Thieves' Market

Just got back from walking the Chor Bazaar.

7 Things I Saw:

• 1 goat the size of a small horse
• 5 roosters fighting with eachother
• a 4 foot crystal chandelier
• countless stolen car parts
• 2 mosques and 1 Hindu temple
• 3 more Taporis making kissy noises at me
• at least 5 fruits and veggies that I had never seen before

What I bought: 1 wooden block used to make block prints on textiles such as tablecloths and clothing. It cost me about $1. I even haggled with the shopkeeper on the price. Yay me!

After our visit to Chor Bazaar, we went out to lunch at a restaurant that doesn’t even deserve a mention because it sucked so bad and then we went to an AMAZING store called Soma which sells Block Printed Textiles, like I mentioned above. I bought 1 block printed Kurta (shirt), 1 small square tablecloth, and two more wooden blocks. I plan to use these as stamps in my mixed media art. I’m so excited to try them out!

Tonight I’m going to bed early because we’ve got to hop on a plane to Jaipur at 6am tomorrow and I don’t want a repeat performance of what happened at the Singapore Airport. Your next report will be from Jaipur. :)

Gandhi and Gold

I got a prez-ENT! Yesterday when we got to Aai’s house, she presented me with a beautiful gold bangle bracelet. I wish I had taken a picture of it for you. It’s handmade. Her instructions are to wear it all the time, everyday, and I plan to. I can’t even tell you how lovely it is and how much it means to me. I never expected to get such a wonderful gift.

You can see the bracelet in this photo of Aai and me.

We had a really nice breakfast of Poha (Poha is Rice flakes--Rice, pounded down into flakes.), and then we all, and I mean ALL (including Aai and Usha Maushi) got prepared for a day out on the town. Our driver, Girish picked us up and drove us to a few places I really wasn’t interested in ;) and then, we went to Bombay University, which I had been to before. This time, we weren’t allowed into the gates due to security concerns, but there was a little girl in a red dress, about 3 years old, who was outside the gate with her mother. Her mother was a homeless woman, selling peacock fans on the street. The little girl reminded me so much of my youngest niece. I think it was her mischievous smile. At one point, she picked up a HUGE piece of concrete, dropped it on an old plastic bag, and started pulling the concrete around on the bag...her only toys are concrete and plastic bags.

We went to a place called Marine Drive, which is also called the Queen’s Necklace because it lights up like jewels at night. Then, just as I was getting SUPER BORED, we stopped in at a market and strolled the stalls. We saw all kinds of interesting things both foreign and familiar. As I was strolling along, a little ahead of my husband, I had an encounter with a beast I had only heard of in fairy tales: The Tapori. A Tapori is a guy who thinks he knows what he’s talkin’ about when it comes to the ladies. They’re also very forward. So when this guy gave me the Indian form of a Cat Call, I didn’t know whether to be disgusted or flattered! :) My husband has been telling me about the Taporis for years and it makes me feel like I’ve gone through an initiation process having now encountered one.

After the market, we went to a place called Mani Bhavan- which was Gandhi’s house from 1917-1934. I may be put to death for this, but I’m not all that into Gandhi, so it was basically just an interesting house for me. It didn’t have much cultural meaning. Perhaps later on in my life I’ll appreciate it more. There were some cool pictures of Gandhi- one with Charlie Chaplin- & my husband and I shamefully tricked Aai into believing it was a picture of Gandhi with Bill Clinton. :) We shouldn’t tease her.

There was talk after Mani Bhavan- (all in Marathi, so I really couldn’t understand it) of going to the Planetarium. Abby & I were hungry and did not want to go to the Planetarium, so when we pulled up outside the Planetarium the backseat crowd (Abby and I) were unenthused. But we were happily surprised when we entered a restaurant called The Copper Chimney, in the shadow of the Planetarium instead of the Planetarium itself. Whew. We had a delicious buffet lunch, and Girish, our driver, joined us.

Lunch was so filling- and so late in the day- that we just went back to Aai’s house. Usha Maushi’s daughter (Ashwini) and adorable grand-daughter (Tanhvi) were there to meet us, so we visited with them for awhile, while Aai made us some tasty Indian omelettes (cilantro and onion), before my husband took us back to the hotel for the night.

I went to bed early- shirking my blog duties (which I think I’m going to do in the mornings from now on) and now I’m currently in a taxi on my way to meet a woman named Vinita who is going to take us on a walking tour through the Chor Bazaar (Chor meaning “Theives’”, “Bazaar” is Market) It should be fun to do some shopping! You can count on me to do let you know how it goes!

Day 2 Bombay- We're Getting Full!

The day started when my husband picked us up at our hotel in an auto rickshaw. During the day, and autorickshaw ride can be a little hectic and is definitely a little on the disgusting side. You HAVE TO be wearing a scarf or a dupatta so you can cover your nose and mouth to guard against the severe street pollution & carbon monoxide. By night, when the streets clear up a

little bit, the ride gets even more crazy, as you whiz through the city at breakneck speeds, just trying to stay inside the cart and arrive in one piece. By the time you get to where you are going, you are thoroughly jostled. However, it’s probably the cheapest way to travel, costing only about $1 (US) for a 30 minute drive.

One interesting thing about all of these cab drivers and auto rickshaw drivers is that they seem to love to ‘pimp their rides’. But not in a Western sense. They mostly seem to adorn their cars with stickers of gods and goddesses, or with the actual god figurines themselves, affixed to the dash- complete with a scarf to cover over them. I’ve also seen a lot of pin striping...mainly on taxis and auto rickshaws, but also on larger cargo trucks. The larger cargo trucks have words written on them. One thing they write a lot is “HORN OK PLEASE”. Which I guess means that they give permission to other drivers to honk at them when they are going to pass....which the other driver would do with or without their permission, so it’s really irrelevant.

We had a delicious breakfast, made by Aai and Usha Maushi, and then our pre-arranged Meru Cab came to pick us up. The Meru driver took us to the Gateway of India, which took about an hour (SERIOUSLY!), where we got out and took a few pictures, got harassed by a few touts, and then went across the street to the Taj Hotel, which as you probably remember is the location of the terrorist bombing in 2008. It was a sad to see it going through changes...it’s not fair that a building like that

should be altered in any way. I was starting to get hungry, so we looked into the Sea Lounge, where we had previously had a bite to eat with my brother-in-law, but it doesn’t serve any Glutern-Free fare, so that was out. We would have to find something somewhere else.

We left the Taj and walked up the D n Road toward VT Station. (VT=Victoria Terminus) As we walked, I think Abby got a taste of India that she was really looking for. There were all manner of things going on on that street yesterday. As we were walking we came upon the Prince of Wales Museum. Let me tell you, I was so not into going in there. First of all, you have to leave your bags at the door. I don’t want to leave my bag with ANYONE. Second of all, I’m NO GOOD at Museums. This is a well-known fact. A classic case is when I had a melt-down at the Louvre. But Abby is really into packing activities into this trip, and she pretty much wants to take a day off if there’s shopping involved, so I guess I was in for it. The museum’s first floor was a snooze fest. Everything there was like my Asian Art class all over again. But the second floor was pretty cool. For those of you who have been to my house, the second floor was filled with those Miniature Paintings that we have in our living room, and the

displays explained that the subject matter was the Indian Ragas and Raginis (music makers and their wives, as well as their sons, the Raga Putras), and that was something I never knew about my miniature paintings, so I was really excited to learn something, and I can’t wait to go home and look at them with fresh eyes. Third floor, snooze fest. But by the time we finished at the museum, Abby was also hungry, which accelerated the need to find a restaurant to eat in.

We walked a little further down the road and found a restaurant called Khyber Pass. We stepped in and checked out the menu...it sounded great, so we made it unanimous. We ordered Reshmi Chicken Kebab (which is pieces of white meat

chicken in a creamy red sauce, kinda spicy), Bhindi Masala (Spicy Okra), and Aloo Gobi (Potatoes and Cauliflower). Abby and my husband had some rotis as well.

From the Khyber Pass we took a right (HA!) and we were looking for either the Bombay Store or a store called Chimanlal’s.

You may remember that the Bombay Store is pretty much a gift shop filled with Indian gifts. Chimanlal’s is a paper store that I heard about on India Mike. (TIP! If you’re planning a trip to India, and you don’t know about India Mike, get yourself acquainted. You need India Mike!) Eventually, after much pavement-pounding, we found the Bombay Store. It really is a wonderful store. I found a lot of handmade paper in there, and it only cost a buck. My husband found a wallet in there for $3 (US) that he’s seen for up to $190. Of course he bought it! We left the lovely Bombay Store and asked many, many people (Indian Mapquest) for the whereabouts of Chimanlal’s. We finally found it, and it was well worth the walk. Handmade paper all over the place. Gorgeous. There’s only one sheet of paper that I regret not buying. I can see it now in my mind. It’s haunting me.

We went out on the street and walked back to VT station where we found a cab to take us back to Vikhroli*. Aai and Usha Maushi had made us another LOVELY dinner. This time it was Dosas, Gajar Halwa (Carrot Dessert), Peas, Potatoes and Cauliflower, Fried Potatoes, and Dal. They SPOIL us. They’re trying to fatten us up. Some of us don’t need any more fattening, thank you very much.

Anyway. After dinner, my husband was tired, so he wanted to take us back to our hotel right away. We went out onto the road and found an auto rickshaw and climbed in & held on for dear life. What a ride.

Today, plans are up in the air. Of course, I’m hoping for at least a few shopping stops. I don’t plan on leaving this country with a 2 half empty suitcases.

(*Many cabs will flat out refuse to take you to a place like Vikhroli, either because they don’t have enough gas to drive that far away, or because they don’t think they will get a fare to drive them back to the main part of the city once they get there, or even because it’s really not a desireable place to go.)

BTW--The Clarke Quay video is now up on "The Fam" post. It was pretty easy to edit that video so you can look forward to more videos in the coming days! :)

Day1-Bombay/The Fam

Last night, our final night in Singapore, we decided to have dinner back at Clarke Quay. We took the MRT, of course, and decided on a Spanish restaurant called The Tapas Tree, located right on the River. It was an absolutely stunning place to have dinner. Just wait for the video! (I'll post the video here within the next few days. Watch for it.)

We then took our Singapore Tourist Pass cards back (which are 3 day passes for the MRT), and got a $10 refund from the Ticket Office. This is my Singapore Tip! The card costs $34 Singapore Dollars...so with the refund, it’s only S$24. If you use the card HALF as much as we did, you’ll totally get your money’s worth.

I gotta tell ya. I got NO sleep last night. Not only do I have insomnia, but my husband is a snorer. So I’m told that I made an absolute fool of myself at the airport this morning and that I looked like a drunken sailor until I was able to pull myself together and wake up myself up enough to act like a human. I’m told I said some pretty funny stuff. I really only have one word for it: Ambien.

So while I after I managed to sober up, we flew to Bombay. It was another manageable flight on Singapore Airlines...their service is excellent, and their bathrooms are pretty clean. And, actually, the food is pretty good, too. Another tip! Request the Indian Veg Meal when booking your tickets. The meal quality and flavor is so much better than the other “International” meals they serve. Believe me. I’ve seen and tasted the other stuff.

When we got to Bombay, customs and immigration was very straightforward, as was baggage claim. As we stepped outside into the sun, I immediately saw my mother-in-law and gave her a big wave and a smile. The other thing I noticed was that the weather is considerably cooler here than in Singapore. Bonus! When we arrived it was about 70 degrees here. :) Lovely. We all (Usha Maushi-my aunt, my mother-in-law, my husband, Abby, me, and the Taxi driver) squished into the Taxi and drove to the Hotel, where we were semi-sniffed by a bomb-sniffing dog, driven through a metal detector and frisked, and forced to put all of our bags through an x-ray machine- all in the name of security. Hey, I’d rather have that level of security than have another incident like the Taj Bombing.

Our hotel is, I would say, equally as beautiful as the Marriott in Singapore, although since it’s only Abby and me staying there, we are staying in a much smaller room. :) My husband is staying with his mom in Vikhroli, about 30 minutes away. We’ve stayed at this hotel before, as some of you might remember, when we were here on our last trip. This time our room has a beautiful lake view, and when we got to our room, we gazed out the window and saw a herd of water buffalo swimming across the lake (and a mean little boy throwing rocks at them!)

After resting at the hotel for awhile, we (Abby, my husband and I) took an autorickshaw to my mother-in-law’s (let’s call her Aai, which is what I call her, which means “mom” in Marathi) house. Aai and Usha Maushi (Usha is her name, “Maushi” means Aunt in Marathi- Actually, if we’re being correct, it’s spelled, “Mavshi”) have made us a delicious dinner of Dosas, Chicken, Pullao and Chapatis. Usha Maushi even got us some Butterscotch Ice Cream for dessert. (If you’re not familiar with Pullao, it’s akin to Pilaf with vegetables in it. Chapatis are kind of like tortillas...but of course, they’re an Indian tortilla.) We’re all going to have dinner together....actually, we’re all going to have dinner right about now, so I’ll write again tomorrow when I’ll tell you about our 2nd full day in Bombay. TTFN!

Day 3 Singapore

Well, I had thought that Chinese New Year in Singapore was going to be a blast but it turned out to be a bust. Apart from a few decorations- we didn’t see any signs of celebration at all. Unless you count the fact that because everyone was celebrating, almost every shop and restaurant door was closed. I guess that’s a sign that someone is celebrating! We went to mall after empty mall-all dark and deserted. However! Today we went to China Town and it was absolutely replete with Tigers (this is the Year of the Tiger) and the color red. Here are some pictures my husband took:

After we went to China Town, we went back to Clarke Quay (pronounced “Key”) and went to a really cool bookstore called Kinokuniya which I had heard of before at home, and really wanted to visit when I got the chance. I was able to get some really great ephemera (that’s what the paper and other stuff I use for my Mixed Media art is called) from Taiwan and Japan. I’m excited to put this stuff to use when I get home!

It was a little cooler today...only 89 degrees, rather than 90. But you have to keep in mind that the humidity makes it feel kinda stuffy. One thing that makes it bearable is that the MRT (subway) is air conditioned, and we take the MRT everywhere we go.

We took the MRT back to Little India to go to Banana Leaf Apolo for lunch. It’s a pretty well-known place...famous for their fish head curry. We didn’t have the fish head curry...I guess we’re just not adventurous enough. We had Chili Chicken (which was moderately spicy, even for me) and Vegetable Biryani. For those of you who don’t know, Biryani is a kind of roasted rice dish, where the rice actually roasts (usually with a meat like chicken or lamb) for hours-sometimes in an underground oven, getting more and more flavorful as the hours pass. You can make Biryani at home, too, in a much simpler way, but that’s the more traditional definition of Biryani.

Speaking of Biryani, our plane leaves for India tomorrow morning at 730 AM and we reach India at 1030 AM, India time. My Mother-in-Law will be waiting for us at the airport and from there we will go to the hotel where Abby and and I are staying to drop off our bags and maybe have a little lunch. Then we’ll head to Vikhroli, which is the tiny little area of Bombay where my husband is from. Our plans are up in the air from there!

I’ve got to say, I’ve REALLY loved our time in Singapore and I’m going to be sad to leave. Singapore is a beautiful place. It’s an easy place to be a tourist, too. It’s got a great transportation system, everyone speaks English, and if you’re smart enough to visit anytime other than Chinese New Year, there’s PLENTY of shopping! I know a few people who would be put off by the temperature here, but you’ve got to get past that. This place is so beautiful. Just last night, I found these little tiny baby seedless oranges that are about an inch and a quarter in diameter-and they’re deeee-licious! I love this country!

Day 2 Singapore-Snookered

We were awakened this morning at 5 AM by the telephone. Our request for a 9 AM wake up call was misunderstood...not too fun. I think we were all able to roll over and get over it, though. I was really unimpressed by the “free breakfast” options we were given on our first morning, so I wanted to go down to the restaurant’s buffet. I don’t know why I don’t learn my lesson that when the words “breakfast” and “buffet” are involved it means dollar signs. To make a long story short, we paid 100 Singapore dollars for 2 people for breakfast. (Your homework assignment is to go to an online currency converter and figure out how much we paid for breakfast.) We went more than a little overbudget.

Abby decided to take the morning off, so Milind and I headed off on the MRT (Singapore’s subway) to a camera shop we had heard about. We searched for awhile til we found it, crossing our fingers that it wouldn’t be one of the many shops that is closed for Chinese New Year. (BTW, I thought being here for Chinese New Year was going to be great, but basically it sucks because everything is closed!!) When we found it, there was a jovial Chinese man standing outside waiting for us. He greeted us with a smile as we told him about my husband’s camera and our need for a new, higher powered zoom lens. He showed us one that was basically the same as the one we have...then he showed us the next model up, quoting us a price o

f $1000. “But I’ll give it to you for special Chinese New Year price of $850.” We declined. He then lowered the price to six hundred and something. We still declined. He wanted to know how much we would pay. We didn’t know. We were clueless. I think he saw the chink in our armor. He finally whittled the price down to $350, and I told my husband to go for it, knowing how badly he wanted to take pictures with his new camera and how he needed the lens. He bought it.

We left the store and were on our way to our next destination, Little India, when my husband realized that the man didn’t give him a receipt for his purchase. We started to smell something fishy (as Velma would say).

Little India was...basically just like the real India. I saw no differences. Well, maybe the traffic moved a little more smoothly and the streets were cleaner. :) I mean that in the kindest of ways, because as you know, I’m a big fan of India. We had lunch at a well- known vegetarian restaurant called Komala Vilas. It was so delicious! I had Masala Dosai, which is a dosa (a huge thin pancake-like thing that fills the whole plate, rolled up) filled with a potato mixture, plus, to put it in Western terms, some dippin’ sauces. :) Komala Vilas was kind of interesting because of course everyone was eating with their hands...and I guess because of that, there were two sinks in the main dining room for hand washing. Did I eat with my hands? Well, I was given a fork (I guess they assumed I was inept), but I used a spoon in my right hand and ate with my left hand in the food. The only hard part was that that food was HOT! The best thing about lunch: it was only $2.50!

We left Little India and came back to the hotel to check on Abby...we wanted to see if she was ready to join us, and she was. While we were at the hotel, my husband did a little research on the internet about lenses and found the same lens he just bought for only $250 on Amazon. He was so upset. He was determined to go back to the store and either get some money back or all his money back. Unfortunately, we checked with the concierge, and there is no concept of merchandise returns in Singapore. There is only an agency called CASE that basically goes after seedy businesses when they make poor business transactions. We did go back to the store...the man was NOT as jovial as he was the first time, and of course he refused to give us our money back. We told him we’d be reporting him to CASE.

After our disappointment at the camera store, we had to check a Singapore “must-do” off our list: Singapore Slings at the Raffles Hotel. We traveled by MRT to the Raffles Hotel, and found our way to the Long Bar...a really cool, old fashioned bar with a lot of history...and my husband and Abby sipped Singapore Slings and ate peanuts in the cool air of the bar. When you’re done with your peanut shells, you just throw them on the floor. It’s that kinda place.

Now we’re back at the hotel for happy hour...we’ve got plans to go out for dinner tonight at a place called Banana Leaf Apolo. We saw it on Andrew Zimmern’s show.

We have vague ideas about what we’ll do tomorrow....but who knows? It’s our last day in Singapore, so we’re going to make the most of it. I do know we’re going back to Clark Quay, but that’s all I know for sure.

TTFN!

Singapore-the flight and the first day

My sweet husband got me a wonderful Valentine’s gift! A new Flip Ultra HD video camera...so you will be seeing some videos of our trip here on this blog. I’m lovin’ it!

I think I’m going to regret a lot of things about this flight to Singapore...mostly to do with airplane food. I requested Gluten Free meals and I’ve had one semi-hit and 3 misses, while my husband, who requested the Hindu Veg meals keeps lovin’ every bite. I’m calling them tomorrow and getting the rest of my meals switched to Hindu Veg (which seem to all be GF anyway). The other thing I may end up really regretting, is brushing my teeth in Incheon Airport in Korea. I did what I always do and I dipped my toothbrush in before thinking about the potability of the water & then it was too late. I’ve cost myself so many toothbrushes because of that! But I pressed on and brushed my teeth anyway- and I pressured Abby into doing it too- so we may be fighting over the toilet later on at the hotel.

Well, I’m writing this on the plane...actually, I’m doing fairly well. I’ve been up 24 hours so far and by the time we get situated at the hotel it will probably be more like 27-28 hours. It really helps in situations like this (trying to acclimate to jetlag) to have insomnia...because I can keep myself up for the loooooooongest periods of time.

Anyway, I’m out. TTFN.

Hey! So far no regrets from the plane food....I’m so happy about that! AND! It turns out that Seoul’s water is potable. Shame on me for thinking otherwise! Actually, to be honest, I’ve never peed in a cooler bathroom than the one in Seoul’s airport. It was just awesome. The stalls were so private and clean and the toilet seat covers....I can’t even explain them! There was an actual sleeve of plastic that came out of a machine that covered the entire seat, and it automatically re-loaded for each new person. Does that make sense? Probably not. But anyway, it was cool. We got into our Hotel, which is the Singapore Marriott, at around 2:15 AM, and of course we were exhausted...so when the enthusiastic receptionist tried to upsell us a huge room with a price tag to match, we totally fell for it. So now, for the next 4 days, we are in a 2 bedroom Junior Suite...with 2 bathrooms! But actually, it is very comfortable and luxurious and we love it. I was so tired last night, I just wanted to take a shower and go to bed...I went into the main bathroom and got into the tub and noticed there was just a hand shower and no actual shower curtain. I was like, “how we gonna do this?”. So I splashed around in there like a little sea otter and got the job done and came out with my jammies on. When I told Abby and my husband about the weird bathing situation, my husband just laughed and

said, “you mean you didn’t see the separate stand up shower in the corner?”. It’s true. There’s a HUGE shower stall in there. I guess the bathroom’s just so big that I missed it.

Today we had intentions to go Sentosa Island...we got to the station and everything, but then we saw and hour long line-in the sun (did I mention it’s hella hot here?)-to get there. We stood in that line arguing with eachother for about 4 minutes and then we left. We decided to go to Clarke Quay, which is basically a bunch of restaurants and retail stores on a river front. It’s really pretty. Everything is closed though!!! Everything is closed because it’s New Year’s. We did manage to find a few restaurants that were open...and we stopped and ate at one called Café Iguana, which is a Mexican restaurant, of all things. It was really good! I had chicken tacos with handmade tortillas. Mmmmmmm. Then we took a riverboat cruise....we saw a lot from the boat...a lot of stuff we can do in the next few days. It was really nice. After the cruise, I couldn’t resist a sign I saw for Turkish Ice Cream. What is Turkish Ice Cream? I had to know. Basically, a guy dressed in Authentic Turkish clothing with Ice Cream in brass tubs in flavors like vanilla, chocolate, pistachio, mango and strawberry reaches in with a special spoon and with all his gusto, fills your bowl or cone with rich Ice Cream (which is really not very sweet). He really likes to mix flavors. That’s my impression of Turkish Ice Cream.

Then we came back to the hotel so I could write this blog, and our plan now is to go out to Orchard Road and walk around. Should be fun. My husband wants to get a new lens for his camera.