Living large.

This will probably be my last post from India, as I leave in around 20 hours. I will be glad to get away from this HEAT, it's really formidable. The papers all say this is one of the hottest summers India has experienced in a long time. Hello, Global Warming!

Last night S and I went to India Gate, and hung out in the park around that area, eating popsicles. After that, to the United Coffee House for a delish glass of Shiraz and some hot n' sour soup. Cold Kingfisher for S.

The hotel we're staying in now is v. swank - whoa, US$40 a night! - and the shower is actually nicer than the one I have at home. The area is dusty and dingy during the heat of the day, but at night - voila! It's like Vegas with the neon! I've become addicted to chicken Tikka - so good!

Right now, I miss my dog too much, and am getting very sad about leaving S until he arrives in the US. He's got his visa interview on May 10, so think good thoughts and positive energy, and pray to Ganesh and all that good stuff, or whatever you're into!

Today's itinerary is low key. Ride the Metro! Eat street food and then drink some gin n' tonics, sit on our balcony and spend some quality time with my suitcase. Namaste, peeps!

So, S is off somewhere - not surprising, as he knows every time I sit down at an internet cafe, he's got an hour to kill - so I'll post a few more random thoughts.

The World Cup is all over here. The World Cup of CRICKET, that is. Who know this sport was sooo popular. Last night was the big finale, with Australia going up against Sri Lanka. Team India got spanked hard and sent home a few weeks ago, but the cricket mania continues unabated. Inexplicable sport. S says he gets it, and has played it, and sports a small scar on his forehead from contact with a cricket bat (owwwwwww!!!) many years ago - but to me, it is utterly incomprehensible. Apparently, it goes on for hours and hours, and you get dinner . . . to me, that says "bad blind date", but I digress.

Hmmm, okay, where the hell is Sreenu? It's time for STREET FOOD! Ah, he appears!

madachaddah! KUSS EMEK! @*#&%(*&#%!!!! I swear in the languages of three nations!!!

These damn internet cafes and their decrepit PCs. I posted a great post the other night, dare I say it was EPIC, about our bad, annoying train ride and it seems the damn browser I was on didn't save it properly - did not respond to LJ's "restore saved data" even - and it did not post. Then, just now, I wrote another short synopsis and THAT was lost too!

I will not be denied! Suffice it to say that being woken up to change seats at 12 midnight, 3 AM does not make E a happy traveller. And repeating the same routine the next night makes me even MORE surly. Wasn't S's fault, thankfully, or he may have incurred my wrath - he was irritated by it as well. When he did incur a bit of my wrath was at one point during the night when he was partaking in a stupid North/South indian rivalry thing - pissing/shouting match - and I led him out of the vestibule, firmly by the hand, saying "You will stop this NOW. Unacceptable. I will not tolerate this low-class hooligan behavior. Here or anywhere. Do NOT get into a fight with these MORONS, or I swear I will go on to Delhi alone. I don't care what that elephant said, it takes a bigger man to walk away from it, GANDHI!"  Wisely, he was contrite, realized the wisdom of my words, and we had no further incident. Smart man!

SO, for the last eight hours of the train ride, we had fun, and I was able to concentrate on my book. No more ear piercing screams of misbehaving children, no more crazy religious fanatics from the north, no more ticket insanity.

Everyone! Friend my cousin, waswo, the cranky ol' poof *grins*, as he rants about the disgusting human race! Sure to be delicious, nasty FUN!

So now, we're in Delhi, winding up my trip. Went to Vedo last night, a very swank Indian restaurant, swank by even Chicago standards, with a lot of oldish, ornate mirrors and tiles on the walls and ceiling. We splashed out and got a Rs 1100 bottle (around US $20) of Marquis de Pompadour champagne and swished around like the Raj. Along with that, we shared a "tasting menu" (surprising amount of food!) for Rs 1175 that included some yum chicken soup (actually, that was the most delicious thing - the spices!), sea bass, lamb chop, small stuffed chicken breast, chapati, dhal, crispy okra and a large prawn. S and I shared it, and it was a great snack, all we wanted. Especially after the street food feast we'd had before of chicken tikka and a flat meat pie. YUM. I loves me some street food.

We've been hanging out a lot - after dark, when it's relatively cooler - in this fun shopping area of Delhi. Lots of bars, restaurants and shops - and the famous United Coffee House, where we spent a few pleasant hours, dishing and sipping wine (cold Kingfisher beer for S). And I broke down and got one more salawar khameez last night at the insane Palika Bazaar - souk al Hamidiyya concentrated into an underground rabbit warren of aisles - S gets the right price. From Rs1200 down to Rs 300 - so I got two! Really cool, and the only thing to swan around in, in this heat. Plus, the dupati, the long scarf has drama potential swishing into a restaurant.

My new pierced ears have healed up nicely, except for one which feels pinchy every now and then. I now have six pairs of earrings! Oh good, more reasons to shop . . . like I needed any of those.

Today, we're probably going to take the Metro train to Old Delhi and lurk around, maybe eat some street food. I'm pretty ready to get out of this HEAT and get to spring, which I hear is springing out all over in Chicago!

And my darling doggie . . . I hope he's not forsaken me for the friendly confines of the Dog Spa, a.k.a. my Mom and Dad's house, where he's spoiled rotten!

Forgot to mention this when it occured, but damn it was annoying!

We were staying in Hampi, and had ridden a rickshaw into Hospet to pick up the package of WxW's books that he'd sent to Sreenu. Everything was fine, we picked up the package as scheduled, and were on our way back to Hampi.

Suddenly, the rickshaw we were in was stopped . . . by the police! Che, an endearing little Indian kid that had been doing stuff for us - carrying luggage, etc. had been along for the ride, and he just jumped off the rickshaw and disappeared into the crowd. They made Sreenu get out, and there was a rapid fire exchange in Hindi. I wasn't sure at all what was going on. The cop made S open up the package that contained my cousin's books: "India Poems: The Photographs" (someone is selling it on Amazon.com for US$114!!) and the very first copy of "A Three MegaPixel Journal" the book I'd just designed in Udaipur. (available soon on Lulu.com!!) I got a little steamed when he split the shrink wrap on the brand new photography book, as it was S's to show the US consulate for his visa interview. "Please don't break the binding! There is nothing in there! Don't get the pages dirty, this is a brand new book!" I was really steamed . . . but I tried to keep it in check, because I knew they wouldn't make trouble for me, it'd be S that they'd harass if I got too snitty.

They looked all thru the books, and satisfied that they were, in fact . . . books - looked thru another box that Sreenu had. A little plastic lunchbox sized box, that had some old photos, negatives and some family pictures of his. As the cop pawed thru it - thru his meager family photos - some quite old, I became enraged . . . but held my tongue. He'd already interrogated me, asking me inexplicable and semi-humiliating questions "How do you know him?" jerking a finger to Sreenu - "Do you trust him? Do you have confidence in him? You know . . . he is Indian!" What ran thru my head was a million sarcastic answers (Noo! He's not INDIAN, is he, Officer Paneer Pakora? I thought he just had a really good tan!)  that would have had him cringing (because I AM my father's daughter), but I simply gave him simple answers, and put in my facsimile of an Indian head-wag for good measure. I didn't think the officer spoke English well enough for me to explain that I was in NO danger from Sreenu, in fact, it was he that had an ever vigilant eye on ME, and would probably stand in the path of an oncoming water buffalo to save my silly ass*.

While this was going on, a crowd was gathering - everyone had to peer into the rickshaw to see the steaming foreigner. I held my tongue with the cops, but I didn't have to with the curious onlookers. "Challo! Go away! Nothing to see here! Move on!" as I flicked my hand angrily at the people clustered around the rickshaw. One of the cops smacked a kid looking over his shoulder, and the crowd finally disbursed.

I was angry, though . . . to the point of wanting to get the cop's name and number and report him to the Embassy. I let it go, tho, since we were on our way in about 20 minutes. Che, the little Indian kid with the gorgeous, white-tooth supermodel smile hopped back into the rickshaw a block later, and we were back in Hampi. It made for good coversation back at the Shanti over beers with our collection of cool people.

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* in fact, he did this indirectly once. Leaving Hampi, we walked thru a field of placid looking water buffaloes on our way to the water taxi. Only, behind my back, they seemed to suddenly become very interested, like rampaging interested in my RED SUITCASE that I was dragging! Sreenu ran up, grabbed my suitcase and averted disaster, once again. But one came within a couple feet of hooking the suitcase! I swear, I should be a tester for wheeled luggage . . .

Dear Indian Guys and people in general;

Have you REALLY never seen a foreigner before?! Honestly?! Do I look that weird?! Do you need to stare that much? At me!? Look, I'm sweaty and dirty, and not even all that attractive most of the time, dressed in one of my baggy salawar khameezs'. Come on! Give it a damn rest! A quick glance is one thing, but you stare and stare and STARE until I want to throw something at you! 

Maybe because I live in a fairly multicultural city, I can't understand this. I see Indians, people of all races, weird headgear, ethnic costumes, crazy outfits. I might glance, or surruptitiously stare from behind sunglasses (esp. if the person is esp. beautiful!), but come on - at least be cool about it! A couple times, I've seen a guy's head whip around and stare while whizzing by on a motorcycle, and narrowly avoid a disaster.

I'm just NOT all that unusual, people. Please move on, nothing to see here . . . keep going.

*Phew* better now.

It is **115 degrees F** here today - 45C. Believe the technical term for that kind of heat is *&@#*&%^&*(#% HOT! I can't stand it anymore, and we're on to Delhi today. Yes, Delhi . . . Amritsar sadly has left the itinerary. Mostly because we were unable to get the special 10 rupee standby fare - needs a 10 day advance booking, and S didn't know that until he found it out today when we went to book. Oh well, no worries, I'll catch it next trip. 

So, we'll leave for Delhi today, on the train. 16 hours, in an AC sleeper car. It'll be great - I like the train, you can walk around, and don't feel as squeezed as in a bus, or confined as in a plane. Not upset that there's now 4-5 days to explore Delhi - since I'm all culture shocked and stuff, I should be able to handle the chaos of Delhi nicely. Plus, it seems there are some swank, Chicago-style eateries, it'll be a nice return to civilization. 

S and I are understandably getting a little morose about being separated in several days when I leave. It won't be so bad though, it looks like his visa will go through with no problems, and he'll be in the US quite soon - for sure in time for my cousin's photo show in Milwaukee. S got an invite from the Haggerty Museum, since he was such a huge part of WxW's photography. It's just been so much FUN running around with Sreenu the Amusing - he's patient and just simply handles everything with a smile and that distinctive Indian wag of the head (which I've been practicing, to S's amusement). There's been virtually no bad experiences on this trip - little annoyances to be sure, but nothing major. There's been mosquito bites, and me stumbling around on uneven curbs or whining about the heat, but no theft, major injury or anything of that nature to report. Bliss! And crazy jungle beer drinking, street food eating (S is as much of a fearless aficinado of the street delicacies as I am). I've definitely broadened my Indian food horizons.

Still in Hampi. S's passport arrives tomorrow, and the day after that a shipment of books from WxW that S needs for his application to the US embassy. We'll be moving on from here in a day or so, to Tamil Nadu, the US embassy there. After that, bigtime train ride to Amritsar, on to Delhi and home (for me, and S will follow me in a few weeks, insha'allah)

I'm ready to come home. Maybe a little homesick. I may feel differently after seeing Delhi, but right now, I'm tired of being hot and dirty. Miss my dog. Still love India, but I'll be a little more savvy next time I come here. 

It is SO HOT. I wilt around 2 PM and take naps on our porch. Then I wake up around 3 or so, in time for a snack and then in a couple hours, a beer. Hampi's beautiful, and we've been hanging on the porch with our cool neighbor, J, a Canadian guy from Vancouver which pepped me up a lot, having rapid fire English conversations. We met another cool couple here from Wyoming the other day, and hung with them for a pleasant couple of hours (if you guys are reading this, you NEED to open that Indian restaurant you were talking about, it'd be huge!)

Sreenu's out getting us an order of the World's Best Fish from the dirty little home-restaurant that I love. We'll have a beer, I'll feed the fish skins to the poor little pups that run around here and we'll snoooze.

The dogs. There are 4-5 little dogs that run around the Shanti guest house. A mother and two pups, the one-eyed dog and another brown dog. One of the pups has a bad case of mange, and is always scratching and whining. The other pup has an untreated broken leg, and I'm getting worried 'cos I've not seen him all day today. The one-eyed dog has taken up residence on our porch, and barks whenever anyone gets near the porch while I'm napping. The little guy uses his one good eye to maximum effect while I'm eating, and always gets a snack or two - hence his adoration. The mother dog is starving, and had a small case of mange. Her pups are still trying to nurse, but she's so skinny . . . argh. Must. Not. Think. About. Bringing. Stray. Dogs. Home. NO!

The tourist season is really winding down here in Hampi, and there are not many people left here. We watched a couple farmers harvest the rice in one of the paddies that is visible from our porch the other day, and that was pretty cool. All the rice that was harvested was piled on a tarp to dry out on the road . . . something I'd never seen before.

Yesterday, it POURED rain, like monsoon-quality rain. It was a beautiful thing, and I stayed out on the porch for the entire time 'cos it got so blissfully cool. Really refreshing. The heat has become so intense here that I can't stand to be out from the hours of about 1:30ish to 3:30 or so. Monsoon/rainy season starts soon, and that will be welcome. 

Ah, but I'm actually starting to think about my life back in Chicago again. That is, if I still have a life there, hahahaha!!! Maybe it's because they have a wood-burning stove here at the Shanti, and I've been eating the delish little pizzas that come out of it!

Still in the shanti of Hampi. Yesterday, we cruised around on the scooter a bit, which is always fun. Hung out with Sreenu's parents, and tonight we'll go there for dinner - his mother is cooking a giant fish. Didn't do much during the day, I took a nap in the hammock outside our room, while S was off getting stuff done for me. *grins* Finally got another box shipped off.

Last night, we were hanging at the Shanti, having a little drinkie before sleeping. I was watching all the little tree frogs and toads that hop around after dark. One large frog was sitting a little ways off, just outside a line of bushes. Suddenly, *slink* - a black snake slithered out, grabbed the frog and retreated. We heard a small *crunch* of frog bones, and that was it. Cobra!!! Sreenu called the guest house guy over, they discussed the snake in detail (or I think they did, 'cos they were speaking Kannada), and we got the "snake stick" should it reappear. Apparently male cobras are not poisenous, but they do pack quite a bite. It's the females that have the poisen - yep, that figures.

Today, S is off getting more of his documents in order, and his passport will arrive here on Friday. On to the US! S will likely follow me a month or so, when he gets his visa, after I get home, in time for WxW's show in Milwaukee at the Haggerty Museum - looking forward to all of that! This afternoon, we'll go to Hospet and hang out, but it's another slow day, Hampistyle.

Still loving it here in India, but I will be so happy to see my DOG when I get home (and my family and friends too, sillies).

My baby bro is 41 today. Well, it's 4/17 in India, so the celebrations begin.

We're back in Hampi. But, this time, we have a GREAT room in a cool guest house. We opted to stay at the Shanti Restaurant and Guest House - the place that we always came to eat last time we were here. So now, we have a cool room with a big fan, and a nice CLEAN bathroom (I can rinse away the ants, that's not an issue - it's tile! it's shiny!) and a little hammock type thing outside the door. It over looks the rice paddies and giant rocks of Hampi. AND I can order lime sodas and margarita pizzas and check emails right outside my door. Yay! At RS 300 (about 7.50!). Much happier here - while the Moon Hut had it's appeal, this is a much cleaner place. And we Virgoes like our clean.

Last night was hilarious - after I got over the stupid ageist IDIOTS at that great dive bar. We packed up, and got in a rickshaw to go to the bus station. Right next to the station was this crazy bar. Hey! How about a Gin & tonic? Great idea, get a little squished before boarding the bus. 4 hours later, the bus had to stop so I could pee - a number of other people took advantage of that opportunity also, so I didn't feel bad.  

Night bus, left Bangalore at 10 PM and arrived in Hospet at 6 AM. I think I managed to sleep for the last hour or so of the journey. Once we arrived in Hospet, time to grab a rickshaw and ride to Hampi, stop for chai, then boat across the river - so it was another two hours or so before we got to the Shanti. But now, showered and lime-soda'd, I'm all about the shanti again!

I think the pictures will have to wait to be uploaded when I get home, alas. I bought a couple more 1 GB (expensivo!) cards in Bangalore, so picture taking is ramping up again anyway. Camera now working perfectly again.

Ah yes, time for some food.

Today was a coffeeshop day. A day to just hang out and have high calorie coconut coffee beverages. HAH! Coconut COLD coffee beverages, finally the low temps that I LIKE. Why am I so obsessed with the CHILL temp of the beverages I drink here? Maybe it's because everyone turns down the refrigerator to save energy, which = warm soda.

I also drink soda here, which I NEVER do at home. Maybe it's because I trust the bottling plant's standards more than the dirty glasses or towels wiping from a restaurant. Ack. I've never drunk so much Coke in my LIFE! And it is strangely refreshing when approaching ice cold.

Arf, but now I've had a couple of gin and tonics - and am slightly squished, in some skanky MAN bar, The bar was so scary and MALE that I didn't even want to use the toilet, but almost wet myself in the rickshaw running back to the hotel to use our cockroach toilet, hahaha!

At the bar, in Hindi (S told me later he overheard, otherwise he wisely surmised that I'd have given the guy a couple pieces of my mind) someone called me an OLD LADY. "Look at him, hanging out with that old lady." Jeezus. Fuck that. PEASANTS!!!!! Miserable serf uncultured PEASANTS!!!!!  "Old lady" is a slur I've NEVER heard, up until this point. Fascists! Losers!!

My age is definitely my Achilles Heel, dammit. It's the one thing I can't control. The way to get me to crumble is to make a slur about that. Hey, but everyone will be 40 something one day, and before they know it even. It sneaks up.

Back to the jungle, where I mix with the 20something backpackers who don't care about my age. With my fab companion, who doesn't care either. We're going out for another swank drink before we get in our bus booth to sleep all the way back to Hampi.

OH, and last night? We never went out again! My young-ass companion slept the sleep of the DEAD starting at around 8:30. I tried to wake him by throwing dirty underwear at him and hollering "HEY, WAKE UP!!!", but gave up at 9 PM when I realized I'd developed a bit of a stomachache, ostensibly from the dry, slightly dirty salad I'd eaten earlier. Our freaky room, you can't turn out the lights unless you turn off ALL the power, which means turning off the ceiling fan, which means TOO HOT. So, I blindfolded myself (oh, kinky, pfffffft!) against the damn light with my damn scarf as I've done for the past few nights and SLEPT as well. Humpf!

Yesterday turned out to be a rather lazy day during the day - it was just tooo hot, so time for a nap and a tandoori chicken lunch.

After that, we hit MG road here in Bangalore, the "see and be seen" shopping area. I got three CUTE pairs of sandals - so I am set for summer in Chicago, which is yet to arrive I hear (7" of snow in Milwaukee? WTF?). Sreenu bought a pair of shoes and a belt on the street. 

Whenever I'm in a foreign country, I hit the Walgreens-type drugstores to see what my skincare obsessed counterparts are using. Here in India, the little drugstores are stuffed with AYURVEDIC skincare -yes! All natural, baby! While I was obsessing over the SPF 50 sandalwood moisturizer, with an amused Sreenu trailing me, I noticed some soap. SOAP! Not just any soap, but soap nirvana! The lovely ayurvedic sandalwood glycerine soap I'd been ordering here for US$6, and happily, was stacked up for RS .35 each! (LESS than $1 a bar!). Let me tell you, when I say I stocked up, I STOCKED up, sistahs! And Sreenu has instructions to bring more when he comes to the US, or be TURNED AWAY, I tell you! I also got some fabulous Ayurvedic toothpaste that makes my mouth feel oh-so clean and fresh! Those that know me, know my finicky aversion to sticky sweet US toothpaste. Also got some yum wheat germ moisturizer, oh happy skin! Was able to replenish stuff I'm running out of too - q tips, a tiny bottle of polish remover (my feet are sleek again, gave myself a mini-pedicure to show off new sandals!), but am curiously still searching for a damn elastic hair band!

Anyway. The clothing stores on MG road are not all that fabulous to write home about. Mostly American brands - Levis, Van Heusen, Dockers, Lee are a few of the brands - nothing special. As far as clothes, I'm set with saris, but may get one more cotton salawar khameez, 'cos we're going back to the jungle. More on that later. Why by US style clothing in India, no reason. I am fond of my $3 wrap skirt, tho. Even if S did spill a drink on it last night. Haaaa!

Last night - went to Koshys, an old pub-style restaurant for some fish cutlets and drinkies. Stayed there quite late, and by the time we wanted to head out for one more, everything was closed. 11:30 PM and the streets get rolled up.

In other news, I am happy to report that the camera has spring back to life! Just a matter of drying out completely, and a battery recharge, and we're back in action. Not sure when I will upload the rest of the pics, as it's hard here when I don't have a dedicated computer to load the software onto. Got a few more 1 GB cards, though. Actually wonder if I'll be able to snap any more pictures with my own damn camera, as S has commandeered it, with me playing Art Director "picture! shoot that!"

Today, running around finishing a few things. Taking my silk shirt back for an alteration. Shipping birthday surprise for baby bro - 4/17, EVIL BABY is 41!! 

Oh, yes, and did I mention we're going back to Hampi. S needs to pick up his passport, and then we're off to Tamil Nadu - possibly Chennai (are you reading this LdeL?) and Goa. After that, it'll be time to head north, Amritsar and Delhi - and then my trip is winding down, I only have two weeks left here. *sigh*. It went so quickly. Two months is not enough time!

Something really cool that I learned about here is the Tiffin box. It's a metal lunch pail affair. Men going off to work use them - their wives prepare their lunch at home, and then a guy comes around to collect all the tiffin boxes. They deliver it to wherever the men work - and keep all the boxes straight! There was an article about it in Forbes magazine, and they gave the whole operation a high rating for efficiency. They are round metal boxes, of varying sizes, that clamp togther - with a handle for easy transport. They are engraved with the owners name/ address/ place of work. Cool practice!

Finally leaving Hampi tonight at 10 PM, on a night bus to Bangalore. The jungle has been fun, but I'm ready for a little civilization. I noticed today that the water I've been showering with all week is . . . dirty. There's a pail in the bathroom that catches all the drips, and it's brownish. I also started brushing teeth again with bottled water, because I noticed last night that the water coming out of the faucet even had strange color changes . . . clear mostly, but a few bursts of brown or grayish. I just keep telling myself "I was a Girl Scout! We are intrepid campers! This does not faze me! FEH to that giant black wasp that appeared during my dirty water shower!", but it will nice to get to a city and have a nice room WITH a bathtub, air conditioning and clean sheets - and without wasps, moths, mosquitoes and just the general filth that comes from casual cleaning by the staff. I wear my flip flops constantly, in the shower, everywhere.

The little hut we've been staying in - the "Moon Hut", as I've been calling it, is pretty pleasant, and I've spent quite a bit of time being shanti and staring out over the rice paddies to the giant rocks. Checking out the water buffalo dudes while Sreeun's off doing something or other for his parents.

Here in India, they do the "shoes off in the house" custom that I adhere to at home. Only trouble is, in most homes or stores that I've been in, many times the floor inside is as dirty as the street outside. So my feet are pretty much always filthy. I am dreaming of the pristine floors of Chinar Villa, back in Udaipur, with little Jaiprikash scrubbing everything in sight. I mentioned to WxW that his houseboy must be a Virgo, he is ON the cleaning. 

Today S and I are packing up and getting ready to leave Hampi. We popped into Hospet to get a new mattress for his dad (poor guy injured his legs years ago, and cannot walk) and some sheets and pillows (the whole thing was less than US$15). 

It is HOT, though . . . and being out during the day is trying. Sreenu has the patience of about twelve saints to put up with me being A. too hot B. culture shocked and C. cowering from the burning rays of the sun, D. whining about being too hot, and in need of a damn fainting couch, and can't they clean up a little bit around here? or E. slipping in cowshit (thankfully that only  happened twice).

Today, riding in the rickshaw back to Hampi, we came upon an intersection where a little dog had apparently just been hit. Poor little guy was obviously dead, lying in a widening pool of blood. I seriously almost busted a wet eye, so saddened by the spectacle. I started thinking about my pampered, pedicured, salon-styled Egon for awhile, though, and pulled myself together. The little dogs that run around seem happy enough, but no one really takes care of them. At Shanti restaurant, where we usually eat (the food is delish, and they make a damn fine margarita pizza!) there is a little pack of dogs. One of them, a little one eyed dog - who really knows how to use his one good eye to maximum effect - must have zeroed in on me as a dog lover. Whenever we are there, he's lurking around, giving me the puppy eye, and invariably I'll do a 'Oh my! So clumsy of me to throw that piece of bread and a couple chicken bites over near that bush!" so the little guy can have a snack. All the dogs seem to be the same breed, some sort of Indian hunting dog, with curled up tails, very short hair and stand up ears. They are quite dirty, though, and many have bad cases of mange. Probably flea ridden too. The little one eyed guy seems fairly clean, and is clearly dying for affection - he comes shyly over so I can pet his head. Carefully avoiding petting anywhere else, so much dirt. Every once in awhile, they have what I call "DOG PARTY!" - the dog I've dubbed the Alpha gives a bark and they all run over for a bit of dirt wrestling. Ah, to be a dog in India. 

There's not much to do in Hampi. S and I have had a little scooter all week that we've been zipping around on, which is fun. Toured around in the area of the ruins. Went out to the reservoir and drank beers while sitting on the giant rocks. Gazed out at the rice paddies beyond Shanti Restaurant and had cold beers at sunset. Sat on the terrace of the Moon Hut latenight, having a cold beer. You see a pattern here. 

But now, BANGALORE! I told Sreenu that he's got many exciting days ahead of him, shopping with me, while . . . holding my purse! I told him it's a favorite male pastime in the US. Don't worry, he laughed at that, and said "Yes,  I am from the jungle, but I am not a stupid man!"  

We've had a little . . . lull in the picturetaking, as Sreenu, intrepid guide and constant, indispensable companion, fabulous man, and all around good egg, accidently dumped water on the LCD screen of my little camera - a bottle of drinking water opened up and spilled. Poor guy looked like a whipped dog when he told me what happened. I couldn't be too mad, as he carries everything around in my pink Timbuktu bag - I don't carry so much as a rupee, as S was afraid that I'd get beaten and rolled and robbed or something, so took charge of my bag with the money, cameras, etc. in it. He's positive we can get it fixed in Bangalore though, and the two 1 GB SD cards were full anyway. SO, pray to Lakshmi that the repair is possible and doesn't cost too many rupees. 

India is a lot like Syria in many ways. It's not as safe here at night as it is in Damascus, and it's a little dirtier here. Staring is big business here as well, though, and crowds of little kids always shout "Hi! How are you!" when they see my blazing white foreigner self. I don't think I could ever acquire enough of a film of dirt to obstruct the Hi Pro Glo of the foreigner. I'm not as autonomous here in India, since I have only picked up a few words of Hindi, and really didn't do all that much reading about the country before I arrived. The weather, heat and dust - same. The crazy amounts of hoopty rides, animals and people all over the street, all driving different directions directly towards each other - the same. The tiny stores everywhere, selling a bit of everything - same. The people - gorgeous, the same - and most of them need vast amounts of dental attention, as in Syria as well.

Tentative plans now include SRI LANKA. It's a short flight, free visa from Bangalore, and Sreenu has put a bug in my head about it. I was thinking about it back in Udaipur, but now that I'm closer -  it'd be a shame to skip it, right?

but insha'allah, on to BANGALORE tomorrow. I've had enough of the shanti, getting ready for the SHOPPING! Got a cool pair of silver hoops today RS350 (US$6) and a new shirt that ripped almost immediately.

Cold beer and garlic chicken has appeared on my table, more when the internet is a little more zippy! Happy, healthy, tho - and ready for more exploring!

Have been trying for two days now to upload a post on this (*&(^$(%^@# slowest internet connection in the world here in Hampi. Aside from that, the area is beautiful. Reflected in my computer screen is a rice paddy, palm trees and an occasional water buffalow ambling by. We're staying in a cool guest house - little round huts with thatched roofs, in a large garden. Lots of trees and very cool breezes. It's much nicer and cooler here than in Rajastan - more of a jungle with banana trees everywhere. Hampi is great, very chill, sort of hippie. Kind of like Negril, Jamaica . . . but a beach town without the beach. We might hit Goa on the way to Bangalore so I can get my beach on, we'll see. 

Forgot to write about something amusing, or maybe disgusting in Surat. Every morning upon arising, we were treated to Mr. Expectorant performing his ablutions. I think the rooms in the hotel were laid out so that the bathrooms were up against each other, and had louvered windows between - you could actually see into the next room's bathroom. Anyway, every morning - *honk, schnurtz, RETCH, snort* - I think the guy was cleaning out every bodily orifice thru his nose. This went on morning and evening. 

Surat was not all that. Though, we did go to the wholesale silk district, where I got 6 pure Surati silk sarees for under about US$50. Got a few saris (US$3 each) for S's mom too. Beautiful! The shop we were in, Vijay Lakshmi, was very willing to ship to the US also, so if anyone wants saris, come see me!

I was happy to leave Surat, thought the travel was arduous. Happy to stay in Hampi for a day or two and just hang out. There are some major ruins here that my brother would surely be climbing all over, and quite a few very old temples as well. The landscape is crazy looking - I dubbed it "The Home of Giant Rocks!", and when I upload photos finally, it will become clear why. The hills, covered with rocks, end abruptly in a line of palm trees, or banana trees and then rice paddies. Yesterday, S and I rented a scooter and spent the afternoon zooming all over Hampi, looking at ruins and stopping for cold drinks. Fun! It doesn't seem to get as HOT here during the day because of all the greenery.

I am covered with mosquito bites. Ironic, since they don't bug me at all in the US. I must be the tasty new white flesh flavor here. Will be nice to get to Bangalore and soak in a bathtub, ahh. This is S's new request - room in Bangalore with a TUB!

Most of the bathrooms I've encountered here - well, the last two were extremely nasty and bug-ridden - and even in Richad's villa (NOT bug ridden, very clean that one, thanks to fabulous Japrikash!) are simple concrete rooms with a toilet, small sink and a showerhead with no tub or any sort of shower enclosure. Who needs it? The key is a big drain in the middle of the room, so everything drains and stays dry. There is usually a faucet and a pail on the floor, and that's it. I'd love a bathroom like that in my hut, who needs all the rigamarole.

Today, I'm chilling while S takes care of a few things for his parents. He's off organizing land documents and stuff also so he can get a visa to come to the US, yay! So, I get to wander around Hampi by myself, hang out in little tea shops and make believe I live here. Who knew . . . I'd never heard of this place before, now I'm hanging out here!

Hopped off the train at Hubli, for a 4 hour bus ride, in the DIRTIEST BUS EVER, to Hospet, where we are now.

Mini rant: SERIOUSLY, PEOPLE, HOW HARD IS IT TO KEEP STUFF FREAKING CLEAN AROUND HERE!? Every time I use a squat toilet, I end up running the water and splashing it all around just to rinse the joint a little but, but seriously  . . . used sanitary napkins STACKED UP in the corner? Come on, girls . . . have some class!!!! This was in a bus station, which are not bastions of hygiene but really. And then, you want to charge me 4 rupees for the pleasure of the stink of that place? Grab a brush, woman!

Anyway, the bus ride went fairly quickly, and I finally gave in to my seat, which wanted to be flopped back, and would not stay upright. Fine. After that, an hour bus ride into Hospet proper. Right off the bus, the touts started to grab my bag (WHY, pal, it's a rolling bag! I do not need your damn help, and if I did, you're stupid to carry it by the handle!), and they got an angry NO! I'm starting to get a leeeeeeeeeeetle cranky after all this traveling. On the other bus, sitting near a window, the guy starts his "Hi, hello, lady, what's your name, where are you from?" Usually, I answer in Arabic, just to confuse "ma engleezee. ana min liban.", but this time I get all Lawrence of Arabia on him, and say "My name is for my friends."

Sreenu wisely deduces, "She's tired, and getting cranky. She'd like a nice glass of wine and some delicious little chicken dish in the room that I will find that has a cute TERRACE!" Ah. All that happened in about 15 minutes after we reached Hospet, and after 9 hours or so of sleep, I was myself again.

Today, we took a rickshaw to Hampi, where Sreenu is from! I met his mama and dad - awww! His mom is tiny, totally gorgeous (easy to see where the son gets his good looks) and looks about thirty years old, though she's in her late 50's. Just hung out there, and I took a nap for a couple hours during the HOT of the day. Saw an actual rice paddy, on their land, and tried to pet a water buffalo - it seemed so interested in me, then fled when I tried to pet it's head. Saw Sreenus house - modest, two rooms, no bathroom or running water, but there is a pump/water outside near the porch.

Ironically, Hampi is where the Sivananda yoga ashram is located. This is the one that I'd planned to visit, but cancelled when my plans changed. Oh boy, am I glad I did, because it is NOT right near Delhi, as I'd thought, but far south. I may visit it while we're here anyway, Hampi is a cool little village, a fair amount of tourist trade here. 

Once again, loading up on pictures, but not sure when I'll get to upload them, maybe in Bangalore. Which is also where I'll have a swanky drink in a damn CLEAN GLASS. And it will be cold. I miss my icemaker. My apartment in Chicago is fit for a Majarini compared to some of the joints I've seen here.