Quick Update

Hello from Pondicherry! This will be a very quick update – it has been a crazy long (but good) day here.

My host family in Chennai gave me a small glimpse into the lifestyles of the rich and famous in India. I stayed with Prasanna and her two children in their large central apartment (with their driver, cook and maid). But the Chennai apartment is not Prasanna’s main home. She lives in a town a few hours away in what she described as a “sprawling mansion.”

On my first day at Prasanna’s place, one of the highest ranking officials from the Tamil Nadu police force dropped by for a coffee. As a side note, I asked this officer (in my hopelessly non-politically astute way), who had worked in all areas of federal and state policing, about his views of the effectiveness of the different facets of the police in India. His mouth went into a half-amused/half-annoyed curl and looking me in the eye he said: “All aspects of the Indian police are excellent.”

Prasanna invited me to attend the mendhi party for the wedding of the grandson of a very famous Indian actor (considered the “Godfather” of South Indian cinema and to whom there is a statue erected across from that of M. Gandhi in Chennai). The father is also a well-known actor. Actually, the grandson was marrying his first cousin. The mendhi party was plush beyond anything I’ve seen before. It was held in one of the famous Taj hotels. There was an extensive and professionally choreographed dance show put on the by family, live drummers, a fantasy-garden of food, expensive gift bags, beautiful dresses and people. Aside from having my hand decorated with henna, I spent the evening watching the dancing, eating, and chatting to movie directors. Apparently the wedding (held the following evening) was attended by top Indian politicians and Bollywood actors.

Mahabalipuram was quite the change from Chennai: a laid-back backpacker’s haven full of white European yoga fanatics. During my two days there I had a private (free) yoga lesson by a Belgian yoga instructor/style consultant/aromatherapy/dietician on the roof of my guesthouse (she offered me a lesson after I agreed to switch rooms with her. Her old room had bad energy after her breakup with another yogi who left to go back to Sweden), discussed communicating with spirits and animals with a Swiss man who practices Shamanism, and puked my guts out after drinking juice which (I discovered too late) contained a rogue ice cube.

Today in Pondicherry I took a city bus tour and met a fun Irish woman who seems to like eating as much as I do. Tomorrow we’re having an ayruvedic massage – which promises to be another interesting experience.

Lots of other stuff has happened but I’ll have to keep this one short. Miss you all and send news!