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| Floral Gralands |
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| Crowded Train |
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| Temple Bay Hotel |
Jan. 4, 2013- Orienting
We slept all night until
the wake up call despite the couple of blackouts. David was aware of them
because his CPAP machine stopped working. It didn't last long & he managed
to go back to sleep. Breakfast was fun. We had a choice of Indian or Western
food. I tried some of the chutneys but think I'll stick to my usual cereal
& yogurt. Somehow I remember the breakfasts we had on our first trip as
better. Actually the chutney was great, it was the dosa that wasn't. I'll try
again.
The composition of the group is interesting. Charles, our guide,
is Christian. There is a gay couple, one of whom is Jewish, & they're
celebrating their 50th anniversary. One is from S. Africa & the other New
Zealand. Love the accents. There's a lesbian from Colorado who Googled everyone
on the trip, a Jewish widow, & a Jewish couple (not married) from
Jersey. Most have been to the North of
India. We have a Vietnamese single man who's the baby of the group. He's only
57 & came to the U.S. as a refugee. The Japanese woman from the West coast
is American born, I think. Haven't heard her speak much.
Tamil is the language of this area. The British East India
Company was established here in 1634 & called the area Madras. But they were
preceded by the Portuguese in 1524.
Chennai is the fourth largest city in India with a population
of 5 million. The British left in 1947 & today the city is 20% Christian
& 15 % Muslim. Chennai beach on the Bay of Bengal boasts the second longest
city beach in the world, but swimming in the water isn't usual. Custom doesn't
call for disrobing in public so most people just sit in the sun & wade.
Goats graze between road & sand. Charles said it's ok to pet the goats we
find
wandering around but to stay away from cows, dogs, & cats.
They can be aggressive. I wonder about those aggressive cows. People-wise it
does seem less congested here than the north & so far no one has tried to
hijack us as we walked or tried to sell us something.
And We’re Off
Our first venture off the bus was to a typical market. It's hot
as blazes for us but mild for natives. It's in the 90's. I don't know if we
took more than one picture & it was of a stand in the flower section. We
then boarded a suburban train for a twenty minute ride just for the hell of it.
Charles wanted us to have the experience. It was very crowded around the
doorway but the seating areas remained clear. We looked out the windows for a
bit but when it was determined that the view was mostly of trash heaps we
engaged in a conversation with the Coloradan. She has a horse. Need I say more?
Lunch was spicier than I thought it would be. I ordered paneer
tikka masala & asked for it to be mild. If that was mild I'm in trouble.
David ate mine & I ate his dosa masala. There was a petrol smell in the
city that permeated the restaurant. I got queasy but kept drinking water
(bottled) & felt better when I cooled off on the bus. The toilets in the
restaurant were kind of iffy. The women were thinking we'd all leave with a
urinary tract infection at least. Some of us are trying to decide whether or
not to continue our malaria meds. One man is definitely stopping since it's
affecting his stomach. We're undecided. Charles said we shouldn't be afraid of
getting malaria especially since they've had less rain than usual. They just
sprayed for mosquitoes outside our room. If malaria doesn't get us, deet will.
After lunch we visited the Church of St. Thomas. It is said that
St Thomas came to India to preach the Gospel to the Jews in the 1st century
& was killed by a Hindu fanatic. The Catholic Church is built over his
tomb. Relics were kept here but his body was sent to Rome. When we entered the
sanctuary Charles asked if we noticed what was different about it than other
churches we'd visited. I suggested, tongue in cheek, that Jesus was dressed in
this one. That was the correct answer. The Jewish lady figured it out! He's
portrayed as the risen Jesus standing in a lotus blossom fully robed.
I'm still having trouble understanding Charles but I got the
message that he doesn't think highly of people who take advantage of the
welfare state. They work & are given
houses & thirty pounds of rice a month. School education & uniforms
are free but they spend their money on liquor & gambling.
We're staying at the Radisson Blu Resort at Temple Bay. It's
lovely & most unique. The swimming pool & wading areas form a lagoon
that meanders throughout the complex & is accessible right outside our
room. The hotel property includes a beachfront site which we'll explore
tomorrow after touring. Dinner was really good. What we thought was the main
course was a starter. There were sides & sauces all within my palate
limitations. The main was fish & David, being in is new pro-fish mode,
loved it.
Although the iPad is
convenient I miss my cursor. I love the iPad's size & wrote some on the bus
before I fell asleep but I'm still climbing the learning curve.
Tomorrow we're taking an
all day optional tour to see lots of temples.
Toby
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