Happy Birthday, Ganesha!

Tomorrow the Fab Four have a day off of school.  Although they don't yet probably realize the "reason" they get school off, it is in fact a really big deal in India.  Tomorrow is Lord Ganesha's birthday.  He is an Indian idol that is worshipped as a god of wisdom, good fortune and prosperity.  The people bring offerings of coconut, jaggery, blades of grass and red flowers. 

All over the city of Bangalore you will see these colorful idols.  Some are only a few inches tall and I heard the largest one is over 50 ft tall!  Public celebrations are very popular and local communities will erect temporary platforms or "pandals" to display the Ganesha.  The artistic craftsmanship is amazing.  Here in Bangalore, there is a village of about 23 families that make the Ganesha's.  They start preparing for this 10 day festival over 6 months in advance!  I recently had the opportunity to visit "Pottery Town" and see months of the artists work coming together for this popular festival.

Entering the village

Piles of Pots!

Getting Organized!

It all starts with mud.
I have met a wonderful person named Hema while living here in India.  I went with her to one of the local markets and recently accompanied her to Pottery Town.  She is such an amazing resource and has so much interesting insight on the lives and people of India.  While in Pottery Town she explained to me that "mud" is so much more than just dirt or dust to the Indian people.  She says it is, "a symbol of the circle of life.  Mud has always been associated with creativity and expression, for utility, art and entertainment.  Pottery has been around for so long that, metal and plastic seem like upstarts."

Blessing above the door in the village.

Stamping the mud until it becomes usable

for the pottery wheel.

Talented Toes!

 Getting the consistency "just right!"

My friend, Leah, giving it a try.

One of the matriarchs of the village.

Such a nice guy & of course he made working on this wheel look easy.  If you've ever tried it before you know what a skill this is and that it is anything BUT easy!

But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

Isaiah 64:8

Some of the potter's product.

Such patience & skill.

Could have watched him make stuff all day!

Messy Molding Fingers!

Meghan giving the wheel a try.

Tulsi (Holy Basil) Plant
Also known as "The Queen of Herbs", tulsi, is the most sacred herb of India.  Hema told me that her mother used to give her a leaf off of the tulsi plant every morning when she left for school .  It is said to be good for body, mind & spirit and have numerous health benefits.  Hema still attributes her amazing immune system to having a little bit of tulsi everyday. You know that whole, "An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away" motto - I'm thinking while we are in India we might want to try a little tulsi a day to keep the doctor away?!  I just read on-line that tulsi is said to:

Relieve stress / adaptogen

Bolster immunity

Enhance stamina

Provide support during cold season

Promote healthy metabolism

A natural immuno-modulator

 Seriously!  THOUSANDS of clay pots in the storage room.

The FLOP pile! ;0)

Leave your shoes at the door. 

Wonder what's behind the door?!

Anybody need a broom?!

 And there she goes....

Molding the ganesha's

Uh oh!  Don't forget to add their trunks or you'll have rats instead of elephants!!

Brick Ovens

The Schedule

The families of the village share the ovens and take turns.  Be sure to check the schedule to see if you can fire your pottery or not!!

"B" is for Brick!

Some are dry.  Some are wet.  Some are DONE!

Large Load!

Hay.  Soft & Fluffy packaging material.

Peek-A-Boo!

Roof deck

Bird's Eye View

Hustle & Bustle

Need a lift?!

 Working Hard!

Lunch Time

School Children Coming Home for Some Lunch

Who are those pretty girls!?!?!

Seriously.  The cutest things ever!

Singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star together.

Aw!  Altogether now...CHEESE!

Taking them back to school.

Leaving the school I found this vendor cart.  The sides of it was covered in school work and math problems.

 Assignments

Time to do the laundry!

Negotiating

Inventory

Time to paint the Ganesha's

Little teeny-tiny ones!

Great Big Ones Too!

All of them get air-brushed a shade of peach first.

Hundreds to go!

So many pretty colors to choose from 

 Pick out a paint brush!

All shapes and sizes to get the job done

One of the artists painting with precision

 A Little Repositioning

Gorgeous!

Rows & Rows Ready to Go!

The artist giving Leah a quick painting lesson.

Gotta protect the Ganesha's from the monsoon rains!

All done!!

At one of our local stores. 

(It's kinda like the Indian equivalent of a Wal-Mart store)

Everything you could possible need to celebrate Ganesha

The likelihood of us actually doing anything tomorrow related to Lord Ganesha is slim but I can tell you one thing - I have four kids that are VERY excited about a day off of school & I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the process of how these idols are made.  Lots of work and then after the 10 days - The idols are either submersed publically in a body of water or privately in their homes.  I found myself thinking, "Wow!  Isn't that a lot of work and kind of a waste to then just put it in water?!"  Then, my friend, Don, that grew up in India said to me, "What do you think we think of Christmas trees?  You cut down a tree.  You bring it into your home and hang things like balls and lights on it and a couple of weeks later you put it out on your street curb."  He thought that was kind of silly and wasteful!  Things that make you go....Hmmmmm, right?! 

 

Thanks for a fun & memorable day everybody!

Veg or Non-Veg?! That is the question!

Since moving to India I have learned that there are two kinds of people.  Those that eat meat and those that don't.  True, we have these types of people in America too but it is a REALLY big deal here.  You are not just casually a "vegetarian."  You are one or the other.  The herbivores do not cross over into carnivore territory.  They stick to their veg ways.  Most of them make this decision based on their religion.  Hindus hold cows sacred and choose not to eat beef while Muslims view pigs unclean.  Anything we buy in the store is clearly labeled so we know if something is
veg or non-veg. 

 

While on a recent "Mommy/Daughter" date - Rachel requested to go to McDonald's.  As a sidenote, we have probably eaten at McDonald's a total of 3-4 times since we moved here over a year ago.  It's just not the same as home.  Absolutely NO beef products of any sort.  Instead, the menu includes items such as:  McAloo Tikka Burger (which is a spicy, fried potato patty) or Paneer sandwiches.  Paneer is somewhat like a mozzarella cheese.  Locals call it cottage cheese (although it is NOTHING like US cottage cheese).  When we are having paneer for dinner and the kids ask what it is I just tell them, "It's squeaky cheese."  It truly does make a funny squeaky-ish sound when you bite down on it. 

 

Matt's co-workers have declared their favorite fast food restaurant to be Burger King as it truly has a "veg" menu.  (Although, I've never seen a Burger King here in India?  They must eat at Burger King when they are not in Bangalore.)  Subway & KFC are other US fast food chains that you can find in Bangalore but again, the menus are suited to please the local population and you will find lots of unique & spicy options.  I actually was just reading on-line that McDonald's will be debuting it's first all-veg restaurant in northern India in 2013! 

 

 One thing that our McDonald's in Bangalore has that is JUST like HOME is....French Fries.  Oh yes, those glorious, piping hot, salty - FAT sticks!  Gotta love them.  Nothing is better than a large order of fries with a Diet Coke.  (I know, the fries negate the Diet Coke.  Whatever!)  Gotta say though, call me paranoid but I have NEVER ordered a fountain soda here in India.  I'm still very sketched out by it all and especially wary of the whole ice situation.  So, somehow, ordering fries with a warm bottle of orange juice?!?!!?....it just doesn't have the same appeal. 

 

So, I recently asked an Indian friend of mine if there is anything she thinks is strange when she goes to the US and she said, "Yeah!  What's with you guys and your COLD drinks?!  Why does everything have to be so cold?!"  Hahahah!  Isn't that funny?!  I had never thought much about it but she's right.  We do like our drinks COLD don't we?!  What a great observation because she's right - In India, room temperature beverages are very common.  In fact, when we go out to a restaurant here in India and ask for water you have to be very specific about what you want.  Do you want bottled water?  Do you want it chilled?  Do you want it still (or bubbly).  Do you want ice in the water?  Who knew ordering water could be so tricky!?  Hahaha! 

 

Fries & Nuggets - Pretty much just like home!

 

Ooh!  Very good question!!

See the symbol?!  Fries = Veg!

 

Barbecue Sauce = Veg

Nuggets = Non-Veg!

 

And so there you have it!  You see those little green/red boxes on everything!  Milk.  Potato Chips.  Candy.  Butter.  Cheese.  You name it.  It will be labeled as veg or non-veg.  Which are you!?  Veg or Non-Veg?!  :0)  Me, you ask?!  I eat it ALL!  :0)





We Love Ice Cream!

                        

I scream, You scream, We ALL scream

for ICE CREAM!!

Growing up in the Midwest, one would be safe to assume that I love all things dairy.  Yep, I sure do!  Cheese, milk, and my favorite of all...ICE CREAM!  Sweet, cold, spoonful’s of bliss - I LOVE IT!  I'm not alone!  Check out some of these ice cream "fun facts" I found
on-line: 
*  The average person eats 22 quarts of ice cream a year!  (Can you say, "Hello Weight Watchers?!")

*  Legend has it that the Roman emperor Nero used to send his slaves scurrying to the mountains to collect snow and ice to make flavored ices.  (I like your style, Nero!)

*  George Washington was said to have consumed ENORMOUS quantities of ice cream.(Wonder if it was more than 22 quarts per year?!  Fatso!)

*  The most avid ice cream eaters in the U.S. don't live in Hawaii, the South, California, or any other hot climate.  Instead, in 1999, it was reported that the good citizens of Omaha, Nebraska, ate more ice cream per person than any other Americans.  (Go, Huskers!)

*  Immigrants at Ellis Island were served vanilla ice cream as part of their "Welcome to America" meal.  ("Shooooooot!" that was said in my best Towmater voice by the way!  That's just about as good as rollin' out the 'ole red carpet isn't it?!)

*  In 1984, President Ronald Reagan declared July as National Ice Cream Month (as if I needed another reason to LOVE that guy!)

*  One out of five ice cream eaters share their ice cream with their dog or cat.  (Gotta admit that back in the day I used to share my ice cream with our family dog, Fifi!  Yup!  Shore did!)

*  13% of men and 8% of women admit to licking the bowl clean after they eat their ice cream.  (I'll admit it.  I have NOooOOooOoo shame!)

*  Elvis Presley is said to have loved ice cream.  Supposedly, peach ice cream was his favorite.  (Hey, if ice cream was good enough for The King...it's good enough for me!)

 

I think we would all agree that in the USA, ice cream options are limitless!  While grocery shopping, you can often stock up on your favorite flavors by the pint, quart or gallon!  Breyers, Friendly's, Edy's, Ben & Jerry's, Carvel, Hood, Drumsticks, Dibs, Klondike Bars (as a side note here's another little fun fact...Ice cream novelties such as ice cream on sticks and ice cream bars were introduced in the 1920s. Seems like kid stuff, but today, adults consume nearly one-half of all such treats!)  The US has a supreme selection of solidified sweets!!

Dare I begin to take us down the path of all of the places I would frequently go to eat ice cream while living in the US?!...Cold Stone Creamery, Friendly's, Culver's, Brigham's, Dairy Queen.  My favorite place to eat ice cream is a cute little place in Jaffrey, NH called Kimballs Farm.  Oh Good Grief!  If you ever find yourself in their neck of the woods - You gotta check them out.  Countless flavors to choose from and all homemade right there at Kimball's.  Kahlua Crunch is my personal fave!  TO DIE FOR! 

                                   

                                      

Unfortunately, I have found Indian ice cream to be lacking.  :o/   In flavor choices, in consistency of the creamy smooth goodness...it's just NOT the same as what I would scoop out of my freezer at home.  We have options like Amul Dairy , Kwality Wall's, & Mother Dairy.

                              Utterly Delicious

You'd be hard pressed to walk up into any US ice cream parlor and find flavors as unique as, "Raj Bhog, Afghan Dry Fruits or Shahista Pista Kulfi!"  :0)  Maybe it's an acquired taste?!

There's a familiar flavor in this lot!  Chocolate!!!!  Sorry, but I'm passing on the Fruit Bonanza as well as the Spanish Saffron & Cream Balls!?!?

All of these are flavors are currently being sold in the frozen dairy section of our local Indian grocer but if I'm being completely honest - Don't feel too bad for us - It took us all of about 2 days upon landing in India to realize that Baskin-Robbins IS here in INDIA!  Thank you, Jesus!  Baskin-Robbins has saved us on many "I need ice cream" moments.  Our Baskin-Robbins experience is complete with a freshly made waffle cone.  (Another fun fact moment...Did you know that the ice cream cone was allegedly invented at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis?!  When an ice cream vendor ran out of bowls he linked up with a waffle maker who rolled his waffles up into cones!)  Our Baskin-Robbins has the typical "31" flavor offering just like at home and although you will find a couple of unfamiliar flavors most of them are just like what we'd find at home.  The kids favorites are:  World Class Chocolate, Alphonso Gold (made with alphonso mangos), Cookies n Cream and Mint Chocolate Chip.  Daddy's favorite is Butterscotch Ribbon and mine is a flavor that is only offered for one month throughout the course of the year (Thank GOD or I'd be roughly the size of a barge!) and is called Coconut Crunch or something like that?!  We'll have to see if they showcase it again this year?

Was just thinking?!....If I have dedicated a whole blog post to ice cream does this indicate I have some sort of serious problem!?  Hahaha!  I sure do love it and I give you all permission to hit up your local Dairy Queen and have a Cherry Dipped Cone in remembrance of me or if you really want to see a funny reaction ask them when they plan to start carrying Shahista Pista Kulfi ;0)  Bon Appetit!  xo

Junk Mail

You know, it's kinda funny there are a lot of things I would say that India could "improve upon" but one thing I have noticed that the Indians do quite well is what we would refer to as "junk mail."  What do we do when we get junk mail in the US?  Well, we pitch it, of course! (Or maybe throw it into a kindling pile for the wood burning stove!?)   In India, it seems I get invitations from all sorts of vendors on a weekly basis.  It could be fore anything from  jewelry to a beauty shops offering you to "For a limited time.  Avail rupees 100 discount!" (which is sadly all of about $2.00) or a newly opened food mart or maybe it's for a new international school in town.  And I'm telling you, every last piece seems to be of "wedding invitation" calibar.  Some of these invitations are so snazzy I actually find myself wondering if I should throw them away or not!?  Seems kind of sad to chuck something so lovely!? 

My favorite piece of "junk mail" to date was from a medical practice that opened and they were soliciting new patients.  The mail arrived in a triangular shaped box and inside was a scarlet scroll with gold embossed letters.  Silly me - I thought we were actually being invited to a maharajah's wedding or something!?   Hehe!  Nope.  Not quite that exciting.  Just everyday Indian junk mail!  I've got to say that athough we haven't checked out the new doctors office - We HAVEN'T thrown away the junk mail :0)

 I told you it was Fancy Shmancy!

"Rach!  Were you invited to a Royal Ball?!"

"Nope!  Just to get poked & prodded by a new doctor in town."  ;0)

FANTASTIC!!!!

Plumber Needed!

I recently had to call a plumber to come to our house.  When I opened the front door, I was greeted by a man with a friendly, white-toothed smile.  In his hand he was clenching a wrench and his other vital piece of equipment was attached to his vehicle... See Exhibit A.

Exhibit A

Did someone call for a plumber?!

As it turns out, it was an easy fix.  Clogged drain so it didn't require any high tech-fancy-shmancy tools.  His good ole fashioned wrench suited our problem just fine.  In fact, he didn't even have to unleash the power of that plunger attached to the back of his bycicle!  PHEW!  Hahaha!  However, twice this past week my maid has gotten shocked while turning on the water faucet in the kitchen!  YEP!  Called the plumber about that one, as well as, the ELECTRICIAN!  They couldn't find anything wrong with the sink even though I tried to explain to them that if there is an electrical current flowing on, near or IN my sink....THIS IS A PROBLEM!  They determined the problem was that my maid wasn't wearing her "slippers" (flip-flops) and so that is why she got shocked!?  Um.  Okay!?  But not really!  Hopefully, it was just a weird flukie thing and it won't happen again!? 

You see, things just operate a little differently here in India.  In fact, it is not uncommon to have a maintenance man knock on my door and hand me a note that reads, "From 2:00 pm - 7:00 pm  there will be no water as maintenance will be working on the pipes.  Thank you for your understanding."  Mind you, they are handing me this note at 

2:30 pm which means - 2:00 pm has already PASSED and I didn't actually get prior warning about anything, now did I?!  The reality of it all is that my water supply has already been turned off & the note informing me of such is actually a bit "too little - too late"   When I try to point this out to the gentlemen at the door, he politely bobbles his head from side to side.  Ear to shoulder.  Ear to shoulder.  Which means, "Yes.  I understand this but I am supposed to give you this note anyhow."  Fair enough.  It's not his problem.  He's just the messenger.  So, I in turn, bobble my head back at him in agreement and with this, he bows to me, turns on his heel and he's off to pass the word along to the next unsuspecting soul (more than likely....my neighbors!!). 

If we are lucky enough to get warned prior to them turning off the water - Salome & Shashi kick it into high gear and start filling buckets of water from the tap before the supply is cut off.  They giggle back and forth to one another at the ridiculousness of it all and say to me, "Filling buckets Ma'am.  We have to wash the vegetables.  We'll clean the floor, Ma'am!  Too much of dirty!"

Working on fixing the pipes!

Please Pardon Our Appearance.  Work in Progress!

I guess it goes without saying and I don't need a formal written notice that when this is piled onto the sidewalk - You should "Watch Your Step!"  ;0)  Gotta love it!