#29: Another year older

Greg and I went in search of a hardware store, seeking out allen wrenches and WD-40. We had absolutely no luck… nothing even close. We owe thanks to Dan and Ellen who brought these items from the US.

It’s corn season. Cobs are placed directly in the coals for roasting. Vendors line the streets trying to attract motorists.

India will soon need a safety campaign: Don’t eat corn and drive.

Here’s an economical method of getting to work… scooter-pooling. The passenger is using her mobile phone.

This man improvised a clever rain coat using a trash bag.

When it’s not raining, it’s dusty. Covering the nose and mouth is a common sight.

This week took me on a dealer visit to Chandigarh via train. Indians are very thankful to the British for developing a vast train network.

Porters are available to help with your bags for 40 Rupees a piece.

Our cabin was air conditioned.

Here’s the toilet. Note the anti-slip design for your feet.

Take heed.

And here’s why. This leads directly to the tracks below.

It was a very pleasant trip with lots of lush, green farmland between Delhi and Chandigarh.

Back in our neighborhood, they are installing additional electrical lines.

I would never want this job.

We finally completed all our vaccinations this week. I began the process back in November. A total of 14 shots were required, spread out over six months, including Hepatitis A and B, Japanese Encephalitis, Rabies, MMR, Tdap, Polio and Typhoid. We’re set now, until late 2013.

My family took me to a Vietnamese Restaurant to celebrate my birthday. We had mango salad, lemon grass, and “not too spicy” chicken. Even low spice food is still very hot by our standards.

My favorite gift is this Ganesha, Lord of Success and the most commonly seen deity in India. Each element of Ganesha’s form is symbolic, including wisdom, earthly existence, energy, humbleness, and the soul. He is the remover obstacles to propel man forward. The world needs more Ganeshas.

Enjoy your week. ts

#28: A mouse in the house

 

This week took me on dealer visits to Chennai and Bangalore (which is now undergoing a name change to Bangaluru).  I received a royal welcome.

 

I met an F&I Manager who has begun a methodical approach to finding a wife (his parents are old, so he needs to undertake this task himself).  He has seven criteria, including religion, caste and astrological alignment.  If any of the criteria do not match, he moves on.  If he finds a perfect match, the wedding will take place quickly, perhaps the same day.

 

At the Bangalore airport, I saw two things that make me smile.  The first is this Toyota ad…

 

…and this Tibetan monk using the ATM.  He was in town visiting a monastery, and then will head for the states where he’ll speak on the plight of Tibet under Chinese rule (he lives in northern India).

 

We celebrated Independence Day on Wednesday, August 15, marking the day India achieved freedom from British rule 65 years ago.  Gandhi’s approach of civil disobedience took several decades, but was ultimately effective.  Here we are at a neighbor’s home.  They have relatives who remember the day in 1947, which was bitter sweet due to the partition and creation of Pakistan.

 

This book contains very valuable tips.  For instance, men and women don’t touch each other in public.  Any public display of affection between the sexes is forbidden, including married couples holding hands.  Kissing in public is illegal.

 

India uses 240 current, which isn’t always consistent.

We have voltage regulators for the air conditioning units.  As you can see, the voltage is a little off at the moment.

Workers installed bathroom shelves this week using an electric drill.

 

There was no plug on the drill.  They jammed bare wires into the socket.  This is how’s it’s done in India.  I’ve yet to see an electrical tool with a plug.

  

We have a mouse in the house, thus the need for an exterminator.  They set up glue traps and also sprayed for bugs while they were here.

 

We are taking all the typical precautions against mosquitoes.  We have plug-in repellent units in each room. 

 

We also have moth balls in all drains.  The smell is a mosquito deterrent.

 

Kayla can practice her tennis swing indoors with this electric bug zapper.

 

Home Depot does not exist here (nor anything like it).  We needed some keys copied, so we found a key maker along the side of the road.

 

He rummaged through his bag to find suitable blanks, and then clamped my key directly to the blank.

 

He then began to file the blank consistent with my key.  The bad news is that none of the duplicates work.  The good news is that he didn’t damage my original key. 

 

Despite all our cautiousness with food and water, we experience continual digestive rumblings.  We’ve all been intestinally challenged over the past two weeks.  It just takes time to adjust.

 

We still have many set-up details to manage, but the list is getting shorter.  We understand our container with furniture will soon arrive in customs.  We never appreciated a couch so much before.  Enjoy your week.  ts

#27: Jaipur / 1st day of school

 

Last Friday, we departed Agra and headed west to Jaipur (setting of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel).

There were many unique sights along the way, including this herd of water buffalo waddling through the streets.

 

Everyone in India seems to be on cell phones non-stop, including this man riding on a truck load of vegetables.

 

I’m not sure where they’re headed, but the monkey seemed to be enjoying the ride.

 

Tall grass is being transported to feed water buffalo.

Not enough seats?  No worries, there’s plenty of room up top.

 

Our hotel in Jaipur is focused on relaxation.  The Ohm symbol greats guests in the lobby.

 

They had an entire room dedicated to Ganesha, the remover of objects.

Gregory loved the infinity pool.

 

We took Yoga lessons with basic stretching.  We also learned meditation and relaxation techniques.

 

Every Yoga instructor should look like this.

 

Lynda and I celebrated our 20^th wedding anniversary with this trip.  If in 1992 anyone would have told us we’d celebrate 15 years in Germany and 20 years in India, we would have said it was crazy.

 

On the way back to Delhi Sunday afternoon, we paused for a cow crossing on the National Highway (it connects Delhi and Mumbai).  Note the “fly over” bridge under construction.

 

The herd crossed safely.

First thing Monday morning, Kayla and Gregory were off to school.  It was a very short summer break for them, but they both love the new school.

 

Just outside the school grounds, we spotted this family of monkeys. 

 

We recently discovered this restaurant, “Delhi Belly.”  We didn’t eat there, but we all suffered from the ailment this week to varying degrees. 

 

It was also a challenging week trying to get settled in our new home.  This is the new, larger oven provided by our landlord.  This was the largest available in the market.  Our first one was half this size (Easy-Bake Oven as Kayla says).  Baking is not big here.  Everything is cooked on the stove top.

 

There are dozens of details and nothing is easy.  A license is required for the compressed natural gas container.  It took 10 days to get a working stove.

 

We established Internet this week with a data card (countless signatures and ID proof required).  We’ve been told a LAN line will be installed later. 

We are getting by just fine on our air mattresses. Our furniture is somewhere on the Indian Ocean.  We hope to have it by the end of August.

 

Friday evening, the Brigham Young University (BYU) dance troupe performed for the school.  They’d been touring India for three weeks.

 

And after the show, Gregory performed for them.

 

I’ll end with a photo from the 3 Series launch event in Mumbai from two weeks ago.  Sachin Tendulkar is the “God of cricket.”  The Master Blaster recently achieved the milestone of scoring 100 centuries (100 runs in 100 games).  As a long-time BMW enthusiast, his presence generated amazing press coverage throughout India. 

We will celebrate India’s independence next week.  Enjoy.  ts

#26: 7th Wonder

 

Thanks to back up generators, we were not impacted by the massive power outages throughout northern India on Monday and Tuesday.  It’s estimated that 670 million people went without electricity (that’s 10% of the world’s population).  Multiple factors coalesced to create the “perfect storm.”  Economic growth has outpaced infrastructure capacity.

 

Monday morning, we shifted to our new flat (in American English, we moved into our new home).  We purchased all our appliances (washer, dryer, TV, microwave, etc.) for 175,000 Rupees. Gregory is holding the official store receipt showing our list of appliances and our 5,000 Rupee down payment.  That’s the delivery truck in the background.

 

In the afternoon, we invited a Hindu priest to perform a Pooja ceremony.

 

The Molly (MOLE e) thread around the wrist signifies faith in God.

 

The Rolle (ROLL e) brings purity of thought.

 

We burned Ghee (fat) to chase off the evil spirits.

 

The entire ceremony lasted about an hour.

 

We then sprinkled Ganges water throughout every room in the house.

 

Thanks to our Hindu priest, we are now set for an auspicious start in our new home.

 

Monsoonal rains hit with full force on Tuesday, turning roads into rivers.  We sell hydrostatic lock insurance to protect against a water-logged engine.

 

The heavy rain is a welcome sight, despite the challenges it creates.

 

How did you get to work this week?

 

 It was a rough week for Gregory.  He received three more vaccinations and a TB test.  His Tdap shot cost 15 Rupees (30 cents).  Here we are at the hospital with a security guard.

 

Thursday was the Raksha Bandhan holiday, dedicated to the sacred relationship between brother and sister.  We saw countless numbers of women riding to see their brothers where they tie a wrist thread, and he then promises to always protect her (I’m waiting to see this level of commitment between my children). How many people do you see on this motorcycle?  The answer is five.  The woman at the rear is holding an infant.

 

We used this holiday (plus the Friday bridge day) to create a 4-day weekend and headed to Agra.  Due to rich resources in the region, the Agra Fort with its double moat and 70’ walls was built in 1565 to protect against invasion. 

 

When touring the fort, bring your best buddy. 

 

Culturally, men hold hands here. 

 

They are just good friends and nothing more.

 

Then it was off to the Taj Mahal, the definitive symbol of love.  Moghul Shah Jahan built the Taj when his second of three wives died after giving birth to their 14^th child.  The couple is entombed here.

 

The Taj is a fusion of Indian and Persian architecture.  20,000 laborers began in 1631 and worked every day for 17 years to build the primary structure.  It took another five years to complete all the surrounding buildings.  The white marble was brought in from Rajasthan by elephant, some 300 kilometers away. 

 

The detail is inspiring.  Hand-cut gemstones are embedded throughout.

 

Why not?

 

OK, I couldn’t resist.  However, moments later, my towel was confiscated by security.  They saw it as an advertising message.

 

They offered to return my towel if I deleted the photos, but after much negotiation, our tour guide successful retrieved it.

 

A very bazaar experience unfolded as we prepared to leave.  A man asked to take a picture with us, and then suddenly, there was a cue of people wanting pictures.  We posed for dozens of photos.  Why?  They thought I looked like Tom Cruise.  For five minutes, we were Taj celebrities.

What a week.  All this in four days.  We’re off to Jaipur for the balance of the weekend.  The kids start school on Monday.  Enjoy.  ts