Sunday, February 27, 2005
At last Pondicherry!
First of all, an evidence that came after some dialogues with young indian employees : who is the most famous french in India - living or dead?
(answer in NB to check your guess)
Temple discovery went on 2 weeks ago as I brought a collegue to Kanchipuram, tamil capital of silk sarees & one of the 7 holy cities in India (Varanasi-Benares apart, no clue about the 5 last...). Once there you need a travel book to know where to start among the 140 temples and more. We limited our visit to 2 temples : the one where Siva (horizontal mark on forehead) is supposed to have married Parvathi under a 3500 y-o. mango tree (dead now) and a Vishnu (vertical mark - lll) temple. Two common caracteristics : greedy priest and regular massive weddings (any link?). I the first we were told that once a year 2000 mariages are celebrated at the same time around the famous tree. We stopped at a small shrine inside were a priest was honoring 9 god's statues supposed to represent the 9 planets. We executed a lot of mechanical things beyond our understandig under the priest's guidance. Made some wishes, were given some powder for our relatives once back in Europe (yellow for ladies, red for men) and then came the bill : 20 rupies per god, 9 gods, rounded total 200 rupies. The essence of logic. In the next temple as the brahman started to insist too much on the 400 priest living around the place we found rapidely the next exit before he was able to convert it in rupies! - He had got already his salary for showing us the details of a wedding pavillon (only 400 married at a time) including legendary knights, Vishnou's avatars in turtle and snake and some discretes scenes of Kamasutra unfortunatly covered by spider webs...
On the next sunday afternoon I went randomly through Chennai riding ze Bullet (250km and still no driving licence) : I was a kind of "Manu" Moretti, that would have dropped his scooter and Roma to try some new experiences. I stopped at a the Snake Park were hundreds of families go each sunday to admire the specimens. In front of each kind a map of India is showing with red dots in which indian state it can be found. Almost all of them have red points in all 21 states!
What is the link between Dumas, Romain Rolland, Suffren, La Bourdonnais? All magic names in french litterature, adventure and/or historical sphere, they give their names to the (starting from seaside)1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th street of Pondicherry where I had to go - earlier than expected - for a passport renewal. French spirit is still in the air, some nice restaurant, small calm streets shadowed by trees and the Dupleix were I had an great expresso in a room with a sensational wood smell coming from the carved ceiling (some furniture of Dupleix (the most famous french gouvernor - 18th cent.) are used in the rooms decoration!). So promissing. Too short stay, I have to ride back there...
"Faits divers" - local news : A pakistanise actress was heavily fined once back in her home country after shoting a kissing scene in an indian film (with an indian actor!).
More sad - "fresh" from this morning - : a young girl, 13 y-o., seen nacked in her bath by 3 boys (her bathroom had no roof), committed suicide with kerosene some time after.
Sometimes indians appear to be exageratedly puritans, serious and severe - especially in the South.
Let's finish with a better one : some weeks ago I was supposed to be picked up by a man to make me visit some close area. Appointment was at 9 a.m.. The car showed up at 9.20, the guide went out starting to apologize and as I went to enter the car (an "Ambassador" without age) the man told me that we had to wait for the driver : he had gone in a hidden place ...to have breakfast! No comment.
NB : C'est Napoleon!
(answer in NB to check your guess)
Temple discovery went on 2 weeks ago as I brought a collegue to Kanchipuram, tamil capital of silk sarees & one of the 7 holy cities in India (Varanasi-Benares apart, no clue about the 5 last...). Once there you need a travel book to know where to start among the 140 temples and more. We limited our visit to 2 temples : the one where Siva (horizontal mark on forehead) is supposed to have married Parvathi under a 3500 y-o. mango tree (dead now) and a Vishnu (vertical mark - lll) temple. Two common caracteristics : greedy priest and regular massive weddings (any link?). I the first we were told that once a year 2000 mariages are celebrated at the same time around the famous tree. We stopped at a small shrine inside were a priest was honoring 9 god's statues supposed to represent the 9 planets. We executed a lot of mechanical things beyond our understandig under the priest's guidance. Made some wishes, were given some powder for our relatives once back in Europe (yellow for ladies, red for men) and then came the bill : 20 rupies per god, 9 gods, rounded total 200 rupies. The essence of logic. In the next temple as the brahman started to insist too much on the 400 priest living around the place we found rapidely the next exit before he was able to convert it in rupies! - He had got already his salary for showing us the details of a wedding pavillon (only 400 married at a time) including legendary knights, Vishnou's avatars in turtle and snake and some discretes scenes of Kamasutra unfortunatly covered by spider webs...
On the next sunday afternoon I went randomly through Chennai riding ze Bullet (250km and still no driving licence) : I was a kind of "Manu" Moretti, that would have dropped his scooter and Roma to try some new experiences. I stopped at a the Snake Park were hundreds of families go each sunday to admire the specimens. In front of each kind a map of India is showing with red dots in which indian state it can be found. Almost all of them have red points in all 21 states!
What is the link between Dumas, Romain Rolland, Suffren, La Bourdonnais? All magic names in french litterature, adventure and/or historical sphere, they give their names to the (starting from seaside)1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th street of Pondicherry where I had to go - earlier than expected - for a passport renewal. French spirit is still in the air, some nice restaurant, small calm streets shadowed by trees and the Dupleix were I had an great expresso in a room with a sensational wood smell coming from the carved ceiling (some furniture of Dupleix (the most famous french gouvernor - 18th cent.) are used in the rooms decoration!). So promissing. Too short stay, I have to ride back there...
"Faits divers" - local news : A pakistanise actress was heavily fined once back in her home country after shoting a kissing scene in an indian film (with an indian actor!).
More sad - "fresh" from this morning - : a young girl, 13 y-o., seen nacked in her bath by 3 boys (her bathroom had no roof), committed suicide with kerosene some time after.
Sometimes indians appear to be exageratedly puritans, serious and severe - especially in the South.
Let's finish with a better one : some weeks ago I was supposed to be picked up by a man to make me visit some close area. Appointment was at 9 a.m.. The car showed up at 9.20, the guide went out starting to apologize and as I went to enter the car (an "Ambassador" without age) the man told me that we had to wait for the driver : he had gone in a hidden place ...to have breakfast! No comment.
NB : C'est Napoleon!
Comments:
<< Home
... ) i know takeing pictures while riding ze Bullet 250km is difficult, but can't you slow down from time to time ... stp )
(i)(m)patient
Post a Comment
(i)(m)patient
# posted by 
: 3:48 AM
: 3:48 AM << Home
