India 2012: First time to Bandra

On the Way to Bandra: Taking street stall shopping to a whole new level

Bandra, a inner suburb of Mumbai is one of the places to be - to live, to eat, to go out. There's definitely a different feel to it; yes, it's still lively (the traffic sucked trying to get to the place) but there is a certain charm to the area. Apparently, Bandra is the only part of Mumbai that has cobblestone streets. Trees hang low and there are streets lined with delicious looking restaurants and dessert places. It's neighborhoody.

I think I'm going to have to move from the central, corporate-y part of Mumbai to Juhu beach and the surround areas to get to know ohh shall we say the 'Brooklyn' of Mumbai. There are just so many places in South Bombay and the City that I STILL MUST SEE! Unfortunately, sometimes work gets in the way of life.

More Street Side Shopping

But now I'm going to start exploring more of India, so I may have to put Mumbai to the side for now...

India 2012: Random Musings

Mumbai Taxi with a Message

You know about my obsession with India taxi drivers. We'll I just had to take this picture. Take a look at the sticker on his dashboard:

"SPITTING SPREADS TB: DO NOT SPIT"

I guess you have to be here to find this amusing. Spitting. It's a fact of life for many people here. Big fat globs of spit out of auto rickshaws, taxi windows, car doors. Spit while walking down the street, cutting a guy's hair, biking. Lots of spit. What makes it even better is the red bettle nuts that stain the spit (and one's teeth) a deep, earthy red. Actually, I haven't seen it as much this time around. It was rampant in South East Asia though, especially Burma/Myanmar. So yes, please follow the wise of the sign, "DO NOT SPIT." Thanks

Monday Dinner

On a totally separate note. Monday I had the biggest craving for udon soup with a half cooked egg. Couldn't find any nearby, so I went for the buffet instead where I was promised sushi. Ermm the sushi was questionable, and I think they accidentally used soy sauce in the balsamic vinaigrette instead of, well, balsamic vinegar. But they did have some halfway descent fresh salsa, which made me nostalgic for summer tacos with fresh guac and salsa on my Hope Street front stoop. And halfway through the noodles I realized the buffet had all the fixin's of a good salami sandwich (a throwback to my ATDP summer courses and ferreting out the best salami and avocado sandwiches on baguettes around the UC Berkeley campus. Double fat = double good). So I made myself some mini sandwiches and at least had my fill of nostalgic delights.

What I didn't mention was that after eating I finally got over my dizzy-nausea spell caused by a 30 minute swimming session - first exercise in I don't know how many months. Kind of pathetic.

Dubai

At People. Yes that's Taoi Cruz, and yes he sung only two songs wtf

Burj Khalifa. It's really amazingly beautiful. Impressive

What to say about Dubai. I could talk about the crazy clubs and bottle service (yes sparklers are included in your vintage Dom). I could talk about the largest mall in the world, Dubai Mall. It has everything (except a pinkish bridesmaid's dress fyi). I could even talk about the Burj Khalifa (it comes out as Burn al Arabe on an iPhone...and that's when I accuse friends of being racist). But instead, I think I'll talk about what seems to be a new obsession of mine: Drivers.

Taking a taxi in Dubai is like night and day or day and night with the experience in India.

India: Black and Yellow no a/c taxis dominate the street. The little Fiat taxis are way too small for people who sit up tall. They have cute little meters outside of the left hand front window - a sort of opposite mailbox. A passenger is inside? Flag gets swung down. Shock absorbers? What are those? However, there are many springy springs in the cushions of the backseat; think astro bouncy castle. Did I mention that many are non a/c...and that's it's getting hot in Mumbai?

The drivers of this taxis possess the most impressive skill of squeezing between two cars, the public bus and the center divide (and you wondered why the side view mirrors have been taken off all the taxis!). There were only two times so far that I thought I was a goner (a private car started edging into our non-existent lane. It was then that I really wished there were seat bents in the back seat. Did I mention the decoration? India drivers know how to decorate their cars, from the paintings and stickers on the exterior to orange tiger print or flowers in the interior. I actually happened across a great little article about just this topic.

Incense is sometimes burned, a little disco ganesha might be on the dashboard, and most likely than not, some type of Indian music is blasting on the radio, only to be rivaled by the incessant honking of the driver's and his compatriots' horns. And it was only today that it hit me: damn Dubai really is soulless in so many ways (I really must take the time right now to say how much I enjoyed meeting the people I met while I was there. THEY were great, Dubai...well I still can't imagine how I'd ever fit in).

Dubai: these cabs are clean, sleek, with blasting a/c. If I were a guy I could probably tell you the make and model of the car (it wasn't so impressive. I get the impression that it was a Toyota of some sorts though - not at all competing with the porches, Ferraris, and Bentleys I saw line the streets). All the taxis come with fancy touch screen meters (but no cc accepted either fyi). And fast. Traffic is fast, drivers are fast, zooming across stretches of never-ending highways, not a single sidewalk in sight many times. Yes, perhaps drivers do follow the 'guidelines' of the street lines more often than in India; but most of them driver with the wheel in one hand, cellphone in the other it seems.

These drivers are Indian (I can't get away), Pakistani, and I'm sure a lot of other. One thing to be sure, none of them are Emirati, as they get paid way too much by the government every year to have to be a driver (yay Oil). It's actually quite pleasant to be zoomed along going from one large building to the next; you certainly don't come out dripping with sweat.

But as I said. Today it hit me. The biggest, glaring difference for me between these two driving experiences, the biggest 'tell' into Dubai city living and culture, is every time I got into a cab, I'd be asked if I like music. The driver would then turn on the radio to what is probably the most popular radio station in Dubai - Top (American) 40s with a some house thrown in. I think I experienced the biggest culture shock or reverse culture shock or however you want to define it from the radio, the type of music the driver chose. Top 40s? Perhaps it makes sense: why would an Indian driver in Dubai play traditional Arab music or Arab pop? But reeeeelly? I just don't know. I really just don't know.

New York Respite

My sleep schedule is so messed up and that's probably the result of a no-sleep week in New York. But you know what, it was worth it. I got to see a ton of friends, went to some museum, the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens (FINALLY). I ate some pie of the sweet and pizza nature. I saw a lot of Brooklyn, which basically reaffirmed the fact that I'd love to stay there forever (or get an apartment at the very least) if it weren't so damn expensive in my neighborhood. Plus I'm very unsure about all the nannies who have recently popped up. What is this, the UES? Basically...

The things I've missed most about New York is being able to walk around. Perhaps. this is available in many cities, but not in my two current homes (Delhi and Mumbai), not so much at least. But you know what, maybe I'm just lazy now and can't be bothered to walk a few miles a day. I need to re-evaluate my way of thinking and perhaps start walking to work??

India 2012: Take II

Lower Parel, Mumbai, India

Every time I go back to New York, I get an overwhelming feeling of joy as the plane swoops on down to JFK. I love the little islets of Jamaica Bay, I love the lights, I love the furry clouds. And I especially love the drive back to Hope Street, the first views of the Manhattan skyline, the familiarity of guiding the taxi driver 'right, left, right' to my little pale blue home. I don't love the traffic, but New York is definitely not perfect.

More Lower Parel

Coming back to India, I got my very own unique Indiafied welcome --just as warm, if a bit special--consisting of:

I. The Sweat

Take five steps off the plane and I'm drenched. Back at home, I could finally sympathize with people who can't stand the cold. I usually do well with cold weather, but India has spoiled me; I'm frozen in weather under 75 degrees! And India has reminded me that at least for the next two months I don't need to worry about taking a sweater with me 'just in case.'

II. Squitoes

"Hello! You're in India BITE!" I think by my sixth step, not only was I sweating, but I got my first mosquito bite of this trip. Damn you mosquitoes, why do you love me so?

III. Babies

You know the sinking feeling when you board a plane, find your seat, and realize you're seated right next to a baby? Well that happened to me this morning. And not wanting to be the person who steals someone else's seat to avoid the baby on board, I plunked down (you know...there were so many empty seats, why did I bother?). Of course the baby was cute and of course he was fussy. I held my ground and popped on earphones, until after a trip to the bathroom the baby came back bare bottom with his junk hanging out. It's a baby, so not a problem usually, until said bare baby butt rests on my cloth covered seat. Hmmm

IV. Taxi Drivers

You know, I don't even mind drivers trying to rip me off, when compared to those who try to rip me off and waste my time by driving me nonsensically around. Drivers: I live here, so don't bother! HA

V. Red String Bracelets

Yes, I'm not Hindu, but I love the red string bracelets one can get in temples (my bracelet lasted for 6 months). However, it's a bit disconcerting when out find one mixed in with your cumin and coriander spiced banana chips at Cafe Coffee Day. Ermmm...

Even more Lower Parel

Oh India. You know, I've kind of missed you!

India 2012: The Driver

Recently, I've come across many articles about the Indian Driver, the loneliness, the monotony. It's a waiting game for them: waiting for fares, waiting for customers, waiting for hours on end sometimes. I guess it's 'worth' it if these drivers are waiting for a paying fare, but what in the world would YOU do all day if you had to wait for someone for 8 hours? I'd take on extra fares, but that can go terribly wrong if your paying fare decides to call you early. Personally, I'd go crazy if I had to wait around for someone, doing absolutely nothing. The lack of brain stimulus would do me in.

However, long waits are at least paid waits, and this is much preferable to scrambling for fares, competing with other drivers, but not too much to drive down the cost of the fare (if the customer isn't crafty enough to get the meter price). Auto and taxi drivers will even offer to 'wait for free' when they're having slow days.

And it's exactly this waiting that blows my mind, or rather the significance of this waiting: time is cheap. Of course, not everyone's time is cheap in India, but for these drivers, it's their most abundant resource. True, time is not limitless, but in a day, a driver has 24 hours, which he doesn't have to pay for, meaning the cost of going 20km in 30 minutes versus a period over 4 hours remains nearly the same when there isn't any potential for other fares.

Oh drivers...

Kangaroos and Boomerangs

Okay so the closest thing I got to a kangaroo was 'Essence of Kangaroo" in pill form at the airport, but I did see a lot of souvenir boomerangs. And a surprising amount of Sydney for being there for business meetings. One thing that was heartbreaking was that I was invited to the opera on Friday night...the same night that I was taking a flight to Melbourne. Sigh...next time?

Australia is pretty awesome. It's a tad like the US in that it was kind of founded on the same grounds around(ish?) the same times. The big difference is that I suppose we fought for our freedom, and Australia is still part of the Commonwealth. Also, I heard a surprising amount of penal colony jokes. Quaint. Another thing that is kind of frapping (you know what is the the English equivalent of frapping? not shocking, not stunning, hmmm) is that there are so many Asians. It makes sense seeing as Australia's nearest neighbor is Asia. In Australia, the region is called "Australiasia" WTF! HAHAHA

Because of the mining and perhaps the fact that it's so isolated from everywhere else, Australia weathered the 2008 financial crisis rather well. That and China's government when on rampant spending spree to prop up it's economy and thus bought a whole bunch of natural resources from Australia. And what's the most apparent sign of this mining wealth - the good wages but expensive prices of everything. It's rather surprising just how expensive food, cabs, everything is.

But this is definitely mitigated by the FANTASTIC QUALITY OF LIFE in Australia. Not bad you Aussies!

So yes, I saw a bridge, an opera house, a few wharves and harbors. AND I even saw some big o' manufacturing plants!

Damn you, you delicious hot as hell chicken wing!

Then I got on a plane to Melbourne, which is a total college town. Whereas Sydney seemed more refined, Melbourne (or at least the parts I saw) seemed younger, buzzing with life. There are tons of restaurants and bubble tea places, pie shops, churros galore!

The inner suburbs can be compared to the cute neighborhoods of Brooklyn...but not really. A little more small town, Philly? Not sure. But lots of fun.

And then I rode on some old roller coasters and bruised my shins up and down. Fantastic fun.

All in all a great introduction to a land far far away.

Next stop: NEW YORK! And then Dubai :)

India: Gap in India Life

Ya, it's been awhile. But it was because of work travel! So updates (and some pictures to come)

Australia is kind of awesome!

The Indian Sweater Vest

If I were more of an *$$ I would have pictures of the vast array of sweater vests I see on the men in Gurgaon (if not all of India). I'm not sure if it's a winter thing, but they are everywhere. What makes them so incredibly special are the wild colors. When I refer to the colors, I'm not talking about your 'run of the mill' Indian colors of deep purples and greens and beautiful blues and yellows. I'm talking about the in your face day-glo purple pinks, mustards with gold metallic threads woven through, swimming pool blue. And the cable of the sweaters! Thick, patterned, almost home-knitted looking. Where do the men get these sweaters? At Big Bazaar (I'll search next time I'm there...)? Gifts from their mothers? Their girlfriends? Do these disco sweaters catch the eyes of these men on the rack, outshining the sweatshirts, the button downs, the graphic T's? What is it all about?

If I learn anything in India, it must be the mystery of the sweater vest!

On that same note, I'm absolutely excited to go to Egypt and to test my theory on why on their canned sodas the tab pulls off instead of opens into the cans (as one finds in the US and most of the world). I believe it's to prevent any part of the outside can to go into the consumable beverage...there are rampant germs and bacteria in this world. I think it's kind of genius, but I want to know the TRUE reason! I guess I'll find out in a few weeks :)

(next post will have pictures...I promise!)

India 2012: Tampon shopping, a very bling bling experience

Depending on what part of the world you're in, finding tampons is sometimes an exhausting experience, and when a girl wants to be comfortable tampons are the way to go (yes girls, you understand me). So you can imagine my chagrin when I realized that I'd have to go on a quest to find the little buggers here in India. Grrr

First, I called the concierge at the front desk to see if there was a pharmacy nearby (in my experience, the pharmacy is usually the place to go. Nope. Out of luck, no pharmacy in the huge mall right next door to the hotel. I'd have to take a car and ask a driver to go to the nearest one. However, I learned that if I wanted, I could call down and arrange for someone to pick up anything I wanted at the pharmacy. Now that's just ludicrous I thought...No, I'd call down again and ask a girl, woman to woman, where in the world did one find tampons.

The next time I called down, I struck gold! Not only did I get a girl, but she directed me to the mall next door where there was a big department cum grocery store, where I could find all of those goodies. So I slipped on a pair of shoes, threw on my Club Monaco camel wool cardigan with suede elbow patches (thanks Scott!) the very same garment in which I nearly passed out in the back of a cab from heat exhaustion earlier that evening, and took a jaunt to the mall.

The malls in Gurgaon are intense. There are many malls with many stores. After going every which way for a while (I learned here that most people who work in stores just really don't know where other stores or amenities are other than their store), I found Big Bazaar. And even better, I found a whole shelf of pads -- surrounded by aisles of clothes, trinkets and electronics. 'Hmm straaaange,' I thought but at least I was on the right track. A man behind a counter asked if he could help me, to which I replied,

- "Yes, do you also sell tampons or just pads?"

- "Yes there are pads behind you?

- "Yes but do you also sell tampons? Not just pads?" Gesture to the piles of pads on the shelf

- "They are right there" Gesture to the same humongous pile of pads on the shelf

- "Yes but those are pads, do you also sell tampons"

- "You want diapers?"

- "No, not diapers. I'm looking for tampons. You know...pads and tampons"

- "Ohh Whisper brand, yes they are in the grocery section"

- "No, not a brand, tampons. I want tampons"

- "Maybe if you can explain their function to me...?"

(To which point I thought...'Should I really say, you know every month women stick them into themselves to stop the flow of blood....usually men are kind of grossed out by the whole process but since you asked...')

- "Ermmm same function as pads," I decided to stay instead

- "OHHH yes, they are also in the grocery section to the left. So how about you look at some jewelry. It's 60% off."

- "Jewelry??? No I don't want to look at jewelry"

- "But very nice jewelry, good sale. I show you jewelry now. 60% off"

exit Kiyomi

But at least I found them AND discovered a treasure trove of grocery goodies under the Ambiance mall:

Buy this container AND receive a free kilo of sugar! Now that's what I call a deal!

Every samosa seller's dream: 5 gallon jugs of sunflower oil

Rice by the kilo flavored with mother hands, baby hands manly hands, store clerk hands, everyone's hands!

And I found a mini photo studio which does passport size photos. Even more amazing (spoiler alert if you have a birthday coming up soon), I can get my face printed on a heart shaped pillow!!! Amazing. Sigh, India is great. So ridiculous and fun. And I've successfully avoided the 12 day "welcome to India" present of digestive track issues. And since I just wrote this, I'll probably get sick tomorrow :)