Sunday

Sunday I went out to Karla and Bhaja caves which are ancient Bhuddist caves up in the mountains.

It has been raining overnight so there were many waterfalls.

The Karla caves are too commercial and someone built the colorful Hindu temple right in front. One guy declared himself my tour guide then asked for payment afterwards. Claimed his normal fee is 500 Rs but he'd accept 300 Rs. I ended up paying him 150 Rs. He was quite nice actually.

The inside of the cave is quite impressive. There are rooms for monks to chant / meditate. The echo must have been quite nice.

Several carvings in the rock.



Then we drove to the Bhaja caves. Needed to cross the railroad tracks.

Tons of college students enjoying the waterfalls.

Many lovely waterfalls during the monsoon season.

Lovely view of the rice farms.


Main cave at Bhaja.

Ceiling has ribs made of wood. Outer area would also have been made of wood which rotted away long ago.



People tease me that the contract on their camera is not working properly... I am too white.

I like my new jacket.

Nice flowers along a little stream.

Oxen waiting for work.

My driver. Turns out he truly is a driver and not a hiker. He found a nice spot to sit and wait for me while I climb the mountains.



Two friendly yet opportunistic boys wanted to charge me 5 Rupees to use the restroom. I countered with 1 Rs (2.25 cents), the going rate. They lowered their price to 3 Rs, no less they claimed. I offered 2 Rs, one for each of them. The line started backing up and if anyone passed me then the boy's scheme would be up. They finally gave in.

Now all of this price negotiation was after the boys excitedly greeted me with, "Hello! Where are you from?" and wanting to shake my hand. I answered their questions yet countered their handshake proposal with a "Namaste" greeting instead. That was just general friendliness and curiosity... then came business: "Five Rupees for you!"

Along the route we drove by a large weapons ordinance factory. In addition to large signs announcing their location they also have a billboard and huge ISO 9001 certification sign.

What I love about the sign is at the bottom it says:
Visitors Entrance:
<-- This way to the Guest House
<-- This way to the Pyro House

Perhaps my company could book me a room in the Pyro House next trip???

Cricket and New Foods

There are many laws of cricket. I am learning the basic ones by watching the match between England and India.

In the second day of play, Broad, an English bowler, completed the first Test hat-trick at Trent Bridge before a roaring crowd.

His hat-trick started when India's captain, Dhoni, wafted outside off stump and was caught at second slip for a one-ball duck.

Next ball Singh was called leg before wicket (lbw) even though replays clearly showed he had got an inside-edge onto his pad. But, because of Indian objections to using ball-tracking technology, there are no lbw reviews this series.

However, there was no doubt when Broad clean bowled Kumar to complete the hat-trick.

For my readers to learn a bit of Test cricket history, there have only been 39 hat-tricks since 1877. India was the only country (of the 10 major Cricket-playing nations) against whom nobody has taken a hat-trick, until today.

India is still currently 43 runs ahead largely from the 117 scored by Dravid, including 19 fours.

After dinner a waiter recommended these Indian desserts. Each is good alone yet together they were amazing. Sweet/salty, nutty, citrus, smooth/rough ...

I also discovered that I can order a masala dosa for breakfast.

Move over idli...

I don't dare try any chaat (Indian snacks) off the street but these snacks from the mall are nice to have on hand.

My first masala chai (spiced milk tea) with coconut cookies. Hotel staff find me quite curious but they're getting to know me well now.

Busy Saturday

Planned for a quiet day yet it turned out full.

Of course I had idli and sambar for breakfast.

Started at Aga Khan Palace and Gandhi National Memorial.

I had the entire place to myself until a large group of children arrived. It was nice to see them.

Next stop Shaniwar Wada, a fortresslike palace in the old part of the city.

Door has daunting foot long spikes to dissuade elephants from ramming it with their forehead.

I walked the perimeter wall.

The construction has many design differences from European forts.

Tuk has been asking for some street scenes.

Here is another one from the wall.

Kit asked to see the car. It is the middle one. The driver is waiting for me.

A nice old cannon.

Then to the Tribal Crafts Museum. Tuk and Misun would enjoy the ceramics.

I like the simple drawings on fabric.

Nice collection of masks.

And a few replica tribal homes.

Jewelry was quite nice yet heavy.

I think Kit would like the metal figures. They are cast using the lost-wax method.

Stopped by this store so the driver could get a little kick back on the knick knacks I bought.

Had lunch at the Blue Nile restaurant.

I ordered a spicy vegetable curry with nan.

Then the driver suggested we go 24 km out of town to another fort, but he got lost. We drove past rice farms using animal labor.

Then the driver found his way again and we drove up the mountain to see the old Sinhagad fort.

Plenty of Indian tourists with just me as a foreigner.

So I made some new friends.

India’s Got Talent Season 3 starts tonight!

What luck: India’s Got Talent – Season 3 - starts tonight at 9:00.

Too bad season 6 of Indian Idol will not start until this fall.

Imagine the stress placed on the telephone infrastructure when 1.2 billion people suddenly start calling in for their favorites.

I asked about the call load and learned that most votes are via SMS messaging which would dramatically reduce the load and allow them to charge an extra fee per message.

Pictures of India

Kit asked to see photos from India. Here was my hotel in Mumbai.
I was upgraded to a suite yet I was only there from 3:00 AM to 9:00 AM.
Included a little kitchen / dining area.

Proximity to the airport was nice yet the area is less than desirable.

Idli with sambar for breakfast, yum! I have this every morning.

Here is my hotel near the office. Sun and Sand hotel but it is hours away from the beach.
There is a small mall across the street selling crafts. Last night I walked around the block but I must risk crossing the street to see this mall.

I go under this train bridge each day. We pass by a military base. Commercial vehicles, including cars for hire, must stop to pay a small toll each direction.

Pass by this river and bridge each morning too. I asked to stop so I could take this photo for Kit.

Our office building in India.

Here is the entrance to our office on the second floor.