Jan. 10 - Temple Time
Today I spent the day reading by the pool. A big coconut fell down right next to me. Pool time can be pretty dangerous! I ran downstairs to catch a photo of the cows that were grazing in the fields behind our hotel. There was also a pack of dogs sun bathing by the Tapi River. There are stray dogs everywhere. They sleep and sun bath in the medians between roads. In the evening Michael’s co-worker Abushak was kind enough to take us around to do some sight seeing. We are poor examples of Canadians. It was maybe 20 degrees and windy and we were freezing. Notice how we're wearing all of the winter clothes that we packed? - yes, I'm wearin two hoodies!
We went to the local temple. When you go, you are supposed to bring an offering of some sort. You remove your shoes and people will touch their mouths and then the stairs before walking up. Along the way, there are statues and shrines of the different gods. It started with an elephant god and there were about…7 other displays? I can’t remember exactly because they sort of all looked the same. We went around the building and were only allowed to look at the statues inside. People were so humble. Some people would lay flat on their stomachs in front of the shrines in prayer. Others would cross their legs and simply meditate. We were supposed to circle the building 7 times. 7 is a very special number in the Hindu religion. When they marry, they walk around the fire 7 times to seal the deal. When Buddha was born he took 7 steps and a lotus flower bloomed in each step. Michael ate the coconut chunks that were offered back to us. I was still quesy from the ride there so I couldn’t stomach it.
The next stop was the “Big Bazaar”. It was exactly what I had wanted to go to. It’s our equivalent of Walmart. I love Walmart. Lol. Michael made me feel guilty or else I would have bought more stuff. People here earn about Rs. 10,000 a month. I spent Rs. 1450 on spices and tea and pop. I only had a chance to explore the 1st floor. Tomorrow I’ll go again to check out the clothes on the second floor.
Here are some more things we learned from Abushak. The flats (aka apartments) downtown go for Rs. 200,000 for about 1,000 sq. ft. (approx. $5405 CND). A home that is twice the sq. footage is about double the price. People work 6 days a week for a minimum of 8 hours. Minimum? What is that supposed to mean? Well! Get this. People here work 12 hour days 6 days a week! Holy cripes! On Sunday, Abushak tells me that he sleeps in until 9:30, then goes to visit some friends, then has lunch, then goes to Temple with his family, the travels to several households in the evening to visit friends. People usually eat out on Sundays. Wow. What a jam packed day. Hearing that made me feel supremely lazy (and I’m always the first to admit that I’m a lazy person). =)
The next stop was the “Big Bazaar”. It was exactly what I had wanted to go to. It’s our equivalent of Walmart. I love Walmart. Lol. Michael made me feel guilty or else I would have bought more stuff. People here earn about Rs. 10,000 a month. I spent Rs. 1450 on spices and tea and pop. I only had a chance to explore the 1st floor. Tomorrow I’ll go again to check out the clothes on the second floor.
Here are some more things we learned from Abushak. The flats (aka apartments) downtown go for Rs. 200,000 for about 1,000 sq. ft. (approx. $5405 CND). A home that is twice the sq. footage is about double the price. People work 6 days a week for a minimum of 8 hours. Minimum? What is that supposed to mean? Well! Get this. People here work 12 hour days 6 days a week! Holy cripes! On Sunday, Abushak tells me that he sleeps in until 9:30, then goes to visit some friends, then has lunch, then goes to Temple with his family, the travels to several households in the evening to visit friends. People usually eat out on Sundays. Wow. What a jam packed day. Hearing that made me feel supremely lazy (and I’m always the first to admit that I’m a lazy person). =)
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