From Coorg

It is amazing how in this small little district of India they have access to the internet nowadays, which allows me to easily connect with others in the US and finalize our plans for renting a house. Anyway, I thought this was agreat opportunity to post and let you know of the happenings. I took the express bus from Bangalore towards Virajpet, which still ended up taking 5 hours to get to a small town in Coorg. I spent the afternoon walking around the paddy fields and we had several delicious meals consisting of mutton curry and various rice breads. In the morning we had another splendid breakfast with fresh produce and then I was led through the farm where I learned much about the crops, especially rice, coffee, oranges and a variety of fruits. In the evening we picked up a swamy ji and had a vegetarian feast with him. In the evening I came to Madhu's house and played with his youngest son as well as worked on designs for his local club house. For dinner he had some other guests over. The daughter I found out was going to be continuing her post graduate studies in Interior Design in England. I was astonished to find out there was a Coorgi in the design field and going to leave for England in just several weeks. It was great to talk to another designer and get her experiences and thoughts. Today has been very relaxed around Madhu's house with a walk around his estate as well as tasting a variety of fresh fruit juices. It was exciting when the dogs caught a chicken by the head and plucked half of its feathers. The chicken, as a result, pretended to be dead and when the dogs were not looking, proceeded to run away.

While here I will continue to eat some awesomely delicious foods as well as have the opportunity to attend a Coorgi wedding of Cannu's freind's sister. It should be a festive and colorful affair. The day after I will be leaving, but before I do I think we will try to go rafting. I think that is all for now, I did not expect to be posting from here.

One Last Trip

Have been mostly relaxing, talking and eatting with grandma for the past couple of days. I plan on traveling to Coorg tommorow via bus and staying there for a couple of days. I hope to watch the transplantation process and the preparations for the annual festival they hold every year at the end of the season. It should be a blast! Unfortunately I will not have access to the internet, so I will have to do catchup posting once I get back. It looks like my time in India is drawing to a close and I will have to return back to Cincinnati soon as well. Hope all is well wherever you may be.

Back from Bombay

Traveling by train is an interesting experience in itself, which offers a safe and comfortable way of viewing the landscape of India as if it were a museum. Passengers on Indian trains are very friendly and accommodating, compared to air travel where people are much more in a hurry and anxious. On both train rides from Bangalore to Bombay and back I had great conversations with the local passengers about our travels and how diverse a country India is. This was a very slow train that made many frequent stops, which allowed me the opportunity to taste different foods and teas, which vary significantly by area. My train car was also relatively close to second class (no reservations), which is most common and allowed me to see how rough common travel really is. People line up over an hour before the train arrives and are kept within a very strict line by policemen who hit them with bamboo sticks if they move out of line. It was quite incredible to watch how they pack the people in for such a long ride. There were also individuals who bribed policemen to allow them to jump ahead of the line, which I found disturbing. If one gets the chance I would recommend taking a train in India for sure.

So my train departed Monday night and arrived in Bombay the following night into Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus, formerly Victoria Terminus, which is an incredible Gothic structure. I arrived in Bombay without a place to stay but an idea of what hotels I could go to. I called several with no luck, but was able to find one that had a room for that night only and agreed without hesitation. After walking from the station to the hotel area, I struggled to find it because of its location, which happened to be down some back alleys and on the fifth floor of a building where some of the poor were already sleeping on the staircase. It turned out to be a small backpackers hotel with only 8 rooms and one common bath. After dropping off my stuff I explored the area, which was really a great location, and found a local bar where I joined a table of bankers and shared several beers as well as a variety of curries and tandoori dishes with them. I retired to my hotel afterward to get ready for the next day.

I woke up early in the morning to various noises outside. After showering and talking with the manager I headed out to explore the city. I walked toward the Gateway of India and also saw the famous Taj hotel. I proceeded south and walked through various areas and slums till I arrived at Sassoon Docks. The docks were bustling with fisherman and delivery boys running back and forth, shuttling fresh seafood everywhere. It was an incredible sight and the noises and smells added to the whole experience. After exploring the southern part of Mumbai I proceeded to walk north with the goal of finding Nariman Point. On the way I found an interesting exhibit on Mumbai as an estuary in the National Gallery of Modern Art. After meandering through the various neighborhoods I got to the point of the island and saw the length of Marine Drive and the National Performing Arts Center. I relaxed on the pier for a while and then walked back towards Mahatma Gandhi road and found a small South Indian restaurant where I got a chikku milkshake, wadas, and a dosa, all of which were delicious. I returned to my hotel to find out that a single had become available for the remainder of my stay and took the room and its great location. I decided to take an afternoon nap and recharge my camera as well. In the evening I walked along Marine Drive exploring the various shops and vendors that are typical of Bombay. By time I walked back to the center of town it was time for dinner so I hopped into a military restaurant that served thali style meals, which were delicious. Afterwards I met up with some backpackers from Singapore and Japan who decided we should buy beers and relax by the Gateway.

The next morning when I awoke it was raining heavily and I decided to sleep in a bit longer. I was woken up shortly after for breakfast and was elated when I found out it was included and it proved to be delicious. After finishing I walked the surrounding area and viewed the Gateway. I visited the Maharaja Chatrapati Shivaji Museum, which was an excellent museum that showcased the cultural history of India especially the Mughal and Rajasthan eras. The natural history collection was also very impressive and well displayed to visitors. I was supposed to meet up with a family friend afterwards but plans got cancelled due to his demanding schedule, so I decided to try out this modern café which fused Indian food with other international cuisines. I had a wonderful mint tea with raw sugar syrup and masala toast with hummus. I walked along Marine Drive again and discovered the Hanging Gardens from where I got a view of Bombay. On the way back I saw many children playing at the amusement park that gets set up late at night on Chowpatti beach. While drinking chai on MG Road it began to rain and decided I would go eat dinner at a well-known local seafood restaurant, Trishna’s. I tried some delicious baby shark tandoori and ate a prawn curry, which was awesome.

Friday started with breakfast followed by a walk along Marine Drive. I spent a lot of time at the Jehangir Art Gallery, which was displaying local artists work, that varied greatly in style and media. The gallery is a popular showcase of contemporary arts and crafts and it is an artist’s hub. There is a poplar café there, Samovar Café, which has become a local artists hang out space. I then had a nap before meeting up with Uncle Poovaiah, Professor at IIT Bombay in the Industrial Design Centre with a focus in Interaction Design, Environment Design, and Communication Design. I took the local train from VT to Vikhroli, which passes by many of the vertical slums of Bombay and Godrej, one of the largest companies in India. I explored the campus a bit on my own and then met up with Prof. Poovaiah who showed me much of his work and discussed design and how it is taught in the school curriculum and what place design holds in India. I also had the opportunity to meet some of his students with an architecture background who showed me their work and campus facilities. I was very impressed with the facilities and quality of work produced. I then sat in on a lecture by a curator and artist, Mr. Patwardhan, who presented his recent project of creating a mobile museum, that essentially brought local art to a variety of rural cities. It was a very interesting and pertinent lecture for my thesis topic, which I hope to further study. Professor Poovaiah then showed me the rest of the campus and we met up with his wife, Dr. Ajanta Sen, who also teaches and researches with the Institute and is a designer herself in urban planning. She works with many architects and designers on global and local projects that promote sustainability and creating a more efficient and better Bombay. It was great getting opinions and perspectives from such knowledgeable designers who are aware of a variety of issues that face our world globally and locally. I returned early in the morning by one of the last local trains to run and observed many of the poor, a large percentage of the 18 million people that fill the small city, sleeping all over the streets. I awoke early in the morning to catch my train back to Bangalore and arrived safely this morning. I believe that the Ganesh Chathurthi festival processions start today in Bombay and will captivate the entire city.

Mumbai was a wonderful addition to my travels and provided an opportunity to see a big city and how it has grown and flourished. It is amazing to think that 18 million people live in this small area that is home to so many groups and ethnicities. Bombay is a tribute to the people who live there and are able to coincide with one another on a daily basis and keep life flowing smoothly. It is an incredible city with a great public transportation system with buses and trains that with the ban of auto rickshaws downtown reduces congestion. It was a great city to explore by foot because of its compressed size and well-maintained streets and shaded landscaping. It is great to see the wealthy live side by side with the poor and share a chai or pani puri from a street vendor. There is no flaunting of wealth despite being the Hollywood of the east. The city has adapted as a whole to a large population and gone vertical where necessary. The city also carries unique traditions and customs, which I found entertaining such as a system of workers known as dabbawallas who collect workers meals from home and deliver them to the owners' offices based on markings that are only identifiable by the dabbawalla. I hope to return to the Good Bay soon and invite you to join me. I am sure that you can tell from the length of this entry that I thoroughly enjoyed the city and did no want to lose any details.Sassoon Docks Sharks
Sassoon Dock
Taj Hotel
My Hotel
Gateway of IndiaGaudiesque Building

Screening Pattern
National Gallery of Modern Art

DisplayMarine Drive Sunset
People gathering on Marine Drive
Marine Drive. Night
Gateway of India

DabbawallaMe, Dr. Ajanta Sen, Prof Pooviah
Victoria Terminus
Jehangir Art Gallery
Flora Fountain
Masala toast. Hummus. Mint Tea w/ Sugar Syrup.

Mumbai

Traveling to Mumbai (Bombay) tomorrow on Udayan Express which leaves Bangalore at 20:10 and will get into Mumbai 19:50 next day. I plan on staying there for three days and visiting many of the museums and modern buildings as well as visiting the IIT campus and talking with a professor in the school of design. I am really excited about the trip, but just nervous on if I will be able to find a suitable hostile. Hope to post more info in the coming days from Mumbai.

Happy Independence Day!

Planning trips to Bombay and Coorg in the coming days.

Back in Bangalore

Since returning from our journey, I had come down with a minor stomache ache, either from water or food, which kept me in bed for a day. The next day we took it easy shopping for souvenirs and eatting out before Bear's departure. Since then I have been relaxing at home, sharing pictures and stories from our adventure with my grandmother. I have also been thinking about my travels so far and put together collections from the trips.

It is amazing to see how people here are so scared of swine flu. It is the most pressing issue throughout India, with people wearing masks and covering their mouths everywhere. I guess with the amount of people in close proximity and poor health conditions, there is a major scare among individuals.

In the mean time I will be celebrating Independence day in India and then will probably try to visit Coorg before the transplantation of the crops and then possibly visit Bombay afterwards.

Agra

We awoke early in the morning and caught a bus from Delhi to Agra. Unfortunately the bus was not well run and the operators were cons that varied the prices for passengers as well as dropping us off in the middle of Agra. We luckily caught an auto to the train station where we bought our return ticket and continued towards the Taj Mahal. It was very enjoyable, studying the building for a couple of hours and watching as the shades and colors changed throughout the day. The building is quite remarkable, especially in terms of its proportions. After discovering that night tour tickets of the Taj were not feasible, we found a local hotel within a km of the Taj that offered gorgeous views. After doing some shopping, we sat near the hotel and watched the sun descend behind the white marble.

Finding out about Night Tour
Taj
Me w/Taj
View From Hotel

We awoke early the next morning to find the Taj still in darkness and proceeded back to New Delhi. We spent the day at Ashkaryimana Temple which is a large campus dedicated towards the teachings of a Swami. It is almost like a Disney World that has boat rides, animatronics shows, and movies that showcase the history and story of Swami. We returned later in the night on the Rajdhani to Bangalore because all train tickets to Bombay were booked.

Chandigarh

We caught the 7:30 Kalka Shatbadi Express to Chandigarh early in the morning. We were served breakfast and tea before our 11:30 arrival. Chandigarh was designed as a modernist city by LeCorbusier and his cousin who divided the city into various sectors that provided all the necessities one would need. It is a very simple yet charming city that feels nothing like the rest of India. Everything seems more controlled and regulated, which enhances a visitor or resident’s experience. The city is very simply based on the proportions of the modular man with a regular grid system and greenbelt. The layout is very effective I believe and serves as a great capital for the two states of Punjab and Haryana. Many of the buildings there are designed by LeCorb and follow his precedent, creating a similar aesthetic that unifies the city.

From the station we took an auto to sector 17, which is the market center of the city. We walked through the markets and plazas until we crossed into sector 16 where there was a rose garden. As we walked further north into various sectors we explored museums, bougainvillea gardens, rock gardens, Sukhna Lake with people on paddleboats, as well as a host of public buildings including the High Court. In the afternoon I met up with Sunny, Tinu’s nephew, who fed us as well as answered many questions we had about the city. It was interesting to hear a locals thoughts and comparisons to other cities. I could tell that he had grown fond of the city and believed strongly in the planning of the city. He himself is working on developments outside of the city, which are to expand upon Corb’s thoughts and visions of the city. Afterwards he showed us few more sites of the city including his former university and Corb’s office.

Sector 17 Shopping

Fountain

Auditorium

High Court

Sukhna Lake

New Delhi

The train arrived in New Delhi around 5:15 in the morning. We left the station and decided to walk towards the city center and walked for an hour and a half until we found ourselves at India Gate. We explored many of the buildings along Rajpath, which is equivalent to the U.S. National Mall. It is a wide green space that is framed by many museums and national arts buildings as well as the Presidential Palace. The area was very nice and I noticed many changes from previous visits of mine. While New Delhi is a large city and requires an automobile to discover, many strides have been made to improve the circulation throughout the city. We were able to walk much more easily, vehicles had designated lanes and road conditions seemed to be improved overall. Much of this can be attributed to the fact that New Delhi will be the host of the 2010 Commonwealth games. There are also strides being made to establish a metro system to mitigate congestion.

Later in the morning I called Tinu, a family friend, who arranged a government run tour for us. The tour highlighted many of the noteworthy sites including Lakshmi Temple, Mahatma Gandhi Memorial, Lotus Temple, Qutb Minar, Rajghat, and Hamayun’s Tomb. The buildings were interesting to see, especially how they dealt with the surrounding landscapes and environments. I enjoyed observing how the buildings dealt with pedestrian circulation and used natural elements to influence the design of the buildings. After the tour we met up with Tinu and his family who fed us well and went to sleep for an early start.

India GateMuseum Gate DetailGandhiLotus TempleQutb MinarQutb Minar
Hamayun's Tomb

Rajdhani Express

Sunday morning we went to the Banashankari Railway Office and purchased two First Class AC tickets on the Rajdhani Express to New Delhi. We ran various errands and notified people of our travel plans as well as packed. We took an auto rickshaw from the house to the Bangalore City Junction railway station. We found the station crowded with people bustling everywhere. We proceeded towards our designated platform and found our designated cabin and berths. We were ecstatic to find out that we were allocated the only private cabin in the whole train. Upon boarding we were each greeted by the train manager who presented us with flowers and candy. Afterwards, a gentleman brought us our sheets and towels for the next 36 hours. Latter in the evening we were served vegetable soup and a wonderful thali meal. We retired after dinner to our beds.

Monday morning we were awoken for 6:30 tea and coffee. We passed many rice paddy fields and observed the workers in the field as we ate breakfast. The landscape was beautiful and varied throughout the day. The meals were delicious and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves in our private cabin.

Bangalore Railway StationIn our cabin
Thali Dinner

Good Morning!

Outside Taj

The past week has been very exciting, travelling around India and seeing different cities. The trains have been a blast when you can book them and the cities (Delhi, Chandigarh, Agra) have been magnificent. Unfortunately it looks like we will not be able to book trains to Bombay and will be returning to Bangalore from New Delhi. I will try to update with lots of pictures and stories when I get back.

Bear is Here

Bear came several days ago. We have been going around exploring Bangalore and tasting different foods. Things have been going well and we are set for our week long travel to Delhi, Agra, Bombay and possibly Chandigarh. We have our tickets for the Rajdhani Express to Delhi which leaves this evening and will get in on Tuesday morning. We are very excited about our travels and exploring different parts of India.