My time in India has come to an end and what an end it was! I was completely knackered (I like this word!) for my last few days in the country because of all the traveling! But for all of the reunions I experienced, it was definitely worth it. And just a heads up, this entry is a wee bit long!!
Last week I went back to my Mom's hometown and had the chance to see most of my cousins! All of them are now married with kids!! I am the only one on my Mom's side who is single; having said that, I am also the youngest one of my cousins so it makes sense.
Apparently in my part of Kerala the big tourist thing to do is go down to Jew Street (yes you read that right and yes it is real) and visit an ancient Synagogue. Now, I didn't know that there were people of the Jewish faith in that part of India but lone behold I was proven wrong. So off in the rain we went only to discover that the Synagogue is closed on Fridays & Saturdays :( I guess it will just have to wait for my next trip to Kerala!
We were thinking of spending a night on a house boat but I decided against it because of the thought of the number of bugs that would be lurking around the waters *shudder* that experience will have to wait for my next trip (where I will be wearing every sort of insect repellent known to man!!). Apart for catching up with cousins, I did a lot of eating!! Its rare that I get to eat this food so I indulged! Maybe a bit too much though, my jeans are starting to feel a bit snug!!!
Anyways, after Kerala we spent a few days back home in Ooty and then we were off to Bangalore for the weekend! We arrived in the wee hours of the morning but thankfully we were able to check into our guest house (which I later found out is run by my friend's boy friend's aunt & uncle-small world eh?!). After a quick nap, my Dad and I went for a quick stroll to the pubs! We had two pitchers (of very average Indian beer) and a side dish for only $10! I forgot how much I loved the conversion rates! :) For dinner, I met up with one of my closest friends from high school and we reminisced about all the crazy things we used to do!
The next day, my Dad and I met one of my 'cousins' (not by blood but there is no better way to explain how we know each other) for a drink and a bite. We went to a micro-brewery for some beer (which was really good!) and then went to a restaurant called Touche for lunch. Touche was awesome because, not only was the food delicious, but you order everything through a touch screen menu embedded into your dining table! There are also games you can play on the screen while you wait for your food to arrive! It was definitely more high tech than I had expected from Bangalore but I guess since it is an IT hub of India I should have given it more credit!
In tribute to our high school days my friend and I decided that we would go out on Saturday night and have some fun (and if it was anything like high school we'd spend a lot of Sunday regretting that fun!). Another one of our old friends met up with us and we headed to Shiro's. Now this lounge is located on the top floor of a high end complex of apartments, stores and other things so I knew it was going to be a much classier version of our high school nights, what I didn't expect was to be spending $20 (USD!) on a double gin & tonic! But the crowd was much nicer than what I was used to and the view was gorgeous so it was worth it.
Anyhoo, as I'm blabbing on about what I ate and drank you must still be wondering 'what the heck does any of this have to do with Kevin Bacon?!'. Well here it is. As I expected, Bangalore had changed. Most of it was for the better (it was much more modern) but then I found out about these two rules which completely baffle me; (1) bars & clubs cannot stay open past 11 30 pm and (2) you can no longer dance in bars, clubs, or restaurants. I swear I felt as it they were filming Footloose in the entire city(now do you get the Kevin Bacon reference?)!! And here I thought that making a remake of the movie was so dumb since a ban on dancing would never happen in our modern world! There was a girl who was doing a very simple two step, nothing outrageous at all, when she was approached by the bouncer and asked to stop! So Kevin Bacon, if you are reading this (which I highly doubt but would be pleasantly surprised if you were) please come to Banaglore and help them find their dancing shoes again!!
Nevertheless, even though I wasn't able to break out the jazz hands, it was great to be back in the city and catch up with old friends. Another trip is a must (and hopefully it won't take me another six and a half years!) But for now, I'm focused on what I'll be doing in the next few days! I am in UAE right now enjoying the heat and the shawarmas so I will update you again in the next few days.
Be safe and have fun! Miss you lots!
Love,
Arlene
Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network
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