Week 12- a trip south
So last Sunday night we left on the train to head south to Tuticorin. It was an overnight trip, and it was pretty miserable. It was really hot in our compartment and I was surrounded by 4 snoring men while i was trying to sleep on a bunk not big enough to sit up in. I was also sick. I came down with giardia on Saturday night. It wasn’t too bad as long as I didn’t eat much. I went from the almost all carbs normal Indian diet to the all carbs diet, and was on anti biotics for the week. Needless to say, the 6 classes on Monday did not go very well. I stayed in bed for the first 3, got up for lunch and managed to get through the other 3. The hotel we were at was kind of cool. The rooms were made out of old train cars and there was a playground outside. It was a small hotel - the 13 of us took up the whole thing.
The week got a lot better after that. Tuesday we were in the field for most of the day visiting fish landings. It was really hot, and everything smelled like fish, but it is always cool to see the local boats and what the catch is. There was one landing where they just fished for crabs, and the other one they brought in some huge fish - the biggest we’ve seen. There were some swordfish big enough that it took 2 men to carry it around. On our way out, a guy showed us the area where they dry the swordfish tails and heads after they sell the meat, and we saw some even parts of even bigger fish. He said one had weighed 440 kg - about 1000 lb. The head and tail were huge. I didn’t know fish got that big.
That night we rode the train further south to Maduri. It was only about 3 hours, and not overnight, so it was no big deal. Maduri was clearly a tourist town. We stayed in a big hotel with 2 restaurants inside and a ‘spaceship bar’ in the basement. The reason we went there was to go on a temple visit. The biggest temple complex in Southern India is in the center of the city. The hotel lobby had 2 signs - one pointing to the bar, the other pointing to the temple.
We spent Wednesday morning at the temple. We were not allowed to wear shoes inside, and everyone had to have long pants on. The temple is built kind of in layers, with the tallest walls and towers on the outside, and then a maze through everything on the inside. I took a lot of pictures. The big towers were really high and very ornate. They were built on granite bases with all sorts of figures carved into them and then the tower part was all plaster statues of all the gods that were painted with very bright colors. We had a guide telling us about all the gods and what different things were supposed to stand for, but it was all so complicated that I didn’t catch much of it. There are a bunch of different gods and they all have a bunch of different forms and can be riding a bunch of different creatures, and according to different sects of Hindus, they have all done different things and married different other gods. By the end I knew that the green one in the paintings was Parvati, the other one was usually Shiva, and the elephant one is Ganesha.
It was kind of weird being some place that was such a tourist attraction but still very much a functioning temple. We were not the only white people wandering around taking pictures, and there were definitely a lot of Indian tourists, but a lot of the people there were there to worship. We saw people laying down on the floor bowing in different directions after they walked in. Lighting candles near the statues is a common form of worship, as is rubbing different spices/powders on the different statues. The very center part of the temple, they only allow Indian Hindus to go in. There is an even stricter dress code, and no cameras are allowed. It would have been nice to see the whole things, but I think it is good that some of it is left as just a temple.
That afternoon, we visited a giant sari store. They had every color and pattern imaginable. Most are made out of cotton or silk. The cotton ones are the more expensive ones, but the silk ones are softer, cooler, and can be more ornate. Some of them here were very inexpensive. I got a really nice blue and purple silk one for about $5. The underskirt I got to go with it was another $3. The saris come with a piece of cloth to make the shirt out of. I will try to get it made while we are here, if not I will figure it out at home. We had a fun time trying to figure out how to wrap the saris we got. I think I kind of have it figured out. It is 9 yards of fabric, so it’s a lot to wrap around yourself.
That night we traveled again, and got to Rameshwaram. We didn’t really do too much there. We went on a ‘glass bottomed boat’ ride, where we were told to look over the edge at the water because the little strip of glass was too dirty to see through and the water was crystal clear. We also visited a museum where they had a lot of dead fish preserved in jars and some live ones in tanks. They also had 3 sea turtles, which were really cool to see, but were very sad. At least one of them had been kept there for decades, in a very small tank. They were very pretty though, and really big.
Grant jokingly said that it would be fun to try to ride one, but apparently Zach has actually tried. They are apparently all over the place, in the Galapagos, where he studied abroad last semester. Apparently if you try to hold on they just push you off right away.
The big event that night was the cricket game - India vs Australia. We were supposed to have afternoon class, but out teacher ended up watching the match. We didn’t have class until that night on the train, where there was no tv, but live online updates continued throughout the class. In the end, India won. We were very excited. That night on the train wasn’t nearly as bad. We had to get off at 4:30 am, so I didn’t end up sleeping much, but we didn’t have to do anything until late Friday afternoon so I could go back and sleep for a few hours.
Saturday, we went into Pondy. We wandered around for a long time looking for a musical instrument shop because some people wanted to buy citars, but we never found it. After that we had a nice lunch and went to the market. I bought 3 scarves and 2 pairs of pants - some for me and some to bring home as gifts. I have almost all my shopping done for the semester. There are still some more gifts I want to buy, but not to much home. I am going to have to go through all my stuff before I leave and decide what to leave here so my suitcases don’t get to heavy!
Sunday was a quiet day. We really didn’t do too much. Half the people started art classes today. They are doing ceramics. Ours don’t start until Friday. We are doing paper making. Today I did some work on my project and we went swimming in the well at Anu’s house. Tomorrow I am going to collect the rest of the data I need for my project. I’m not sure what we will do the rest of the week. We don’t have any plans. Once art starts, it is 9-5, Monday-Saturday, so we will enjoy our free time now.
