For Christmas (on the 25th) we made presents for other people, and we had a very good dinner together, followed by a performance about Jesus' birth. And then, in the workshop about astronomy, we saw some shooting stars and made wishes for next year!
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Christmas at Sadhana Forest, Auroville
For Christmas (on the 25th) we made presents for other people, and we had a very good dinner together, followed by a performance about Jesus' birth. And then, in the workshop about astronomy, we saw some shooting stars and made wishes for next year!
Friday, December 17, 2010
The big tourist attraction
Finally we managed to do some sight-seeing. Mamallapuram is also one of the best places to do that. Just by walking through the city you see a lot of temples, rock-cut caves and reliefs. So yesterday we decided to do the whole package: We took some water, the travel guide and off we went.
At first we went to see the 5 Rathas, which are monolith-temples discovered by the Britains. While Nina learned the guide book by heart and tried to find all the details about the different gods, and the facts about a vedic story (the Rathas were named after the 5 brothers in this story), Simone took her camera and discovered the place. It had a strange atmosphere. You stand there and you know how incredible old those stones are, but still it looks like somebody had just built them some days ago.
Another strange thing we experienced is, that we are also some kind of attraction for Indians. During the whole last day we made about 5 pictures together with Indians. Or they took photos of us, to say the truth. At first they just stare and smile at us, and then they take their mobile phone and try to take some secret pictures, but, of course, this is very obvious. And they can't take really good pictures where everybody can see properly, that (believe it or not) they are REALLY standing next to white people! So I wonder on how many tourist photos were are going to end until we leave India. Perhaps we become some local celebrities?!
After the Rathas we made our way to the Shore temple, which is directly at the sea side. This place was even nicer than the first one. Between the actually two temples you can watch a big Shiva sleeping on a stone bench. And the whole temple complex is guarded by around 30 very terrifying stone bulls.
To come to an end, we went to see Arjuna's Penance, which is a huge stone carving. This carving has a touch of irony: Beside Arjuna's penance you can also see a cat making the same position as Arjuna, and a crowd of mice looking at it.
So that was it. Pictures are coming soon!!
Today we made our way to Pondicherry/Puducherry, where we are going to stay until Monday. We wanted to stay in Mamallapuram and make a bicycle trip today, but as nobody told the south Indians that it's dry season now, it was pouring down the whole night and morning, and it didn't quite stop until the afternoon. So now we are here. This is a former french colony, why a lot of street signs etc. are still in french. I like that. À bientôt!
At first we went to see the 5 Rathas, which are monolith-temples discovered by the Britains. While Nina learned the guide book by heart and tried to find all the details about the different gods, and the facts about a vedic story (the Rathas were named after the 5 brothers in this story), Simone took her camera and discovered the place. It had a strange atmosphere. You stand there and you know how incredible old those stones are, but still it looks like somebody had just built them some days ago.
Another strange thing we experienced is, that we are also some kind of attraction for Indians. During the whole last day we made about 5 pictures together with Indians. Or they took photos of us, to say the truth. At first they just stare and smile at us, and then they take their mobile phone and try to take some secret pictures, but, of course, this is very obvious. And they can't take really good pictures where everybody can see properly, that (believe it or not) they are REALLY standing next to white people! So I wonder on how many tourist photos were are going to end until we leave India. Perhaps we become some local celebrities?!
After the Rathas we made our way to the Shore temple, which is directly at the sea side. This place was even nicer than the first one. Between the actually two temples you can watch a big Shiva sleeping on a stone bench. And the whole temple complex is guarded by around 30 very terrifying stone bulls.
To come to an end, we went to see Arjuna's Penance, which is a huge stone carving. This carving has a touch of irony: Beside Arjuna's penance you can also see a cat making the same position as Arjuna, and a crowd of mice looking at it.
So that was it. Pictures are coming soon!!
Today we made our way to Pondicherry/Puducherry, where we are going to stay until Monday. We wanted to stay in Mamallapuram and make a bicycle trip today, but as nobody told the south Indians that it's dry season now, it was pouring down the whole night and morning, and it didn't quite stop until the afternoon. So now we are here. This is a former french colony, why a lot of street signs etc. are still in french. I like that. À bientôt!
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
The Sound of Mandolins
Ok. We have no inspiration for writing serious posts this evening.
We actually wanted to tell you that yesterday ,our last evening in Chennai, we went to a mandolinconcert
and we liked it a lot. We bought tickets for a hundred rupees but ended up in the VIP seats. We had dinner in good company and some nice conversations. Today we left Chennai and took the bus to Mamallapuram where we have seen a monkey in a dress and ate orange spaghetti for dinner.Tomorrow we are gonna do some sight-seeing before we are leaving for our new farm.
We actually wanted to tell you that yesterday ,our last evening in Chennai, we went to a mandolinconcert
and we liked it a lot. We bought tickets for a hundred rupees but ended up in the VIP seats. We had dinner in good company and some nice conversations. Today we left Chennai and took the bus to Mamallapuram where we have seen a monkey in a dress and ate orange spaghetti for dinner.Tomorrow we are gonna do some sight-seeing before we are leaving for our new farm.
children's hour
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Shortly:
The place we are staying is wonderful. Our bed looks like a princessbed with the mosquito-net
Just wanted to tell you. We are in Chennai :)
Just wanted to tell you. We are in Chennai :)
I've been trying hard to do what's right. But you know I could stay here all night. Cause' this river is wild.
Hej alla som forstar svenska. Jag kanner det ar dags for ett kort inlagg pa modersmalet tillagnat mitt storsta huvudbry i indien: prutningen.
Jag har inga problem med indian-style toaletter, icke-existerande toalettpapper eller alla "trevliga" blickar fran okanda man. Men att forhandla om priset forstar jag mig bara inte pa. Har kan man verkligen tala om en kulturkrock, min kultur i frontalkrock med indiens.
Igar ville vi ta en Rickshaw fran busstationen till hotellet. Det hor liksom till: man SKA disskutera i en halvtimme innan man kan enas om ett pris, men jag gillar det verkligen inte.For det forsta : det tar bara sa lang tid och igar var jag trott, hungrig och otalig. For den andra: jag vet att jag inte borde, men jag tar det personligt. Jag ar en utlandsk vit kvinna men jag ar inte dum i huvudet; ingen betalar 300 rs for strackan busstation-hotell! Ge mig ett vettigt anbud liksom. For det tredje: jag ar helt enkelt for artig. Jag vet inte hur lagt jag kan ga eller vad saker egentligen ska kosta och det gor mig osaker.
Det ar helt enkelt nagot jag maste lara mig. Ninas indiska hemlaxa: inte ta skamlosa prisforslag personligt och inte mesa ur for fort.
Vi betalade inte mer an halften av utgangspriset igar.Vilket nog var i overkant, men det tar sig. Innan jag kommer hem ska jag vara prutningsdrottning. Sa det sa.
Puss & Kram till alla!
ps.
Jag har haft lite hemlangtan till och fran men igar pavag till Chennai overraskade jag mig sjalv med min
resfeber. Jag lyssnade till den lat som kommer bli en del av mitt indien soundtrack: this river is wild med Killers och insag hur mycket jag egentligen gillar det har resandet. Just nu bor pa ett ultracharmigt hotell och ikvall ska vi pa koncert med nyfunna vanner. Jag kunde inte ma battre. He e liksom mett dehar :) ds.
Jag har inga problem med indian-style toaletter, icke-existerande toalettpapper eller alla "trevliga" blickar fran okanda man. Men att forhandla om priset forstar jag mig bara inte pa. Har kan man verkligen tala om en kulturkrock, min kultur i frontalkrock med indiens.
Igar ville vi ta en Rickshaw fran busstationen till hotellet. Det hor liksom till: man SKA disskutera i en halvtimme innan man kan enas om ett pris, men jag gillar det verkligen inte.For det forsta : det tar bara sa lang tid och igar var jag trott, hungrig och otalig. For den andra: jag vet att jag inte borde, men jag tar det personligt. Jag ar en utlandsk vit kvinna men jag ar inte dum i huvudet; ingen betalar 300 rs for strackan busstation-hotell! Ge mig ett vettigt anbud liksom. For det tredje: jag ar helt enkelt for artig. Jag vet inte hur lagt jag kan ga eller vad saker egentligen ska kosta och det gor mig osaker.
Det ar helt enkelt nagot jag maste lara mig. Ninas indiska hemlaxa: inte ta skamlosa prisforslag personligt och inte mesa ur for fort.
Vi betalade inte mer an halften av utgangspriset igar.Vilket nog var i overkant, men det tar sig. Innan jag kommer hem ska jag vara prutningsdrottning. Sa det sa.
Puss & Kram till alla!
ps.
Jag har haft lite hemlangtan till och fran men igar pavag till Chennai overraskade jag mig sjalv med min
resfeber. Jag lyssnade till den lat som kommer bli en del av mitt indien soundtrack: this river is wild med Killers och insag hur mycket jag egentligen gillar det har resandet. Just nu bor pa ett ultracharmigt hotell och ikvall ska vi pa koncert med nyfunna vanner. Jag kunde inte ma battre. He e liksom mett dehar :) ds.
Some pictures for curious people:
Nina with her baby on the airport in Vienna; actually her bag wrapped in plastic.
The first to greet us on the farm where the cats! This is Tosh.
Puppy!
Our hut.
The house from outside and the innergarden.
Nina fully concentrated on opening peanuts, that later where used for making dessert.
Nina&Simone <3 papayas
A part of the vegetable-garden
Simone at work
Our new best friend.
This is the dessert with crushed peanuts on top. It doesn't look very tasty but belive us. It is.
Friday, December 10, 2010
cham-cham
Today we have had our first meal in a restaurant since coming to India, in Bangalore.
We entertained the whole restaurant. At first we couldn't read the menu properly. We asked for everything except for the things they were serving at that time.
Like that:
"Could I have mangojuice please?"
"No Mam, we only have pineapplejuice"
We know this is a good example.
After we started to eat the waiter came to give us a spoon. Only one spoon. We are two people. Indians usually eat with their hands. One spoon must mean that at least one of us was eating like a proper indian, but
we don't really know which one of us.
Nina was hungry for dessert and ordered a cham-cham after looking under the headline "sweets" in the menu.
She got a strange looking white sausage soaked in sugarwater. yummie... It looked very lonley on it's plate.
Tomorrow we are heading off to Chennai. Hoping for tastier desserts there.
We entertained the whole restaurant. At first we couldn't read the menu properly. We asked for everything except for the things they were serving at that time.
Like that:
"Could I have mangojuice please?"
"No Mam, we only have pineapplejuice"
We know this is a good example.
After we started to eat the waiter came to give us a spoon. Only one spoon. We are two people. Indians usually eat with their hands. One spoon must mean that at least one of us was eating like a proper indian, but
we don't really know which one of us.
Nina was hungry for dessert and ordered a cham-cham after looking under the headline "sweets" in the menu.
She got a strange looking white sausage soaked in sugarwater. yummie... It looked very lonley on it's plate.
Tomorrow we are heading off to Chennai. Hoping for tastier desserts there.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
On the farm
As we suspected we don"t have internet access on the farm, so now we took the bicycles and drove to the next town, which is actually quite big.
The last days were calm - we were just helping where we could. We made peanutbutter, baked bread in a oven (one, where you have to make fire with wood), planted seeds, replanted some vegetables... and we ate a lot. Especially papayas, as they planted more than they can eat or sell - but they are really tasty, so it's not a problem at all. We were really impressed by the variety of fruits, vegetables and herbs they grow here.
We sleep in an open hut, wrapped in a mosquito net, and guarded by Nipples, which is one of the three dogs also living on the farm. Beside dogs, they have baby cats, chicken and cows.
The owner of the farm, John, is american, and he lives there together with his indian wife Swetha. As they met in Auroville (a community of about 2000 people), and we heard about that place from other people too, we got curious about it, and we are thinking about going there. It's in the south-east, and we would pass it anyway - travelling from Chennai. That's one reason why we will leave the farm earlier than expected. The other reason is that we feel a bit like living in a bubble: There are not so many other people on the farm, and as we stay at the same place most of the time, we want to move on and explore!
The last days were calm - we were just helping where we could. We made peanutbutter, baked bread in a oven (one, where you have to make fire with wood), planted seeds, replanted some vegetables... and we ate a lot. Especially papayas, as they planted more than they can eat or sell - but they are really tasty, so it's not a problem at all. We were really impressed by the variety of fruits, vegetables and herbs they grow here.
We sleep in an open hut, wrapped in a mosquito net, and guarded by Nipples, which is one of the three dogs also living on the farm. Beside dogs, they have baby cats, chicken and cows.
The owner of the farm, John, is american, and he lives there together with his indian wife Swetha. As they met in Auroville (a community of about 2000 people), and we heard about that place from other people too, we got curious about it, and we are thinking about going there. It's in the south-east, and we would pass it anyway - travelling from Chennai. That's one reason why we will leave the farm earlier than expected. The other reason is that we feel a bit like living in a bubble: There are not so many other people on the farm, and as we stay at the same place most of the time, we want to move on and explore!
Thursday, December 2, 2010
In the town of boiled beans
Three delayed flights, two missed flights, a (probably quite expensive) cabride and half a days searching for internet is what we have accomplished so far.
Air India was riding firstclass. The food was nice and the plane had discolights during nighttime.
But: we have warm water in the mornings and India smells nice. The people are really friendly and helpful (even though they are staring at us all the time) - and the traffic is unbelievable. We always try to cross together with some local people, but when they finally reached the other side of the road, we are still waiting; astonished.
Plan for tonight: Bollywood! Simone apparently has a hidden gift for spotting cinemas. She already found three.
Plan for tomorrow: Finding the busstation and our way to the farm. We are not sure whether we'll have internet access there or not so fully enjoy this post!
Air India was riding firstclass. The food was nice and the plane had discolights during nighttime.
But: we have warm water in the mornings and India smells nice. The people are really friendly and helpful (even though they are staring at us all the time) - and the traffic is unbelievable. We always try to cross together with some local people, but when they finally reached the other side of the road, we are still waiting; astonished.
Plan for tonight: Bollywood! Simone apparently has a hidden gift for spotting cinemas. She already found three.
Plan for tomorrow: Finding the busstation and our way to the farm. We are not sure whether we'll have internet access there or not so fully enjoy this post!
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