Trip to Kerala: Elephant Park in Munnar

We stopped by a roadside elephant park in Munnar for a ride on an elephant. Although I didn't really want to go because it was raining, I'm glad we did because it was so much fun! Our elephant and guide took us up and down and around on the foresty, muddy hills. It was a little scary at times because the hills were pretty steep, but the elephant was huge so it was probably nothing for him! At the end, we got to feed him a treat basket with some fruit, which I also was a little hesitant to do because I had didn't want to get my fingers sucked up in his snotty, hot-breath snout!

Trip to Kerala: Houseboat cruise in Alleppey

We went on a houseboat day cruise in Alleppey. Unfortunately, due to my tiredness, I seem to have lost all of the photos from this part of our trip!

When we stepped onto the houseboat, we were greeted with jasmine leis and coconuts with a straw poked into it. The houseboat was very nice with a little open air living room for us to relax in and soak in the scenery. Our 5-hour cruise took us through the backwaters into tiny little backwater villages completely isolated from the mainland, connected only by the backwater canals- no roads and no cars. We got a close look at village life seeing baths, laundry, fishing, cooking, playing, and just hanging out.

We had three crew members on our ship. The captain was very sweet and told me his name was John. I didn't believe him until he showed me his boat license a while later and his name really was John Vanaynungenbakkam or something like that! The captain let Brian drive the boat for a while while we were int he middle of the lake. The captain's chair wasn't made for Brian's 6-3 body so he looked like a giant!

John spoke OK English, but we still had a little trouble communicating. I have realized that even when were speaking English with some people, we are still worlds apart! John was telling us about the sights we were seeing and the way of life in Kerala. He told us about the different industries in Alleppey- number one industry is rice, number two is fishing and number three is houseboats. Then when we got to the lake, he was proudly telling us all about Ben Bernard Lake. "Ben Bernard Lake?" we asked. Yes! Hmmm...I guess I'll have to look up who Ben Bernard is.

When I consulted my Lonely Planet India guide after the trip, I realized it was Vembenad Lake. If you say Ben Bernard really fast and with a British accent, it does sound surprisingly similar to Vembanad!

We stopped for a traditional Kerala lunch on the boat. We had rice, vegetables, chicken curry, and salad. The best part was the Kerala fish fry- they took a whole freshly caught fish and fried it up for us. This would have been good, but they skipped a few steps that we are used to from back home- gutting it, cutting the head off, taking it off the bone, etc. They served me the fish and it was screaming at me with its mouth open and his tail mid-wag! I quickly his my fish behind the rice bowl so I didn't have to look at it, but Brian tried his. He said the flavor was pretty good, but then on his next bit he got some entrails and just about threw up. Yummm!

Trip to Kerala: Kathakali

From Wikipedia:

Kathakali is a highly stylised classical Indian dance drama noted for its attractive make-up of characters, their elaborate costumes, detailed gestures and well-defined body movements presented in tune with the anchor playback music and complementary percussion. It originated in the country's present day state of Kerala during the 16th century AD, approximately between 1555 and 1605, and has been updated over the years with improved looks, refined gestures and added themes besides more ornate singing and precise drumming.

In actuality, Kathakali was a little creepy and weirded us out! The man dressed as a woman kept making kissy faces at us, which was freaky. I'm glad we experienced this, but it's not something I would want to see every weekend!

Trip to Kerala: Paddleboat

The weather cleared up just barely enough for us to go paddleboating. For 100 rupees, we got to take the boat out for 30 minutes to enjoy the scenery. If we were in the U.S. there would have been a million rules for an activity like this, but we were just told to put on a life jacket and don't go to far. Ok!

Brian's giant feet were too big for the pedals, so he had to take his shoes off to pedal. He would slow down enough for me to help, so I let him do all of the work. We made a few friends out on the water and thoroughly enjoyed the scenery. It started to rain after about 20 minutes and started to get really cold, so we headed back to shore just in time before the heavy rain started up again.

Trip to Kerala: Kodanad Elephant Training Center

I read about an elephant training center on a great traveler Web site called IndiaMike.com. Other travelers had mentioned that you could go at 8 a.m. every morning and see the trainers bathe elephants in the river. I am so glad we did this because it was was of the highlights of our trip.

In the U.S., you would never get the chance to experience these animals so up close without fences, rules and for sure a paid ticket! This was not an organized tour or anything, it was just part of the elephants' care that we were able to witness just because we happened to be there. There was one other couple and a family there with us, but that was it so it made it really exciting to be a part of this activity.

The elephant trainers didn't speak any English, so they couldn't talk to us about what they were doing or why they were doing it, but it was awesome just to watch. One elephant got a thorough bath that lasted over an hour. The others just got a dip in the river. We got to see two adult elephants and three adorable babies.

One of the babies had extra chains on his feet and through the apparently universal sign of "crazy" (rotating your pointer finger in a circle on the side of your head) we figured out that he was the wild child. Poor kid!

Kerala

We made a trip to Kerala, which turned out to be the most amazing trip we have ever taken.

Kerala is a state located in southwestern India. One of Brian's co-workers back home is from Kerala and had told us about how beautiful it was and that it is a tropical location with lots of coconuts. Well, he was right!

It is monsoon season so it rained the majority of the time on our trip. We had planned on that, so it didn't put a damper on our plans. We made the best of it, and I think the rains actually added to the beauty of the land.

We spent a night in Kochi, a day on a houseboat in Alleppey, two nights in Munnar and a day in Fort Chochin. We packed in so much during our short trip that when we looked at all of our photos at the airport while waiting for the flight home, we had forgotten some of the things we had done!

The scenery and natural wonder of Kerala kept us awe-struck for the entire trip. It was more beautiful for words and unfortunately since it was raining we don't have many pictures of the scenery. But, we have it in our memories and will surely go back one day to visit again.

Day 18: The Zoo!

I visited the zoo with Randy T. and a new arrival from Brian's company, David. I hadn't heard much about the zoo, except that they had a white tiger that was pretty interesting. So, without anything else to do, we went to the zoo to see the white tiger.

Upon arriving at the zoo, we were greeted with a big King Kong statue and then a Tigger wannabe statue pointing down the walking path. For a few minutes, I was scared all of the animals at the zoo would be carved and painted and not actual animals. You never know in India!

After walking down the shaded path, we did find some animals- a pygmy hippo, a giraffe, a zebra, a hippo, an aquarium, and a few monkeys. There was nothing too exciting, and actually the animals looked quite lonely because there was only one of each.

We finally made it to the white tiger exhibit and were amazed to be up close and personal with a white tiger mom and her two cubs. The two cubs were born this June and the three tigers were so awesome to watch. They play-hunted and stalked each other and roamed around in the surprisingly natural and well-kept habitat. We were mesmerized and watched them for a good 30 minutes. I was so in awe I only snapped a few pictures and didn't get any good ones.

Besides the tigers, the other really cool unofficial exhibits were the termite castles. The zoo was in a forest area and I suppose the termites really like all of the trees because there were so many termite mounds. They ranges in size from little like an ant hill to 5 feet tall castles!

There was one more attraction at the zoo that I didn't expect- us Americans! I'm pretty used to people staring a little, waving, snapping photos and wanting to say hi when we go out. At the zoo, we were the main attraction for lots of the kids who parents would push up to us to say "hi, how are you" to practice their English. At the tiger exhibit, I actually had to move away from a group of ladies who kept touching me because one lady wanted to be really close to me the whole time and I was feeling a little weirded out.

On our way out of the zoo, there was a group of guys in their teens or 20s and I could see a few cell phone cameras aimed in our direction taking photos. One guy got up the nerve to come and ask if we would pose for a photo. We said sure and stood there for the photo and then all of a sudden we were swarmed! There were are least 20 people with cameras surround us taking pictures. Then they all wanted to get in the picture with us. So we stood there for a few more photos and then politely said thank you and started to walk away. It was an odd experience, but I'm glad we made someone happy by taking photos with them!

Day 15: Trip to Pondicherry

I had heard about a French colonial town in South India called Pondicherry and was planning to take a weekend trip there for great hotels, great restaurants and fun. My bubble was burst when I was telling some of Brian's coworkers about my plans. After hearing it from a few people, I decided it would be better for me to take a day trip there instead of Brian and I doing a weekend trip. Thank goodness! Kevin and Randy Y. made the trip with me so at least I didn't suffer along!

It was about a 2.5 hour drive to Pondicherry, but it could have been a town right next door to Chennai, because it seemed just the same. Sure, the street names were a little more French and there was a park in the center of town that you could tell had some European influence, but other than that it was a typical South Indian town. I soon realized that the only reason people go to Pondicherry is for meditation and booze.

Just outside Pondicherry is a hippie colony called Auroville, where 2000 residents become one with nature and the truth. They have a visitor's center where we had to watch a video to become idoctrinated before we could get a ticket to see the matrimindir, the center of Auroville. After the video, we were funneled into some shops with handmade crafts and items by the residents of Auroville. I bought a few little trinkets, but mostly things were overpriced and similar to items found in every other Indian store.

The walk to the matrimindir was about a mile and although we were shaded by trees, it was hot! I am so glad I had my sweat rag on this trip! Along the path to the matrimindir, we stopped at the 100+ year old banyan tree, which is the geographical center of Auroville. It was a beautiful tree and probably the most interesting part of the trip.

Once we got to the matrimindir, I was underwhelmed. It's basically a gold Epcot ball sitting in a field. And we looked at. And took a picture with it. And that was it. Fun.

You have to make an appointment to actually go in the ball, but from the movie we had to watch, it is basically a temple inside for meditation that has a hole in the top for sunlight to penetrate. So after looking at the ball for a few minutes, we walked the mile back to the car. I was drenched by the time we got there and was hoping that this wasn't the highlight of the trip.


Once in Pondicherry, we saw the beach, which was nothing to write home about. Then we took an autorickshaw to the bazaar, which was fun because it was my first time on one. It cost us 25 rupees (about 50 cents). After getting in one, I am amazed at how many people they cram in there. Randy and Kevin are big guys and there was no way three us us could fit on the bench so Kevin ended up sharing a seat with the driver and hanging half of his body out.

At the bazaar, we saw a million shops that look exactly like any other Indian shops selling saris, bangles, spices, etc. I did ended up buying a few packets of bindis to wear on my forehead.


The coolest thing we did was go into the markets. They had several specialized markets- fish, bananas, fruit & vegetables, textiles, chickens and flowers. I took a photo of the fish market, but the smell kept me out. The fruit and veggie market was pretty cool because they have such different foods here. In the textile market, we saw lots of old men sewing on what we would consider antique sewing machines. My favorite was the flower market. It smelled wonderful and there were so many colors and beautiful flowers. Most of the stalls didn't sell loose flowers, they sell flower garlands, so we got to watch them crafting huge garlands of jasmine, roses, ranaculous, celiosa, mums, marigolds, and more. Garlands like this would cost hundreds of dollar is the US and they sell them for under a dollar!

I also saw a maternity hospital and got a glimpse of some newborn Indian babies. Seeing a pregnant woman or baby are rare here. I don't think people start bringing their babies out until they are about 2 or 3 years old. From what I have seen, people in the villages don't use diapers, strollers and walk everywhere so it makes sense why babies would stay home for a few years. There was a line at the hospital with women and their new babies wrapped in towels or sheets, I could just barely see a few tiny little heads poking out.

On the way home from Pondicherry, we stopped at a great beach resort called GRT Temple Bay for a late lunch. We had some jalapeno poppers and fish and it was delicious! They have a really neat pool lagoon their and beach front cabanas. I need to take Brian there for sure!

Day 14: Saravana Store (aka shopper's paradise!)

Although I have been shopping in several of the malls in India now, I have been wondering where the locals buy their clothes because I know they don't pay the touristy prices I have been paying. Today I found my answer at Saravana Store! A cross between a WalMart Supercenter and Ross, Saravana Store was an exciting place to be! I went with Randy T. and Kevin who are always good sports; if I had to go shopping with two guys, these were the ones to do it with!

The store has seven stories of shopping paradise- you start with ladies casual saris, then on the dress saris and salwars, children's clothes, menswear, food, electronics and household goods and then shoes and accessories. It took us several hours to make it through the store and we skipped three of the floors!

I ended up buying two beautiful saris I can wear at weddings, two salwar sets, two pairs of shoes and a men's kurta- all for less than $100 US!

Almost everyone in the store is local, so they treat foreigners extra special. We were given a personal shopping guide upon entering who helped us navigate through the floors and different sections. He also carried all of our merchandise from floor to floor, which is a luxury because locals have to wait in line and pay on each floor before going to the next. An interesting things is that the store always takes a photo of the shopping guide with the foreigners on the way out of the store. It was cute, so I got a picture on my camera too.

I am sure I'll be going back to Saravana Store soon!

Sightseeing in Delhi

On our second day in Delhi, we visited a Hindu temple with our tour guide, visited the Gandhi museum and went to an incredible mall.

Sightseeing in Agra

After the Taj Mahal, we did more sightseeing in Agra.

The secondary attraction in Agra is the Agra Fort, which was where the king who built the Taj Mahal for his wife spent the last years of his life imprisoned by his own son. The tower where the king lived has an awesome view of the Taj Mahal and it is said that he spent most of his time staring at the Taj thinking of his wife. The fort was pretty neat, but not nearly as cool as the Taj!

The next biggest attraction in Agra was McDonald's! Ok so not really, but for Brian and me it was! We saw it on the way into town and made plans to go there for lunch on the way back to Delhi. Brian thought they would serve hamburgers, but of course they didn't since 99% of the population worships the cow as a sacred creature! Although they didn't have Big Macs, we did thoroughly enjoy our chicken nuggets, chicken sandwich, veg pizza McPuff and fries. Yummmm!!! Everything was surprisingly similar to the American version and really hit the spot for a taste of home. After we gorged ourselves on three value meals, Brian and I both said that it was the first time we didn't feel guilty one bit about eating such bad food!

After we ate, it was time to use the bathroom before our 4.5 hour drive back to Delhi. I took a photo because it was a Western-style toilet, but obviously there were no Westerners using it because the tape was still on the toilet paper!

Taj Mahal

Seeing the Taj Mahal was #1 on my list of things to do in India. I told Brian I was going to see it with or without him- luckily he took off a day of work to go see it with me!

I am not a history buff and know nothing about geography, so all I knew before making this trip was that the Taj Mahal was somewhere in India and someone put it on a list of the seven wonders of the world. After seeing the Taj in person, it is very clear why. Its beauty cannot be captured in pictures or conveyed in words. You really have to see it to believe it.

We had an awesome tour guide who accompanied us to the Taj. I saw "Slumdog Millionaire" so I was ready to have my shoes stolen and see bunches of little boys trying to work scams at the Taj. The movie was actually pretty accurate. They changed the entrance to the Taj just a few days before we visited so that the ticket counter is about 500 meters from the entrance. They also do not make you remove your shoes anymore; instead, they give you little hospital booties to cover your shoes. There were lots of kids trying to sell us stuff at the entrance- postcards, fans, books, marble carvings, etc. Our guide told us not to buy anything because everything they sold was fake. The little marble carvings they were selling were actually made of soap!

Security is tight at the Taj and we were told to take nothing but our camera, money, water and prescription medications. We entered through the East Gate and waited in separate ladies and gents lines to be scanned by the metal detectors and frisked. Once inside, we were surrounded by the red sandstone walls of the entry court and saw the main gate to the Taj. The main gate was huge and so impressive that anywhere else it would have been an attraction on its own!

Once we crossed the the gate, we got our first view of the Taj. We visited the Taj at sunrise to beat the heat and crowds, so it was nice because there weren't tons of other people there, so we could get some pretty good photos. Our guide gave us some time to take photos and then went to a little shady spot with a great view of the Taj so he could tell us the story of how this wonder came to be.

After telling us about the Taj Mahal being a love story between Shah Jahan and his wife Mumtaz Mahal, our guide took us inside the Taj to see their tombs and see the beautiful building close up. The Taj took over 20 years and over 20,000 laborers to build, and after seeing it up close I can tell why! I was so amazed by the detail on the building- the semiprecious stone inlays, the carved floral design marble slabs, the marble and onyx floor, everything!

From close up and far away, we were mesmerized by the Taj. Even when we were leaving, we had to keep looking back for just one more glimpse. I'm not sure if we'll ever make it back there, but we will surely remember this visit forever!

Drive to Agra

The drive to Agra is long. From the clock I could tell that, but I fell asleep before we even made it out of Delhi! Once I woke up, we had an interesting drive. Here are some of the highlights:

• Our guide pointed out "buffalo." I know I'm a city girl, but I know what a buffalo looks like and this creature was surely not buffalo. I came to the conclusion that it was water buffalo- some animal Brian said he had seen on the Discovery Channel that the lions eat. It was ugly!


• When he saw we were a little confusred about the buffalo, our driver Vijay asked us if we drink buffalo milk. Uh...no.


• Vijay also asked us if our marriage was arranged. Brian's repsonse: "No, I chose her." Thanks! :)


• The country autorickshaws have an extra bench which translates into at least 10 more seats! We saw some autorickshaws with at least 20, probably 25 people on them. Most of the time, you can't even tell who is driving!


• Our driver had to pay for a permit to cross the state line and left us in the car and said don't open the window. We had heard about the monkey at the state line, and he was there and did some tricks for us. Brian opened the window to give him a tip, which the monkey attendant did not think was adequete and made Brian give him the rest of his coins!

Trip to Delhi

We started our trip to Delhi by waking up at 4a.m. to make it to the airport for our 6:25 a.m. flight. Once we arrived at the airport, we realized we were going to be very lost! Every airport does things a little different and that is the case in Chennai too. Before entering the airport, guards with big guns check to make sure you have a ticket. Good think I printed off our e-tickets!

Some things we were completely lost about:

• We had to scan our luggage and have it zip tied shut before we checked in at the ticket counter
• You have to have a tag for each piece of "hand carry" luggage. If you don't have a tag, they'll scowl at you.
• They did not want to see our passports ever.
• Our boarding passes did not list the gate number. You had to watch a screen and then listen closely because it changed throughout our waiting period.
• You line up by your gate number to get on a bus that drops you off in the middle of the tarmac
• You have to know whether you should board the plane at the front or the back. Of course we picked the wrong one.

Once we got on the plane, we realized that we were truly on an Indian domestic carrier because the seats were made for short and skinny Indians, not big, tall Americans! Brian sat in the middle and couldn't sit straight at all because his legs wouldn't fit. By the end of the flight, he was numb.

Once we made it to Delhi and got our bags stepped out of the airport doors to a sea of Indian faces holding signs with names. We started looking and quickly found "Meghann Dibrell" and a smiling face. Vijay was our driver for the weekend and he was great! His English was just barely enough to communicate, but he was always in the right place at just the right time when we needed him.

Vijay took us into Delhi to see some of the major sights. We were supposed to have a tour guide, but due to some miscommunication, we toured the sights on our own. It was fun, but we really had no idea what we were looking at since only minimal signs were in English. We went to Qutb Minnar, the Bahai Lotus Temple and Humayan's Tomb.

We had fun, but it was extremely hot. My shirt was soaked completely through! Since we had just flown in, we also forgot about sunscreen, which was not good for my white husband!

Little Italy ends with a sizzling chocolate brownie tower!

The table next to us ordered one and we couldn't resist! I am supposed to be on a chocolate fast with Linda, but I did take one bite of the brownie. Brian liked it, but it tasted like Indian chocolate to me, which is not quite right!

In the lobby

Our hotel always has beautiful tropical arrangements. I just love this one!

Meeting Madhan

I was blessed with the opportunity to meet Madhan and his mother on Tuesday. It was an amazing day, and I am so grateful for Marshall with the India headquarters and all of the project staff from the Andrews Kirk Child Development Center for planning our visit. It was also great that one of Brian's coworkers could join me for the day since Brian had to work.

This is the first of two slideshows I have from the day. This slideshow is from our visit to the project in one of the slums of central Chennai. The project is inside of a slum area and actually sits on top of and in the middle of a graveyard. The project director and several of the counselors were there to show us around and help us get acquainted with Madhan. They also brought in the head cook early so we could have coffee and cookies, which was very sweet.

After visiting the project, Madhan's mother invited us to her home. It was such a unique opportunity to see where he lived and it was an honor to be invited.

I have tons more to share about my visit with Madhan, so stay tuned!

TV

We don't spend a lot of time watching TV, but we like to have it on as background noise and to catch up on the world news. Watching the TV has been as interesting an experience as walking down the street. It gives us insight into Indian culture and the rest of the world.

We have about 5 channels on our TV that I'll watch: BBC News, CNN, National Geographic, Discovery and HBO. We have about 10 sports channels, all of which seem to show cricket matches 24 hours a day. There are several Indian news channels that may be speaking English, but I can't tell. And the rest of the channels seem to be entertainment channels that basically have Indian women singing and dancing and doing moves that Brian says were "in" 10 years ago like the macarena. Very odd. For the American movies on HBO, they provide English subtitles. Hmmm... are we as hard to understand as we think they are?!

The commercials range from insanely weird to hilarious to downright dumb. There are some products that I can't even believe they advertise. Loreal advertises a skin lightener "to make dark ugly skin look white and beautiful." There are other commercials that we can't even get beyond the song and dance to figure out what they are advertising!

The thing about the TV that I am most annoyed with that prompted me to write this is Dolly Parton. CNN International seems to think that Dolly Parton is the greatest thing since sliced bread and has aired a special about her 6 times a day! I understand they have to reuse programming, but come on! It's been 6 days since I got here and they are still showing Dolly Parton!

Day 6: Expect the Unexpected

One of Brian's coworkers was invited to a wedding by one of the contractors he works with. He knew about my love for weddings and invited me to go along with him. Ever since I found out we had the chance to come to India, seeing a wedding was #2 on my list of things to do (#1 is the Taj Mahal).

In the U.S., Indian weddings are a huge deal and include lots of guests, food, decor, everything. From talking to a few Indians who we know, weddings in India are on an even larger scale. So, there was no chance I was going to pass up this opportunity to see the Indian culture up close in one of their most sacred rituals.

Well, let's just say I was underwhelmed. I have realized that in India, you really do have to expect the unexpected. Nothing is as you would imagine. I know it was still a wonderful day for the bride and groom and their families and don't want to take away from that, but it was really not what I expected.

I was prepared to see all of the guests dressed in their best saris and sherwanis. To see beautiful gold jewelry. To see more of the amazing flower garlands I have seen the Indian ladies stringing for special occasions. To see the bride in the most beautiful outfit that her family has been preparing for her since she was a child. To see the ancient rituals of an Indian marriage ceremony.

I was not prepared for pink tulle, silver tinsel, Styrofoam white-skinned angels, guests in blue jeans, cell phones ringing during the ceremony, the bride's mother offering a loaf of white bread still in the bag from the grocery store to the altar or the beautiful Indian bride wearing a Western-style white veil with her gorgeous sari!

It was not so much the departure away from the traditional elements that disturbs me, but the incursion of Western culture that irks me more. Angels are fine- but why can't they have brown angels?!

*Just a note for those wondering why the photos are in a church- this was a Catholic wedding ceremony. Even with Indian Christians, the weddings are still arranged and traditional elements of Indian wedding ceremonies are incorporated.

The Yoga Master

Our hotel offers complimentary yoga classes three times a week. I decided to try it out tonight because I love yoga and do it about once a week at home. When I got there, one of the spa girls told me that the yoga master was stuck in traffic and class would start 30 minutes late. Yoga master? OK, so this is going to be REAL yoga. Well, I waited there with the two Japanese men that were taking the class with me until the yoga master arrived. We were taken to a little room, just barely big enough for the five of us to lay down in (an Indian man had also joined us). There were two seats up front and two in the back. I've always been a front-row student, so that's where I headed. When the yoga master came in, I was immediately overtaken by his overwhelming scent of body odor. It probably would have been really bad to have passed him on the street, but to be stuck in a tiny room with him and to be half an arm's length away was just awful! I'll just hold my breath, I thought. Well, half of yoga is the breathing, which was not going to work! I tried my best to fake the breathing through my nose when possible and use my mouth instead. I got called out a few times and was forced to take a big whiff. I thought about getting up and leaving, really thought about it.

Once we got past the 30 minutes of breathing exercises, we went on to the stretching. I have never been a flexible person and even though I do Pilates and yoga regularly at home, I just do not bend easily! So when the yoga master tells me to sit with my feet in front of me and lean tot he right and touch my head to the floor, it doesn't quite work out as planned. "Come on, come on, what are you doing?!," he says. I really was trying! Then it was lift your leg, grab your ankle and touch your head to your ankle. It turned out to be more like lift your leg, grab your thigh and lift my head off the ground! The yoga master was going around forcing the other men in the class into position, but Indian men do not touch women so for me he would stand by me and waft the air forcefully telling me to go higher, push harder, lift more, etc. My only successes came with the shoulder stand and the backbend because my back is my only flexible body part. I held the shoulder stand for a good 10 minutes without flinching and the backbend for a good 5. The yoga master was very proud!

Just like when I take yoga at home, the class ended with relaxation in corpse pose- laying on the floor with legs and arms spread, completely relaxed. The yoga master left the room for a minute (yes, I could breathe!) and then I was really relaxed an could enjoy my mini nap.

Throughout the whole class, the yoga master did this deep hum thing and would break into song. He ended the class with a song and told me to come back Tuesday. Only if you shower, Mr. Yoga Master!

Day 5: Trip to Spencer's & Raymond's

We ventured into town again today to go to Spencer's Plaza. This was Brian's first trip into town since he's been here, so although he wasn't feeling 100%, he still wanted to go. I could probably skip going to this mall for the rest of the time I am here, but Brian just wanted to get out. We shopped around at some of the nicer department stores and then went into the alleys to look at some of the good stuff.

Brian wants a leather jacket and leather is big here and they sell it for cheap. But you have to be careful because there is a lot of pleather out there too! We stopped by one shop and I felt one of the jackets. That's a clear sign to the shopkeepers that we are interested. They pulled us into the shop and started trying jackets on Brian. Either the sleeves were 3 inches above his wrists or the jacket was made for a 300-pound guy. Not exactly what we were looking for. The jackets were also really cheap looking and not real leather. I told them thank, but no thanks and started to leave. Brian was still wearing one of the jackets so we started unzipping it and taking it off, but no they weren't going to let the sale get away that easy! With three guys trying to make us stay, we had to rip the jacket off and toss it aside and make a run for it because they just weren't going to let us leave! About 20 minutes later, we were walking on a completely different level and in a totally different alley and we start hearing shouts by some guy running toward us, "You want leather jacket?! Come look in my shop!" Apparently, word travels fast in the mall- look for the big white guy who wants to buy a leather jacket!

While at the mall, I bought my first sari. I bought a cotton sari for now until I can shop around some more. I know I want to buy a really nice one that I can wear to future Indian wedding I will hopefully do, but the people at the shop weren't the nicest so I'll have to try another place next time.

We stopped for lunch at the mall and found a great treat- KFC! Surprisingly, it was mostly the same as back home, with a few twists. Brian and I both ordered chicken strips and french fries which were delicious. Instead of honey mustard or Ranch, they dip their chicken in a spicy salsa. It was actually pretty good! The combo meals were a bit different: Veg burger, 2-piece chicken with rice, etc. But overall, the concept travels well into India!

After lunch we headed out of the mall into a shop called Raymond's, which is a men's clothing store and tailor shop. From the advice of some of Brian's coworkers, we stopped in to get some custom shirts made for Brian. He's so tall and skinny around the waist and has really long arms, that no shirts ever fit him just right. We ended up picking 4 really nice fabrics to get shirts made for him. He's also going to get a custom Kurta made, which is a traditional Indian shirt. It came out to under $30 each. They're going to make one sample and he goes to try it on this Wednesday.

All in all shopping in India is fun, but I think I'm shopped out for a bit!

Day 4: DakshinaChitra & Fisherman's Cove

Today started early with Brian waking up in the middle of the night with stomach problems. Poor guy- he spent the morning in the bathroom and the rest of the day in bed with chills and fever. We're not sure what it was that did it, but he's been skeptical about eating anything but the food we brought from home until his stomach recovers.

I already had plans to spend with day with Randy T. going to a craft village, so I made sure Brian was medicated and left to go into town. We visited a cute little museum village called DakshinaChitra. It was a place very similar to the Institute of Texan Cultures showing houses and village life in the different states of South India.

It got pretty hot while we were there so my sweat rag came in very handy. The sweat rag/hanky is a staple in Chennai- almost all men carry one. I don't think it's very ladylike, but I carry one too!

At each of the little exhibits, there was an Indian lady showing off a craft project- basket weaving, spinning tops, paper mache noise makers, puppets, etc. I ended up buying a little puppet and several of the paper mache noise makers, which are already driving Brian crazy! The noise makers are really interesting not because of what they do, but because of what they are made with. The paper they used to make them was actually textbook paper. Maybe it was a sign for me to study math because all of the ones I got were from a math textbook!

Another cool exhibit was the weaving. They had a giant loom with a man weaving a piece of silk fabric. The amount of work that goes into that craft is amazing.

I also got mehendi done on one of my hands. I have gotten this done before, but the ink they used here is a little different. It was a very dark orange and is now a deep orange. The lady did it very quickly and it turned out great. It only cost me 50 rupees (about a dollar). I only got one hand done because I needed one hand for the sweat rag!

We also met some really great Indian students who were working on some crafts. They said they were part of a yearlong program to learn all about crafts and culture. We asked them what they planned to do after the program, but they said they had no idea. They did say that they would no longer bargain on craft items because they understood how much work goes into them! They were really great and I'm glad we got to talk to them for a few minutes.

The best part about DakshinaChitra was the future-telling bird. I saw a man sitting by a house with a bird sitting on a cage and another one in the cage. I asked him if the bird talked and he said yes. He said the bird talked futures for 30 rupees. Ohhhh... a fortune teller! I told him I wanted my future told, but unfortunately, the bird only spoke Tamil. Darn- next time I'll bring a translator!

To see more of DakshinaChitra, visit: http://www.dakshinachitra.net/.

After DakshinaChitra, we went to Fisherman's Cove, which is a beautifully landscaped beach resort. We had an Indian buffet lunch at the restaurant there, which turned out to be really good. My favorite item was the cauliflower and coriander soup- yummmm! We went down to the beach, which was not the most beautiful beach- no white sands or clear blue water, but more like Galveston or Port Aransas. But, I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to step into the Bay of Bengal and it felt great!

Once I got back to the hotel, I took a long nap, spent some time on the room at the pool, and then had room service pizza- another yummmmm! On the agenda for tomorrow is going shopping in town again if Brian is feeling better. If he's not, I'll stay with him at the hotel and catch up on some work.

Day Three: Trip to the mall

I went into town with two of Brian's coworkers to visit the big mall- Spencer Plaza. Spencer Plaza turned out to be a melting pot of all of India. There were rich people, poor people and everything in between. There were extremely nice Western stores selling expensive items and there were crowded alleys with small shops trying to lure us in with 100 rupee trinkets. I ended up buying some Pashminas and some Indian shirts and a few other souvenirs for people back home. Mostly, it was just fun looking around and taking in the bargaining process. It was very interested to watch!

We also ate at the food court, which was another melting pot. Their food court had a mix of little carts with items to walk-up counters to sit-down restaurants. We ate at the Noodle House, a chain sit-down restaurant. This was my first time eating outside of the hotel so I was a little nervous, but the guys assured me they had eaten there several times and it was safe. I ordered some vegetarian noodles and spring rolls and everything was delicious. I tried some of the guys' fried cauliflower and it was awesome! I guess anything fried can taste good!

Crossing the Street

I took this video as I waited to cross the street to go to the mall. This is during the off-peak traffic hours and it's still constant. We crossed the street about 2 seconds after this video ends- I feared for my life a little but we made it!

Working out and Thai massage

I went to the spa today for a quick run on the treadmill before heading in for my Thai massage. The workout room is very nice with several treadmills, bikes, weights, etc. I wasn't sure what to wear because although we are at a Western hotel, I didn't want to shock them with the small amount of clothes I normally wear when running. I opted for a sleeveless tank and yoga pants since I was just doing a 2-mile jog. I am a sweaty girl when it comes to workout out, especially when I'm wearing too many clothes. So after about 3 minutes, the gym attendant came up to me with a towel. I said yes, thank you and instead of putting the towel in my outstretched hand, he started dabbing my face and neck with the towel for me. It was a little awkward, but I figured he was just trying to be nice and get a tip. I said thank you again and he walked away. I asked for the towel again, but he wouldn't just give it to me- he was my personal sweat dabber for 25 minutes!

After I was done in the treadmill I did some stretching and started on my core exercises. While in the middle of some crunches, the sweat dabber told me to get up. OK. I got up. He pointed at my love handles and said, "You're fat here." And then to my thighs: "and here!" OK..... "I'll fix it!", he said. "For 100 rupees." I wasn't sure what kind of miracle he had up his sleeve but for $2 I was going to find out!

It turned out that he wanted to give me a personal training session, even though he probably had no qualification to do so. For another 30 minutes I twisted and turned and did leg lifts and crazy things Brian would not approve of as the sweat dabber chanted, "Faster, faster faster!" Finally, I told him thank you and gave him his 100 rupees and went in for my Thai massage.

For the massage, I was told to change into my special "pyjamas." They had asked me my size when I scheduled the appointment, and then gave me a special locker with pants a shirt and sandals all laid out nicely for me. I put on the shirt, which was basically a loose, button down pajama shirt. Then I went to put on the pants and realized they gave me the wrong size. The waist on the pants was so big I could have gotten 5 of my bodies in each leg! After looking more closely, I figured out that they were one-size-fits-all and had a drawstring. Well, it looked like a drawstring but didn't actually "draw." Hmmmm... what do I do with this string and huge waist. Bunch the front of the pants up and tie the string around it? That sounded good to me! After a few tries, that's what I did and went out to meet the receptionist. She took one look at me and said let me help you. I knew there had to be something that made more sense! She took the two strings and tied them around my waist with all of the extra fabric on top and then folded the extra fabric over so that they wouldn't fall off, but I would still look like an oompa loompa!

The receptionist took my down to the meditation room where I was treated to chilled towels and cold tea (something I haven't seen anywhere else here yet). After that I went into the massage room with the therapist and started my massage. The massage was fantastic, but not what we are used to back home! She basically used her whole body to stretch my body and massage me. She walked on my legs, bent me in crazy positions and then sat on me, did handstands on me- crazy things! it was great and I'll definitely do that again while I'm here!

Our bathroom

I've had several request for information about the bathrooms! So, here is a picture of our hotel room toilet. We do have toilet paper in the room, but I don't think they are very used to people using it. The full roll is about a quarter of the size of the double Charmin rolls that I buy at home. It is also thin and scratchy- no extra quilting here! They also don't replenish it unless it is gone or you ask for more. The toilet has a spray hose attached. I haven't tried that out yet because it just seems like it would get messy. I'll let you know if I get adventurous and try it!

Getting Acquainted

I arrived in India at around 3:30 a.m. so my trip from the airport was in the dark. On the two-hour drive to Kanchipuram, I was able to really see India for the first time. After my one day of being in this country, I have realized I have so much to see and learn. The culture here is so incredibly different than our own and I saw that just about everywhere we went.

Here are a few things I've seen so far:

CLOTHING

I loved looking at all of the clothing while we were driving. The saris are so beautiful and the colors and patterns are endless. As we moved into more rural area, I saw most of the men wearing "man-skirts." I was shocked at first because I thought it was women wearing short skirts, but it wasn't. The proper name for this piece of clothing is a lungi. It is basically a tube of fabric that can adjust to be long, short or anything in between. I noticed that men were adjusting their lungis constantly- maybe to get a breeze in there? Who knows!

BATHROOMS

I timed my bathroom schedule and drank limited water so that I wouldn't have to go while we were out. I am not quite ready to experience the hole in the ground bathroom! I noticed several signs while we were out advertising "TOLET." I'm wondering if they are misspelling toilet or if this is something completely different. Hmmm... a mystery I'll have to figure out! I did notice than men use nature as a toilet quite often. When on a major road, I saw a line of about 15 men standing on the side of the road peeing. That was quite a sight!

DRIVING

They drive like crazy people. Really. I've seen some pretty crazy driving in the Dominican Republic and Mexico, but they have nothing on Indian driving! The traffic pattern is reversed here like in England with people driving on the left side of the road. In reality though, people help themselves to the entire road and usually drive down the middle, on the wrong side or whatever is going to get them to their destination faster. Even on a divided highway with concrete barriers in the middle, you will see cars going the wrong way!

The modes of transportation are diverse and it's amazing that they all share the same road. There are lots of cars, tons of motorcycles, bicycles, autorickshaws, buses, trucks hauling goods, oxcarts, etc. The autorickshaws look really cute- large enough for only about 3 people comfortably, but I've already seen them stuffed with up to 10 people! The buses also pack people on with people literally hanging off the bus with only one foot and hand to keep them on it.

Indian drivers have a lot more obstacles to be aware of than we do. The number one obstacle is pedestrians- a lot of pedestrians. There are so many people walking here at any given time of day. Even when we were driving at 4 a.m. the roads were full of people walking. They walk on the pedestrian side roads, along the highways, in the highways, in the middle of intersections - wherever! The second big obstacle is the animals. Cows, dogs and goats are what I've seen the most of so far. All three roam the roads freely and travel in packs. I've seen whole groups of each taking a break in the middle of the highway and all of the cars stopping and detouring around them. The dogs are the scariest because they run all over the road and could easily get wiped out. The cows are pretty hard to miss though.

The most interesting thing I've noticed about Indian driving is that despite the craziness and the commotion, drivers are extremely friendly! Horn honking is constant and I think it's more of a courtesy. Little short taps on the horn are just to let you fellow drivers know you're coming. Several times today while driving on a one-lane road where we were trying to pass a car in front of us but another car was coming, the driver we were trying to pass would use his hand as a signal to stay or go. This happens a lot in the intersections to. The stoplights and stop signs are meaningless so there is a lot of signaling between drivers to wait or go. It was very interesting to watch!

CHILDREN

The children here are precious. They are all just adorable and I want every single one of them to have a wonderful, happy, blessed life. I've already seen how parents put there children to work selling items or begging. It's very sad and one of the hard things I know I'll have to get used to while I am here. I did see lots of schools and tons of kids walking to school in uniforms. I am so glad they are getting the opportunity for an education because that will undoubtedly be their ticket up in life.

IT Boom

It's no secret that India's Information Technology industry is booming- that's why we're here after all. Our hotel is located along the IT highway so I've been able to see several of the companies who have operations here in India. The buildings are all large and very nice looking, which is odd because they are in a sea of run-down buildings and piles of trash.

Here are some photos of the large office building where Brian is working. He works in the blue glass section that is finished and they are building a huge mass of steel and other buildings around it. We drove up on it and it really looks like a spaceship landed on Earth! Brian said that when it is complete, the building will house 25,000 workers.

One of his coworkers told me that when it is complete, the building will look like a butterfly from an aerial view. The big curved section you see is one of the wings. It was hard to capture in photos how massive this was, but it was an amazing sight to see.

Day One: Visit to Kanchipuram

Today, I visited Kanchipuram with two of Brian's coworkers and some other family they had in town. We had a great time visiting this small town known for its ancient temples.

It was a two-hour drive to get there, and once we arrived it was almost noon when the temples close for an afternoon break. We had enough time for three temples, but ended up only seeing two because one was closed for a funeral.

The first temple was really big and had several pyramids. The intricate design on each was really an amazing thing to see. There was a large pond in the center of the temple with lots of fish. There was a really cool tree at this temple which was a wishing tree. People hang little wooden beds or fabric on the tree in hopes of getting married or having children. The tree was so colorful and it was a really cool sight.

The best part about this temple was the elephants. They had a painted elephant right when we walked in and he was so pretty! The elephant was giving blessings by tapping our heads with his trunk. After a good tip, the elephant minder told me to step up closer to the elephant. He gave me a really good blessing by resting his trunk on my head and then blowing hot air at me. It was really kind of gross, but an experience I will never forget!

They had two more elephants in the back getting "baths and makeup" and they said I could ride one for 100 rupees (around $2). I wanted to until I saw how sad the elephants looked. One had a huge gash in his leg that looked fresh and bloody. Their skin was discolored and didn't look like an elephant should look. I said no thanks and gave a good tip in hopes that they would use it to care for the elephants.

The second temple we visited was pretty small, but pretty. It was a square and all of the walls were full of designs. No two sections were the same. One cute little part had a little bed, so we all got up there and took pictures. There was also a big cow statue outside that we climbed on for photos.

I had read a lot about temples and these visits weren't quite what I expected. We did have to remove our shoes (we walked in socks), but other than that there were no rules. We didn't have to cover our heads, refrain from touching things, etc. as I would have expected in a spiritual place. Other than the few tourists, there were mostly just beggars and not many Indians there for worship. Our driver did tell us that we were there at an off time and that it is very busy on the weekends because people have to take off work to drive there.

Kanchipurum is also known for its silks, but because it's pretty touristy, they are overpriced. Our driver told us we could buy the same silks for a better price in Chennai, so that's one thing on my list to look for now!

Farewell USA!

I'm sitting at the San Antonio airport ready for journey across the world.

I worked a great wedding last night and then stayed up almost all night packing. I tried to stay up all night so I could sleep on the plane, but my body won out and I fell asleep somewhere between the 3 a.m. Bill and Guiliana rerun and an E News recap.

I woke up at 7 a.m. to finish packing and then had a realization that I should probably do some cleaning too! I didn't think coming back to one-month-old soap scum would be fun. So I cleaned the kitchen, bathrooms, living room and dining room. Our bedrooms didn't make the cut, but that's OK. I also emptied all of the trash, emptied the fridge of perishables, and unplugged all electronics. Brian made me a checklist that he posted on the door before he left, so that helped!

I had some last-minute work to finish up at the office and then I went to lunch with Dad, Patti, Linda and Tony. I decided that since there is apparently no chocolate in India, I wanted to leave town with a stomach full of Red Robin chocolate shake (with a hefty dose of Lactaid of course!). It was soooooo good! I only drank half of the shake and shared with Patti for the sake of my neighbors on the plane. :)

Next I parked my car at Dad's house and visited a bit before heading to the airport. I got to the airport and had issues with the self-service machine, left my passport at the ticket counter, got pulled over for an extra security check and now my flight is delayed! I am so excited I don't even care though!

I had a short layover in Dallas even before the delay, so I just hope it gets there on time. I'll have 40 minutes from the time I touch down in Dallas to the time I take off for London. I'll probably be running across that huge airport to catch the flight!

I stocked up on some good reading material at Barnes and Noble this afternoon. In my shopping bag is:

• My Sister's Keeper: The movie previews look great and the book is always better!
• Eat, Pray, Love: About a woman's travels across Italy, Indonesia, and India searching for a balance between worldly enjoyment and divine transcendence.
• Lonely Planet's Guide to India: The authority on all things Indian
• People: I've been dying to read Kate Gosselin's explosive interview
• Time: Some intellectual stimulation since I won't be talking to anyone for a while

More updates when I get to London...

Brian made it to India!

Brian has made it to India and is currently working his first day at work. He left Monday at 1 p.m. San Antonio time and finally made it to his hotel room today. While on his layover in Singapore, he took a tour of the city and visited the famed butterfly exhibit, which looks really cool! I haven't gotten to talk to him much, but I do know that he was well fed throughout the whole trip and had unlimited alcohol to drink. He also mentioned that although the airplane seat was nice and roomy, it was a few inches short for his giant body!

I'm looking forward to getting more travel tips from him and more information on what else I should bring. I can't believe I leave in 4 days! I have a fantastic wedding on Saturday and lots of loose ends to tie up, so I really haven't had any time to pack or think about the trip. I will be spending Friday night packing for sure so I am all ready to go before my wedding.

Here are some photos that Brian took while at the airports and in Singapore.

Let the packing (and shopping!) begin

Brian is leaving in just 10 days now, so we've started to get things together and already packed one suitcase. While I worked today, Brian went and shopped for snacks. Although we know there will be many wonderful things to eat in India, it will be a bit of a shocker for our American palates. I want to make sure we have a little taste of home with some of our favorite snacks. There are also a few things that we might just cry if we didn't get to eat for a month-for me it's Fiber One bars and for Brian it's Wheat Thins.

With the advice of some of Brian's coworkers and some online research, we stocked up on things like granola bars, oatmeal, cookies, crackers, tuna, nuts, peanut butter and some candy. Yuuummmm.

Brian set aside enough for the week he'll be in India before I arrive and a few snacks for his carry on. The rest went into a suitcase that I'll be checking with the airline. It weighs just under 40 pounds so we might find a few more snacks to stuff in there.

We also got a few hygiene items that we are particular about- deodorant, body wash, etc. that also went into the suitcase.

Compassion International

While in India, I will be connecting with Compassion International to visit some of the projects in the Chennai area. I was blessed with the opportunity to visit three projects in the Dominican Republic in 2006 and cannot wait to visit projects in India.

Compassion's work in India began in 1968. Currently, more than 107,700 children participate in 440 child development centers. Compassion partners with churches to help them provide Indian children with the opportunity to rise above their circumstances and become all God has created them to be.

It is a remarkable experience to witness the extreme poverty that so many of the world's families live in. The living conditions of the poorest of the poor in our country do not compare to the conditions these families endure every single day. It is amazing to see the work of Compassion's local churches and to see the hope for a future that they provide to each and every child which then trickles down into their families and will in turn permeate their towns and villages until real change takes place.

One thing I remember from my Dominican Republic trip was how much all of the kids loved candy! So I went to the Dollar Tree and stocked up on bubble gum and candy that I could take with my during my visits.

After signing up to sponsor a child in Uganda in May, there was some paperwork that got mixed up and it turned out that our child was actually taken by another sponsor. I found this out yesterday and the operator asked me if I would her to find me another child to sponsor. I took the opportunity to sign up to sponsor a little boy in the Chennai area. Usually, visits take 6 weeks to coordinate, but I am hoping that I will get to meet him while I am there. I'm waiting on his information packet in the mail and then I will post his name and photo.

Visit http://www.compassion.com/ to learn more and sign up to sponsor a child!

We got our backpacks!

CORRECTION: In a previous post, I inadvertently said that we got a light pink camera bag to match our backpacks. Brian's backpack is most definitely NOT pink. He wanted me to clarify that point.

Here are our awesome backpacks. I shopped around a lot and saw some really cool backpacks, but the problem was they cost over $200. We got these pretty things on eBay for less than $35 each. They are laptop backpacks and have a hard back, but air cushioned padding on the straps and outside back panel. There are so many little compartments and it will be great for our travels. The pink one I'm modeling is mine, not Brian's!

Target Shopping Trip

Our Canon Powershot 10 megapixel A480 came in the mail! I tested it out while shopping for a camera case. Brian wanted functionality, but I won out with functionality and style! The case is black with light pink to match our Swiss Army laptop backpacks we ordered on eBay last night. It has a pocket for the camera and extra pockets for memory cards, batteries, etc.

While we were at Target, we also got started with out India shopping by getting all of our over-the-counter meds. We got Immodium, antacids, Sudafed, Dayquil, Nyquil, ibuprofen, Tylenol, Tylenol PM, Neosporin, Benadryl, and some other stuff.

We also got some bug spray wipes. The CDC recommends we wear bug spray with at least 30% Deet to prevent mosquito bites that can spread Malaria. I don't like the thought of saturating my skin with that chemical, especially after reading that it seeps into your skin and causes neurological damage. I guess that's better than malaria though. We'll be wearing only 30% and no more- they actually sell 100% Deet which is crazy! They only had one package of wipes at Target, so I'll have to find some more and some spray.

Other items that made it into the cart were combination locks to lock our suitcases while in our hotel and traveling in the country, an around-the-neck ID holder for Brian and a 2GB memory card.

We have lots more shopping to do, but at least this is a start!

We're official!

Brian and I both have our passports and Indian visas so we can officially make our trip!

Indian Lunch #2

Today we went to lunch again with one of Brian's coworkers. We went to Madras Pavilion which had a great buffet with a huge variety. Two delicious highlights of the day were:

- Dosa. Yummmm. This is a crepe with a mashed potato and onion filling that we ate with a ginger chutney. It was delicious and is a common snack you eat in the morning.
- Fresh naan with butter. The owner of the restaurant brought out hot-out-of the-oven- naan and it was soooo good! I could have eaten 10 pieces, but I was so full from the buffet I only had 3!

Cultural Lesson #1

Today, we went to lunch with on of Brian's coworkers, Mohammad. Mohammad was kind enough to take us to an authentic Indian restaurant and show us the ropes of Indian food.
A few things I learned:

• Cheese is called paneer. This is especially important for me as I am lactose intolerant. I will be using the phrase no paneer quite frequently I am sure.
• Indian food is spicy. The food we ate at the restaurant was not spicy at all, but they had toned it down for American palates. Mohammed suggested we definitely ask about spiciness before ordering.
• Indian foods have different names in different regions. Indian bread, which is like an absolutely delicious pita, is called naan in a lot of places and here in the US, but where we are going it is called something different (of course now I can't remember the name!).
• Most menus at the Indian restaurants we visit will be in English (yay!).
• You are not supposed to eat the seasoning in the rice. You would think if it's mixed in with the rice, you can eat it, but you can't. We'll you can, but it would not feel good after digestion occurs. You are supposed to pick these little seed-like seasonings out. (I can't remember the names of these little things either).

Here's a few items that we got to try at our lunch:

MUTTER PANEER


What is it?
A dish made with peas and cottage cheese cubes in a curry sauce.

Meghann's rating:
Interesting combination of flavors and textures that will take some getting used to, but pretty good overall. I think would have liked it better if was spicier.

TANDOORI CHICKEN

What is it?
Chicken marinated in yogurt, lemon juice and spices that is cooked in a clay oven to give the chicken a distinctive reddish-orange color and a smokey flavor.

Meghann's rating:
Delicious! It's BBQ chicken without the sauce. I would have preferred it a bit spicier again, but Mohammed mentioned that this dish is typically very spicy in India.

ALOO GOBI

What is it?
Cauliflower and potato in a curry sauce

Meghann's rating:
Pretty good; curry will be an interesting flavor to get used to. Cauliflower is not my favorite veggie, but I do love anything in a sauce.

Brian's trip

Brian will be departing San Antonio on August 10. His return date is tentatively set for September 16, but will probably be extended.

He gets to fly Sinapore Airlines in Business Class in a luxury recliner. I'm very jealous!

Bought the plane ticket!

I officially bought my plane ticket today. After a lot of research I decided on this itinerary:

• San Antonio (SAT) to Dallas (DFW)
  08/16/09
  5:20 pm - 6:30 pm
• Dallas (DFW) to London (LHR)
  08/16/09
  7:20 pm - 10:45 am
• London (LHR) to Chennai (MAA)
  08/17/09
  12:55 pm - 3:25 am

Return trip:

• Chennai (MAA) to Brussels (BRU)
  09/15/09
  1:00 am - 7:50 am
• Brussels (BRU) to Chicago (ORD)
  09/15/09
  11:05 am - 12:50 pm
• Chicago (ORD) to San Antonio (SAT)
  09/15/09
  6:55 pm - 9:45 pm

There were lots of options on how to get from the US to India. It looks like you could either choose to go through Europe or through Asia or the Middle East. For an English-speaking woman traveling alone, I thought Europe would be my best bet, even though it wasn't the least expensive. I had thoughts of getting stranded in Dubai or Singapore and not being able to communicate with anyone and did not like that option. So, Europe it is.

After I decided on going the Europe route, I got the idea of taking a side trip. I have heard that if you break up a long trip you are less affected by the time change and less likely to get sick. London and Frankfurt both looked like good options - I started to get really excited about the possibly of seeing Buckingham Palace! In the end, because of cost and time, I decided to go straight into Chennai. I'll leave Europe for another trip where Brian and I can explore together.

Many of the flight possibles had long (over 6 hours) layovers and many included overnight stays in New Delhi. On my first trip to India, I just didn't think an overnight stay would be good alone, so I found a flight that goes straight through to Chennai, which is why I'm getting there at 3:25 a.m. That sounds terrible, but what is really going to mess me up is that it will feel like 1 in the afternoon! Poor Brian has his first day of real work the next day, so I think maybe I'll need to take some Benadryl so I don't keep Brian up talking!

I chose all of my seats carefully after some talk over the pros/cons of a window seat vs. an aisle seat. I can sleep anywhere and will surely sleep most of the time on the planes, so we decided a window seat would be best so I could cuddle (Brian's reason :)). Brian pointed out I might have some problems because usually I have to rush to the bathroom, but he said it's OK since I'm small and can crawl over people.

On the long flights overseas, I actually opted for an aisle seat in the middle section. There were over half of the seats available on the flights so my hope is that I can have a whole row of 5 seats to myself and I can make it a bed! We'll see if that works out ... I can dream!

I booked through Expedia and opted for the travel insurance (after my cousin Linda's ordeal with losing her luggage for 3 weeks on her international honeymoon, I knew this was a must!). The insurance also covers medical up to $5000 and medical transportation should I need to get to another city or out of the country up to $15000. I'm looking into getting some additional insurance for medical stuff ... any suggestions?

Now that I have the ticket and the money is gone from our bank account, it's real!

Heading to India!

Brian will be working in India for 6 weeks or so in August and September and surprisingly I don't have any weddings in September, so I'll also be traveling to India for a month-long adventure!

I've traveled out of the country before, but never as a "grown up" and never alone. Brian will be flying out a week before I do with a coworker, so I'll be making the 39 hour journey from San Antonio, Texas, to Chennai, India by myself. It's a little scary, but I'm looking forward to it more than I am nervous.

I'm planning to leave on August 16, which gives me a little over a month to get all of my travel documents in order, make travel arrangements and pack. We also have to make sure our apartment, bills and business are all taken care of while we are gone. Brian and I just finished our to-do list and it is pretty daunting! We have several doctor appointments, major purchases and a lot of little things to do before we depart.

I'll be chronicling my journey here including preparations for the trip, my stay in Chennai, volunteer work I am hoping to do in India, training for a half-marathon while in a foreign county, and all of the wonderful sights and sounds I am sure to see while exploring. Buying a new camera that is small enough to fit in my tourist purse is on my to-do list so I'll have lots of great photos to share as well.

Stay tuned for more on our trip preparations!