Work, again?

Well its Monday, and unlike the US, it’s not a holiday here. But before you feel sorry for me (as if that were possible) Wednesday is Vinayaka Chathurthi, a national holiday related to the Hindu god Ganesha. Ganesha, the son of Shiva and Parvati, has the head of elephant and body of a man. I am definitely going to need to read a lot more Hindi mythology when I get back, I can only name two of the ten incarnations of the Lord Vishnu (Krishna and Rama).

This reminds me of an interesting thing I heard in the museum on Saturday. An Indian docent was explaining some of the statues, including telling some of the mythology related to the characters that are commonly depicted. She said the purpose of the mythology was to teach an underlying philosophy. Certainly not the dominate idea in my country, where God actually speaks to the president and the bible is meant to be taken as literal fact (and if possible taught in public schools rather than that evolution nonsense).

On a less philosophic note, many people were worried that I would not be able to find Diet Pepsi in India. Let me allay your fears, Diet Pepsi is plentiful and available at every restaurant I have been to. But because the coffee and tea are both so good here, I haven’t been drinking anywhere near my normal quota. Anyone check Pepsi’s stock to see if it fell in my absence?

I haven’t really spoken much about the food here but, as expected, it is outstanding. Tonight I am going to venture away from the hotel to a local restaurant. The hotel is so good; it’s tempting to eat there every day. Of course I have been eating the complementary breakfast every morning (its nothing like the continental breakfast at the Motel 6). Besides the omelet bar they also have a variety of both western and Indian breakfast favorites, served buffet style. I don’t remember the names of the Indian dishes, but they have all been very good. Topped off with a glass of fresh watermelon juice and I am ready to face the day.

It did take me a while to get the hang of eating alone. At first I tried to sit in a dignified manner with an expression that implied I was contemplating the nature of the universe. Now I just bring a book.