I’m bringing this 2005 Youtube song back.
I love visiting my family in India! Here’s a snapshot of my trip here:
We started off in Mumbai, where we stayed with my aunt and cousin.
It’s a scary time to travel with these terror attacks.We got in right after the Paris attacks on November 13, which were an echo of the November 26 Mumbai attacks in 2008. The world is on edge. India is on high alert and security at the airports is even more intense than usual. This is not helping my fear of flying. One of the days in Mumbai we decided to go have tea and snacks at Leopold Cafe, which was one of the first sites to be targeted with grenades and gunfire in 2008.
After Mumbai we headed to Bangalore, where my grandparents live. Bangalore has changed so much and has truly become a very metropolitan city. It reminds me a lot of SF, because its a huge tech hub and people complain about the high rent (ha).
After Bangalore, we left for Chennai in Tamil Nadu. India is so divided and huge that going from one state to the next (Karnataka to Tamil Nadu) put my Aunt’s phone in roaming mode. She never even left the country. That being said, each state’s languages and cultures are completely different, so it really is as if you entered a new country. All south Indian languages sound the same to me anyway, so…
We stayed at the Taj in Chennai, which was right on the beach. True ~luxury~. I was ridiculously happy to use their gym and indulge in the breakfast buffet. Mamama stole about 15 little pots from the buffet for no reason and also a huge dragonfruit which was most definitely only there for decoration and not meant to be eaten at all. She is me in 60 years. We also considered getting really dressed up and crashing the wedding that was happening at the hotel, but sadly we did not follow through with this. Next time.
We also visited the infamous Kalakshetra Foundation which is a college of the arts. Students can study all forms of art, including traditional Indian singing and dance. This was actually really cool and incredibly refreshing to see a college in India with students not pursuing engineering or medicine. Breaking expectations!
The reason we were in Chennai was to buy everything for my sister’s Arangetram performance next year, which is her graduation debut as a solo dancer in Bharatnatyam. She is kind of a big deal. Saris, jewelry, decorations, etc etc etc. We could get her married off with the amount it is going to cost 😉 😉 😉 The sari stores were absolute chaos, since it is currently wedding season in India. All the brides come to get their wedding sarees, and their massive families come to approve. It was sort of cute to watch.
There also happened to me massive flooding while we were in Chennai. Streets were completely submerged underwater, as were parts of the highway. The already hectic roads were even more manic.
I always eat so much good food while I’m here. Pav bhaji, paratha, an endless number of curries, fresh fish, masala chai, gobi manchurian, tender coconut, dosas for days, traditional Konkani food— the list goes on. Everyone in my family is an A+++++ cook. It’s a wonder I’m not getting fat.