damn that sun salutation posture!), Gosh lays his hands on my back and within a few hours it's better.

Ladies and gentlement of the jury, I ask you to bear in mind that after being in India for a while you tend to get a bit strange, a bit open to ideas you would normally dismiss, a bit, well, hippie-ish.

The General Mindset of Palolem...

I was just checking my email when an English girl, in here with her buddies, asked the owner "how do you say 'hello' in Indian". She wanted to put it in her email to seem exotic.

Now, from previous eavesdropping I knew she'd been here for two weeks.

The guy asked if she wanted to know what 'hello' is in Konkani, the language in Goa, or maybe in Hindi. No, she wanted to know what it was in 'Indian'.

Two things. How could she have been here for two weeks and not know:

a) There is more than one language in India, and 'Indian' is not one of them
b) How to say 'hello' where she's been staying?

But then, that's what Palolem's like.