It is our last full day in India. We are spending our last day trekking around Bangalore with the help of rickshaws to see what this city is all about. It is touted as the silicon valley of India and is where much of the world's software is written. It is claimed to be the Indian city where the east meets the west and it is probably the most pleasant city we have been to in India. There is plenty of green to enjoy and most of the streets are wide and clean. Yet it is still plagued by atrocious air quality and long and frequent power outages.
This morning we went to the city market which was the best market we have seen in India yet. By "best" I should clarify that I mean it is the closest thing to what I had imagined an Indian market to be. The streets were filled with women sitting behind piles of gleaming fruits and vegetables while people turned bright orange flowers into thick garlands. There was a general sense of chaos as motorcycles, cars, horse-drawn carts, rickshaws, and hyper children manoeuvered around one another. But again, as in the rest of India, the chaos seems to make sense.
Yesterday we went to see opening day of the film Signs, an American blockbuster directed by M. Night Shyamalan, an Indian. In one part of the film, there is a Breaking News headline from Bangalore. At that point, the whole crowd cheered loudly. Then they showed a clip of Bangalore and the big, booming metropolis had been depicted as a dirt road with some villagers walking along it. The crowd broke out into a great, simultaneous laugh. It was a wonderful moment that we may not have been able to appreciate if we weren't here.
We also did some shopping for the first time yesterday. We had been waiting until our last stop so as to not have to carry gifts around in our already-stuffed backpacks. It was great fun to look at all the handicrafts and laugh about carting around the 500 lb. wooden elephant sculpture that we both would love to have. I have to say, the process of buying in India is so typically and uniquely Indian. Nothing here is simple when it involves money and there are always many people involved to do the work of few. It takes at least three steps to buy something here. First, you shop and take the item to one counter to get a bill. Then you take that bill to another counter and pay. After you have paid, you get the bill stamped and take it to a third counter where you get another stamp and finally, get a hold of your package and leave.
Even the steps involved in eating at some Indian places are unique. After the market this morning we went to a restaurant that is very popular with the locals. The waiters wear lungis (male sarongs), are barefoot, and weave in and out of the tables providing each person with a thali meal that had at least 15 parts to it. We waiting outside in line for a while with dozens of others until the place opened at 12.30 and when the doors opened, everyone pushed their way to the payment counter. After paying, we followed the crowd upstairs and were given a number on our receipt. When our number was called, we were ushered into the dining hall where we were directed to our seats. The man instructed us to sit side-by-side at a table with a young Indian couple across from us. They were very friendly and interested and helped us through the courses explaining what it was we were eating (it was all veg). Then, everyone was suddenly done eating and started to leave and make room for the next crowd of hungrys.
A couple of weeks ago we agreed that we would never come back to India. We were just happy to have this one month here. But now, as our time here comes to an end, we talk about where we would visit next time. We can imagine coming back to this place; the country that, for a while, made us think twice about this entire trip. We have learned many lessons about our travelling styles and about ourselves. Indian geography is no longer a giant subcontinental blur to us and we can talk about states and cities as if we have lived here for years. Things that surprised us about India are things we no longer think twice about: like seeing swastikas all over the place (India still uses this ancient symbol as an auspicious one, as if Nazi Germany never happened). We have even begun to employ the side nod that foreigners first interpret as meaning "no" when it means just the opposite. We have also come to understand India in some small way and to appreciate it for being so unique and utterly complex. We have learned the true value of the saying that states that for everything you say about India, the exact opposite is also true.
Wish us a uncancelled flight tomorrow. With your well wishes the next time we write it will be from Nepal.
tothesea,
k&m