Sunday, Jo went bouldering at Turahalli, a place on the outskirts of Bangalore, with Indian climbers and she was gone by the time I woke up leisurely at 9! I had brunch with Nani, and then met Rashida.
We rode on her scooter to the crafts exhibition again. Joanna and I have talked about how nice it would be if we had our own transportation here, and Rashida's scooter affirmed that fact. Without having to pay to go somewhere, deal with 'Indian time' and irate drivers demanding more than a decent fare, Bangalore seems positively thrilling to ride through and so much more accessible. At the crafts exhibition, I noticed some differences between what attracted Rashida and what I myself was drawn by.
This is something I've actually seen a lot of in India. Roadside sellers offer spread of cheap plastic Western goods, somewhat tacky in nature. I'm talking neon plastic buckets, plastic hairclips. large pink plush teddy bears...all as 'Western' merchandise. To find a traditional Indian bedspread proves enormously difficult, as everyone wants to sell you spreads featuring outdated Western cartoons. (This comes up again once we travel to Konkan). So at the crafts exhibition, I loved the stall with the old brass vessels, darkened by time and in charming shapes and sizes. Rashida found them old, and suggested I buy something shiny and plastic to get the best value for my money. What a funny person I must have seemed, to be willing to spend more on something slightly rusted and ancient than on something new and sparkling!
At a snacks stand, we sampled dried spiced mango treats. I love these! My father brought some back from one of his trips to India once, and I had the chance to sample a few before my beloved dog got his nose into them. I want to bring some back from this trip, but there's still a month to go so I didn't buy any yet. Just past the snack stall, Rashida fell down some of the stairs and twisted her ankle slightly, so we went home rather quickly. She went up to her flat to ice her poor ankle, and promised to meet later to go to the gym.
Luckily, I got home just before Jo, so we didn't miss each other!
We headed out to Gandhi Bazaar with Nani to check on the tailor, who is redoing some of Jo's clothes, and to buy fruit. On the way, we walked around a nice, cool park. It was quieter than Lalbagh and entry was free. It was full of trees with low-swinging branches that looked perfect to climb on. A large lot inside the park was (of course) filled with men and boys playing a tangle of cricket games, and families walked on the brick trail around the perimeter.
At Gandhi Bazaar, Jo and I spent ages browsing a bookshop and bought some great Indian cookbooks to take home for friends and family. I found a series of handwriting practice books for Indian children (in Hindi script) and bought a few to practice my Hindi!
Rashida came down later in the evening to take me to her gym. I haven't signed an official membership yet, and wanted to compare hers to Fitness One, the gym Joanna has signed with. We scootered again through narrow streets and ended up at an office building. Inside, the a/c was pleasant and after passing a spa, we found ourselves in the one room gym. It was dingier than Fitness One and a lot of the equipment was worn, and the prices were higher so my decision became pretty easy. I decided to accompany Jo to Fitness One in the morning before work to seal the deal.
We are nearing the halfway mark of the trip, and Jo and I had a long conversation about how things have been going and how we want them to go in the future. We talked about the frustrations associated with being constantly warned about safety, and decided we need to find ways to pursue adventure pragmatically. I'll let you know how our quest for some goes.
We rode on her scooter to the crafts exhibition again. Joanna and I have talked about how nice it would be if we had our own transportation here, and Rashida's scooter affirmed that fact. Without having to pay to go somewhere, deal with 'Indian time' and irate drivers demanding more than a decent fare, Bangalore seems positively thrilling to ride through and so much more accessible. At the crafts exhibition, I noticed some differences between what attracted Rashida and what I myself was drawn by.
This is something I've actually seen a lot of in India. Roadside sellers offer spread of cheap plastic Western goods, somewhat tacky in nature. I'm talking neon plastic buckets, plastic hairclips. large pink plush teddy bears...all as 'Western' merchandise. To find a traditional Indian bedspread proves enormously difficult, as everyone wants to sell you spreads featuring outdated Western cartoons. (This comes up again once we travel to Konkan). So at the crafts exhibition, I loved the stall with the old brass vessels, darkened by time and in charming shapes and sizes. Rashida found them old, and suggested I buy something shiny and plastic to get the best value for my money. What a funny person I must have seemed, to be willing to spend more on something slightly rusted and ancient than on something new and sparkling!
At a snacks stand, we sampled dried spiced mango treats. I love these! My father brought some back from one of his trips to India once, and I had the chance to sample a few before my beloved dog got his nose into them. I want to bring some back from this trip, but there's still a month to go so I didn't buy any yet. Just past the snack stall, Rashida fell down some of the stairs and twisted her ankle slightly, so we went home rather quickly. She went up to her flat to ice her poor ankle, and promised to meet later to go to the gym.
Luckily, I got home just before Jo, so we didn't miss each other!
We headed out to Gandhi Bazaar with Nani to check on the tailor, who is redoing some of Jo's clothes, and to buy fruit. On the way, we walked around a nice, cool park. It was quieter than Lalbagh and entry was free. It was full of trees with low-swinging branches that looked perfect to climb on. A large lot inside the park was (of course) filled with men and boys playing a tangle of cricket games, and families walked on the brick trail around the perimeter.
At Gandhi Bazaar, Jo and I spent ages browsing a bookshop and bought some great Indian cookbooks to take home for friends and family. I found a series of handwriting practice books for Indian children (in Hindi script) and bought a few to practice my Hindi!
Rashida came down later in the evening to take me to her gym. I haven't signed an official membership yet, and wanted to compare hers to Fitness One, the gym Joanna has signed with. We scootered again through narrow streets and ended up at an office building. Inside, the a/c was pleasant and after passing a spa, we found ourselves in the one room gym. It was dingier than Fitness One and a lot of the equipment was worn, and the prices were higher so my decision became pretty easy. I decided to accompany Jo to Fitness One in the morning before work to seal the deal.
We are nearing the halfway mark of the trip, and Jo and I had a long conversation about how things have been going and how we want them to go in the future. We talked about the frustrations associated with being constantly warned about safety, and decided we need to find ways to pursue adventure pragmatically. I'll let you know how our quest for some goes.
thank you for ALL the juicy details.
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