This was the first day that I actually took very few photos.  Why you might ask?  Well, quite simply, we went searching for rings.  Somehow, I had imagined that this would be the land of rings.  Well, at least goldsmiths!

It turns out that although you can get things made here, the off the shelf supply of rings is pretty thin.  We thought we might get a diamond for Sridevi and plain gold for me.  Much to my chagrin, diamonds were even more difficult to find than gold, topping out at, shall we say, quite small!  In the end, we decided, after visiting no less than five jewelry stores to forgo the diamond until Portland.

At home though, we finally got Nanna’s (Sridevi’s father’s) computer up working again (gateway includes Windows Vista on a DVD, but NOT the wireless drivers, etc…).

Trust me though, more to come…  Also, please.  Comment.  Ask questions.  Let me know what you like in the pictures, etc…

Today we visited family friends (or at least their house/compound) in the country.  We went inland a bit and took a national highway north (I think).  This road is very new and quite modern, two lanes each way with a bit of a median and even road signs, which elicited quite the excited commentary from Sridevi!  This is a big deal as she remembers when this was a single track dirt road as a kid.  At any rate it was a treat to leave the city behind.  The custom here is that as you approach a vehicle you honk the horn before passing, even on the highway.

The highway is shared by bicycles, cows, pedestrians, trucks, mopeds, auto-rickshaws and cars alike, and with a speed limit of about 80 kilometers an hour, it is a good thing these cows are well behaved!

Soon we were driving through huge rice paddy’s, basically extending for miles in each direction, the lush green was amazing.  It wasn’t long before we turned left through a village and followed a track about 4 kilometers into a luxury vacation complex.

The house was quite surprising with items, large and small from his travels abroad.  He even had a miniature golf course set up, right next to a giant outdoor chess table, inset into the ground.

One of the high points was meeting and playing with their two 6 month old labs, making us miss Budha even more…

From India Trip – Day 3

Today we went for a long walk.  Our driver had a test to take, so we were on our own to some extent.  Sridevi’s father dropped us (Sridevi & I) downtown at a fast food joint where we had lunch and the took an “auto-rickshaw” across town to look for gifts to bring back to the US (yes, for those of you reading the blog).

From there we walked up the hill past the hospital where Sridevi was born, continuing over the hill and right to the Sea.  Construction here continues to amaze me.  Don’t miss the series of pictures that accompanies this one as a “chinese-fire-line” moves the bricks up six floors.

We walked past people selling everything from flowers and clothes to food, jewelry, watches and knick-knacks.  The Sea is basically what we would expect from the east coast.  There doesn’t seem to be much swell and it must get deep fairly fast, but the break actually looks very surfable, although I didn’t see a single sole beyond knee deep in the water.

We wandered about a mile along a well maintained marble promenade that must not be very old.  People watching was our game, but I think we got just as many looks as we gave.  I haven’t mentioned it yet, but in five days we had seen ONE other white person.  In a city of 2.8 million people, it is basically 100% Indian!  Remember that this is one of India’s largest port cities and still, only Indians.

For dinner we went to one of the nicest hotels in Vizag and had a nice meal (although I have to say that as I expected, home cooked is best!!!).  At dinner though, we saw four or five Russians, so that’s now out the window a bit!  There are white people in this town, six of us even!

I also saw my first cat of the trip, outnumbered now three to one by the rats that I’ve seen.  ;)

Today, Sridevi’s father and I went to Airtel to get our new cell phone (from the shopping day) activated, visited the bank and in general had an easy day.  Still, the crush of people is impressive.  It isn’t really the number of people, it is more that there are people of all socioeconomic classes mixed.  We aren’t seeing the ultra rich, or even the ultra poor, but everyone else seems to be well represented.

The family car is just as likely to be a motor scooter as it is to be a car.  These guys seem to have forgotten their helmets, much less their seat belts!  Remember the picture of the cow from day two?  The first one I took here, it was munching on some garbage right here where this family is on the scooter today.  Right down the street from the Airtouch office…

In the evening, our driver took us up a hill that we’ve driven around several times.  Right on top there is a sort of theme park with an amazing view of the city and the sea, stretching north and south for at least 100 kilometers…  For the first time, I really wish I had drug a tripod along to truly capture the night lights of the city spread out below.  Still, there are several photos worth seeing in the gallery.

The colors here are so vibrant.  From the red of a boys hat to the deep, rich yellow of a sari, to the green of the foliage, to the yellow of the flowers…

This place continues to amaze.  The internet has been down for a few days, so I traced the cables into the ceiling and onto the roof.  I didn’t take a picture, but suffice it to say that the splice is hilarious.  They just peel the coax shield back, align the cables in parallel, twist the center wires together and mush the shields together and leave.  No tape, no nothing!

I end with a photo that has to be seen to be believed.  This is a three wheeled bicycle, complete with a tower to work on overhead wires…