India ~ 16 Jul 2007

India Map

India 1997. Journeys through India began in Madras in the Southern state of Tamil Nadu in January 1997. From here I flew to Sri Lanka, flew back to Thiruvananthapuram in the Southern state of Kerala. I then made my way North via train, bus, bike, and automobile. The last destination on this trip was New Dehli in April 1997. Below for 1997 are: General, Madras (Tamil Nadu), Tellicherry / Thiruvanathapuram (Kerala), Kochin / Cochin (Kerala), Mysore, (Karnataka), Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh), Aurangabad (Maharashtra), Orchha (Madhya Pradesh), Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh), Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), Agra (Uttar Pradesh), Mathura (Uttar Pradesh), Delhi (Delhi)

India 2009. Most of this three month journey was in Bengaluru, Karnataka where I am teaching Agile and Consulting practices at ThoughtWorks University. Throughout the stay I took occasional trips to other parts of the country; these are listed with the Bangalore posts. Below for 2009 are: Bengaluru (Karnataka)

INDIA STATS

BENGALURU, KARNATAKA

India Border Crossing ~ 06 May 2009
It's the India border I'll be crossing in a couple of days. I'm being sent to TWU as a trainer. My Indian visa came back faster than expected... so fast (a few days) that the first word that popped in...

One Night in Halifax ~ 08 May 2009
Some people talk about spending one night in Bangkok or Paris, perhaps London or Delhi. My night always seems to be Halifax... one night in Halifax. We're here and we've made it a girl's night out: ...

Flight Path to India ~ 10 May 2009
Never in my life have I ever had a series of near flight misses like the past few days. I expected to be able to stop at some point and get some water or aspirin for my splitting headache. But I've no...

Bangalore ~ 12 May 2009
The question I get asked most since coming back to India is: "Has it changed much in the past 12 years?" I'll admit that something is different. I haven't been able to put my finger on what as of ye...

Parking Garage Chemist ~ 12 May 2009
On day two of this great big adventure I started to get a bit of a scratchy throat. (Don't tell anyone in India immigration this because they'll send over the doctors/nurses in white suits.) As such...

The Wonderful World of Wacky Signs ~ 13 May 2009
I'd completely forgotten about the wonderfully wacky signs you find all over India. Above is definitely one of my favourites. There are a couple others I failed to take a photo of: from a bathroom, ...

Sethji ~ 15 May 2009
When asking people around the Bangalore office (and who have been in Bangalore) where to eat, almost always the first thing people list off is "go to Sethji for parathas." "Try the salt lasse" is ge...

Rickshaw Ride from Hell ~ 17 May 2009
"OMG. Did you just hit that pedestrian? Or did you just soak him with water!" I was already drenched from the massive puddle we just blasted through. I was sitting in a rickshaw in the midst of a t...

Shanti Sagr ~ 18 May 2009
While out for lunch on Thursday I snapped photos along the way. One of the things the locals joke about is the number of photos of cows the westerners take. I'm guilty... there's something strangel...

A Day in the Life of a TW Trainer ~ 20 May 2009
And now for some general scenes from the every day life of a TW Trainer... for those people who keep asking "what's it like." You know who you are. Above is the TW Office in Bangalore. It's big, it...

Salt Lasse in a Juice Box ~ 21 May 2009
This time around I'm getting the full range of lasses; from mango to salt to sweet to rose to things I can't even describe (a lasse is a yogurt drink). The lasse in a juice box was new and interesti...

Don't Put Garbage Here ~ 22 May 2009
I've been having some really good conversations with the people in India around expectations, conflict resolution, crucial conversations, poverty, and change. Will work on putting those together in ...

Some India Philosophies ~ 23 May 2009
I know I said a few posts ago that my philosophy is to adapt and just "drink the water and get it all over with in one big swoop and aren't surprised when you least expect it." This said, I do have ...

Commercial Street ~ 24 May 2009
Saturday and Sunday were spent on Commercial Street checking out a whole host of stores and vendors. This is more of what I had envisioned as a shopping experience in Bangalore; I think I spent w...

People ~ 24 May 2009
People fascinate me. The things they do, the things they say, their history, their baggage, and the ways that they behave in differing circumstances: it's all one big study and an immensely inter...

When in Rome... ~ 26 May 2009
Are you ok with this madam? The little lady says as she is smacking my head. Bap bap bap bap bap, it's very rhythmic and somehow kind of soothing. I'm not the biggest fan of head massages, but then ...

Bottles on the Wall ~ 28 May 2009
We had a wonderful Mangalorian restaurant experience tonight. There is so much to write. Suzi is in town and with that came a fantastic meal, a tour of the restaurant kitchen, an interesting history...

Kanua ~ 30 May 2009
"The ceiling tiles are 150 years old. They come from Mangalore because they fit the design vision. We wanted to make sure they were used instead of destroyed." "How did you come up with the design ...

Writing at Leela Palace (with Geez*) ~ 31 May 2009
I've been doing most of my paper writing at Leela Palace. They have the only barrista I've seen in Bangalore -- and the cafe itself is situated in the middle of a beautiful garden. There's somethin...

A Funny Little Life ~ 06 Jun 2009
It's a funny little life that I have right now... living in a foreign country, struggling with things like how to work the washing machine, figuring out all the 9s, 0s and 1s for calling people on m...

Mauled by a Tiger ~ 07 Jun 2009
In the midst of a walking tour of MG Road and while at the Holy Trinity Church, I found a rather interesting plaque on the wall: "Sacred to the memory of George Staple Dobbie ESQ. Mysore Revenue Su...

Phoebe ~ 08 Jun 2009
It seems that my new roommate Phoebe (above) really likes to watch me practice my consulting content for TWU. Tonight she learned all about Consulting in Context. We had a great discussion about cha...

High Level View ~ 09 Jun 2009
Above is Bangalore from one of the night clubs on MG Road. I now have two lizards interested in Agile development practices: both watched me run through the Analysis presentation a million times to...

Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch... ~ 10 Jun 2009
There I was, carrying a big stack of books, my backpack, and a flip chart board. My cell phone was ringing from within a plastic paper container that I had balanced on the stack of books. That's about...

Body Craft, Indiranagar ~ 13 Jun 2009
I went for a pedicure with the lovely Rixt today. She knows all the great places. Because I've been suffering from headaches I opted for the Ayurvedic head massage (read: pounding) and foot massage ...

Sri Maha Muneeshwara Temple, Bangalore ~ 15 Jun 2009
There are random temples everywhere in India; and, often they crop up in the oddest of places. This particular one is on MG Road in Bangalore. My Hindu knowledge is a tad bit rusty so I'll point out...

Strangely Comforting... ~ 16 Jun 2009
Above is a wild section of Bangalore owned by the Indian Military. I'm currently living within a kilometre of the Indian Air Force Training Centre, which is strangely comforting because I grew up on...

South Indian Chillies ~ 17 Jun 2009
Above are South Indian Green Chillies. Remember many of the chili contests / tricks from the past (here and here). Well, I'm unhappy to announce that those chillies were tame compared to what we at...

Street Dogs ~ 19 Jun 2009
Warning: rather graphic post below. It might upset some people. Locals call them street dogs, pariah dogs, and sometimes pye (pi) dogs. They are the feral dogs that live on the streets of India and...

The June 2009 Batch of TWU ~ 19 Jun 2009
They're not really my students -- yet they are. They're co-workers and peers yet they're not quite ready for project work. I am supposed to call them freshers but would rather call them peeps. If you ...

GENERAL

Chai ~ 17 Jan 2004
The first time I heard the word chai was in Madras, India. I remember the exact location and events that followed. It was the Boopathy Cafe across from the British Railway Station in Euston. I was h...

India Sky ~ 18 Jan 2006
I took this photo in Orchha, India many many years ago. I am looking up into the princess' palace from the courtyard. Legend has it that a princess was held here against her will. She was a gifted m...

Butterfly in India ~ 24 Oct 2006
Many of you have already seen the photo above; it was from a very momentous time for me and I feel gifted with being able to photograph these two girls. Before I met them I was sick; I thought I was...

Didgeridoo ~ 24 Aug 2007
One of my favourite sounds is the deep and mysterious sound that the didgeridoo makes; it's very primal and it appeals to the same side of me that relaxes whenever I hear OM. The above shot is one o...

MADRAS/CHENNAI, TAMIL NADU

Culture Shock. Madras, India. ~ 21 Jan 1997
I can't believe what is happening to me. I'm in the midst of severe culture shock. I'm in Madras, probably one of the nicest cities in India, and I'm completely and absolutely overwhelmed. I'm having ...

Chaos and Scooters ~ 24 Jan 1997
A man once said there is no order in the universe, it is really all just mad chaos. That man must have lived and driven in Madras! Actually, and surprisingly, there is some sort of order to India that...

Indian Girls ~ 25 Jan 1997
Government Museum in Madras, in the shade. There are lots of school kids around and the girls flock to us. They are smiling, winking and laughing. It's like we can communicate without talking. They ...

Republic Day / Marina Beach ~ 26 Jan 1997
I just had the most amazing day. I decided to walk to Marina Beach because our waiter at the Boopathy (Sami / Walter) told me i...

The Senate House ~ 27 Jan 1997
On one of our beach trips in Madras I noticed a very old British building and decided to investigate because it looked interesting. It has huge stained glass windows, tower structures and iron gates...

Saint Mary's Church ~ 28 Jan 1997
The Saint Mary's Church within the walls of the Madras Fort is a very quiet place to sit and get out of the heat. Unlike other places in Madras your left alone to do as you wish. In fact to find the c...

The Women's Car ~ 29 Jan 1997
I've definitely stayed in the city too long. It really wears on you. It's unrelenting; the ugliness is sometimes too much. But I guess it is good to let yourself get accustomed to the worst possible...

Deja Vu and a Woman Named Susanna ~ 29 Jan 1997
Today's walk through the Madras Fort was eerie. It touched a place inside my brain that I don't think has ever been touched; and, as I walked around the Fort in wonder I felt as though I had done this...

Saint Mary's Graveyard ~ 30 Jan 1997
In venturing down a busy street in search of St. Mary's Graveyard, I discovered that no one really knows what you are looking for when you ask or how to get there. However, they will always pretend to...

Travel and Time ~ 31 Jan 1997
I sit in my sordid little room contemplating the dirty white walls and waiting. Time is such a funny thing. When you are working you never have enough of it, and when you do manage to get a day or two...

TELLICHERRY / THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, KERALA

Indian Coffee House, Thiruvananthapuram ~ 24 Feb 1997
The Indian Coffee House is a sight to behold and is completely unexpected in an interesting way; I love it. The coffee shop is built within a spiral chimney. You enter the building at the bottom and h...

Tellicherry / Thalaserry, Kerala ~ 02 Mar 1997
Hanuman is the most devoted worshiper of Rama and is said to be present whenever Rama's name is mentioned. It seems he can never get enough of Rama stories and is always lurking in a dark hallway or c...

KOCHIN / COCHIN, KERALA

Strike in Kochi ~ 25 Feb 1997
There is some sort of strike happening in Kochi. It was very eerie at first when I stepped off the train and walked into town. There are troops everywhere but no cars, just military jeeps. It was even...

Fort Kochin ~ 26 Feb 1997
Today we walked to the fort rather than take a rickshaw. It was a long haul and we stupidly did it during the hottest part of the day. What a lesson! The fort is an interesting place, you could spen...

Jew Town and Spices ~ 27 Feb 1997
One very interesting scene I happened upon while in Fort Cochin was women preparing ginger in Jew town. Jew town is the main spice area for India: Pepper and ginger were being prepared behind old wa...

Kathakali Dancers ~ 28 Feb 1997
Rather then try to put together bits and pieces of the Ramayana together into a complete story, I bought a copy and am now reading it in hopes of understanding much of the art, stories, and theatre ...

Musings on Kochi and Philosophy ~ 01 Mar 1997
My last evening in Kochi was spent watching a second Kathikali performance, this time at the See-India Foundation. It was (I believe) a purer form of dance than the one I saw at the Cochin Fort. I gue...

MYSORE, KARNATAKA

Bus Ride to Mysore, South Karnataka ~ 04 Mar 1997
Getting to Mysore was an adventure -- in a typical Indian transportation kind of way. I showed up at the bus station in Tellicherry early (like always) and had to wait 20 minutes for the bus. I aske...

The Brindavan Gardens ~ 05 Mar 1997
After the fort we drove another million miles at breakneck speeds to the Brindavan Gardens, which were the pleasure gardens of Tippu Sultan. The entire garden is flanked by a dam built in the 1800s,...

Tippu Sultans Summer Palace and Fort ~ 05 Mar 1997
After St. Philomena's Church we headed out of town to Tippu Sultan's Summer Palace. It was unbearably hot here without much shade or cover from the heat. The outside walls of the summer palace itsel...

St. Philomena's Church ~ 05 Mar 1997
Next we went to St. Philomena's Church. We skipped the zoo, which I am glad of because I'm not a big fan of zoos. The church was huge and is supposed to be the largest in India. I think I was a bit ...

The Mysore Palace ~ 05 Mar 1997
After lunch (a tiny bit of plain rice for me), we went to the Maharajah's palace in Mysore; a.k.a. The Mysore Palace. It's huge and during tours you only get to see half of it; the other half is occ...

Chamundi Hills ~ 05 Mar 1997
The next destination on the tour was the Chamundi Hills. Once again we flew out of Mysore at breakneck speeds and ventured dangerously 15km up into the hills and to the tallest peak. Atop the Chamund...

Jaganmohan Palace / Art Gallery ~ 05 Mar 1997
The second destination on the tour was the Art Gallery within the Jaganmohan Palace. Jaganmohan Palace is one of the oldest buildings in Mysore. It was built in 1861 and housed the royal family when t...

Keshava Temple ~ 05 Mar 1997
All the sites were interesting and worth a visit, but bear with me because my perception of each was marred by the way I felt. The first site to visit was the Keshava Temple, in Somanathapura. The dri...

Mysore Bus Tour ~ 05 Mar 1997
I woke up sick; my first real sickness since coming to India. I took nearly a month a half (not bad) and this morning I woke up with a bad case of the runs and was constantly on the edge of vomiting...

Mysore Market ~ 06 Mar 1997
I'm still not feeling up to par today but rather than sit in my room all day I walked through the Mysore Market and took photos of people -- something I've wanted to do since coming to India. There...

HYDERABAD, ANDHRA PRADESH

Hyderabad / Secunderabad ~ 10 Mar 1997
I'm not sure how I made it to Secunderabad. Somewhere in the midst of the 15 hour train ride my mind flew out the window and flapped around until well after my arrival. The trip was very long but lu...

The Rat, the Mouse and the Ragda Cutlet ~ 10 Mar 1997
Sometimes finding good food to eat is nothing short of torture... after... when you are getting friendly with the loo in your hotel room. I have already spent a day in the loo with my friend the big b...

AURANGABAD, MAHARASHTRA

Adventure in Maharashtra ~ 12 Mar 1997
Once again I'm on the ladies car of the train. This one is considerably less crowded and also much smaller. I think this is a local train and that I have to switch somewhere to a fa...

Aurangabad ~ 13 Mar 1997
The hotel I am staying in is called the Ranjit hotel. I think it is fairly new and it smells of fresh paint and the walls are very pink with little to no dirt. When I first arrived my impression was...

Ellora Caves / Daulatabad Fort ~ 14 Mar 1997
Today's journey was the Ellora Caves and Daulatabad Fort. I caught a bus and made my way up the plateau and past the Daulatabad Fort to the caves first. It was relatively easy to get there; there ar...

ORCHHA, MADHYA PRADESH

The Chhatries in Orchha, Holi and a Sick Friend ~ 18 Mar 1997
I have never seen a place so beautiful. There are literally temples and palaces spilling out into the countryside and the town of Orchha is built amongst the ruins of chhatries, temples and a gigant...

Orchha Palace Walkman Tour ~ 20 Mar 1997
I've encountered another innovative Indian idea -- a palace Walkman tour! When you are ready to go on the tour, you head up to the Sheesh Mahal Palace and chat with the nice people at the front desk...

Happy Holi ~ 24 Mar 1997
It's the Holi Festival -- day 2, the day when people throw paint at one another. Before getting into the action I stood on the balcony to see what I was in for. It seemed pretty mellow and that peop...

Lakshmana Temple and the Sheesh Mahal Palace ~ 25 Mar 1997
I'm having a rather blue day and rather than hang out and drag everyone down I decided to do a solo exploration of the Lakshmana Temple. However, once there I couldn't motivate myself to go inside a...

Ashraya (Shelter / Protection) ~ 17 Feb 2009
Photo above taken in Orchha, India. We had an in depth discussion this morning after reading an article about the amount of money handed out as bonuses in places like Wall Street and even in the oi...

KHAJURAHO, MADHYA PRADESH

Intro to Khajuraho ~ 26 Mar 1997
I left Orchha with Mike and Leslie -- by car. It's almost a relief to be out of the town though I will miss it's palace walls and untouched demeanor. It didn't feel like I was in the 20th century wh...

Mr. Cockroach and the Cockroach Chronicles ~ 26 Mar 1997
The place that I am staying in in Khajuraho has an excellent toilet; it's a squat but it is clean. The shower actually has hot water! And, I don't mean: "kind of warm and sometimes hot" water. I mean:...

The Temples of Love, Khajuraho ~ 27 Mar 1997
The temples are an amazing work of art and well worth a journey! Erotica is one theme (and a reason why many visit) but the erotica is limited to the outside of the temples; the insides are reserved...

Khajuraho Eastern Group of Temples ~ 28 Mar 1997
Today I went to tour the Eastern group of temples. I rented a bicycle to do this, which cost me 20 rupees for the whole day. The first temple grouping I went to was the Jain temples. I find the Jain...

VARANASI, UTTAR PRADESH

The Ghats ~ 31 Mar 1997
Today's journey was with Micha down to the burning Ghat. What an eerie place. I felt very strange there. It isn't right to just go and watch for an hour. You need to go for an entire day; then you g...

Banares, City of Light ~ 03 Apr 1997
I am reading Banares: City of Light by Diana L. Eck. It has a very philosophical view of the City of Varnasi and pretty much everything you see, smell, taste and feel within the old city. Sometimes ...

Varanasi ~ 05 Apr 1997
Varanasi is such a bizarre place. It keeps me on the edge constantly. Every little thing makes me jump and start and yet it is a peaceful and enlightened place. To think that the people who come her...

Setting Sun Stream of Consciousness, Part 1 ~ 06 Apr 1997
I am sitting on the steps of the Ghats by one of the many Chai shops. There are lots of things to see. Just to give people an idea of how overwhelming it can be, how much is happening at once on the...

Setting Sun Stream of Consciousness, Part 2 ~ 07 Apr 1997
I am sitting in the same place as yesterday and the scenes are very different. As I walked I saw a skull lying on the ground. A Sadhu with no nose chanting (above). Lots of people asking "boat madam...

The Ghats as in Banares, City of Light ~ 07 Apr 1997
When I read about where I walked this morning along the Ghats I can see the things that Dianne Eck points out in Banares, City of Light. The Asi Ghat: the first ghat at the meeting of the Asi and Ga...

Setting Sun Stream of Consciousness Part 3 ~ 09 Apr 1997
For the third day in a row I am sitting on one of the ghats by a tiny, mobile chai shop. Again, the scenes are very different though the boat makers have made progress: A wedding procession, the bri...

Boat Ride Down the Ganges ~ 10 Apr 1997
My flute lessons are going pathetically. During today's lesson there were Sadhus sitting near the temple listening to the master play. However, when I started my lame wailing each one of them got up...

The Temple of Hanuman ~ 11 Apr 1997
This morning I got up early and went with Micha and Inga to the Guru Ramesh's house where Inga and Micha are getting a spiritual cleansing. I am sitting in a place called the Temple of Hanuman. It is ...

NORTHERN INDIA

Agra ~ 13 Apr 1997
If there's any city within India that is tainted by tourism, Agra is it. All the westerners I've encountered affectionately call the city "Agro." Of course, people come to Agra to see the Taj Mahal,...

The Hare Krishnas of Mathura ~ 15 Apr 1997
I decided to check out the temples in the Krishna complex. To get there I had to do the "Walk of Whistling Shame" past all the soldiers and young boys. I have learned that the complex is the Shri Kr...

Delhi ~ 16 Apr 1997
Delhi seems to be the meeting place for long lost friends. While being dragged about various shops and merchants to look at clothing and rugs I didn't want (by a rickshaw driver), I accidentally ran...

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