22 May 07 -- Shopping

Several major discoveries today. First, I found that, if you wear sunglasses, sellers don’t bother you as much. That’s GREAT to know as the closer you get to the big tourist hotels, the more you get hassled. Now, if I can just avoid breaking my last pair of Dollar Store sunglasses, I’ll have it made.

Second, and bigger, discovery is that I finally got out of the overprice bubble I’ve been in. I’d about given up on getting anything really cool on this trip because things seemed just too high, but I saw a note about some government-sponsored emporiums in the Lonely Planet, so I decided to drip over there. Whew…this heat. In the government stores, I found a real range of prices. For example, in the Maharashtra store, I found the sculptures I like so well, but they were only marginally cheaper than the ones I’d seen previously, and marginally wasn’t cheaper enough. However, I spotted some tacky, painted wood carvings in the window of the Tamil Nadu emporium, and I’ve learned that, where the wood is painted, there are also often unpainted statues (for the Euro-shoppers). I was right! And a lot of the work was to die for!!! And affordable!!! Whew. Spent a while looking at the great work there, but being on the un-air conditioned top floor of the store and needing food, I decided to adjourn to a nearby restaurant that the salesperson recommended.

Best food I’d had in India, and I was SO SORRY David couldn’t be there! He would have loved this place. At first, I thought I was being seated at a service table because there was a large, metal tray (we’re talking two-foot diameter) with six metal ramekins on the upper edge and an assortment of napkins and tableware on the tray. However, I looked at the nearby tables, and people there were eating food off the tray and out of the ramekins. While I was trying to figure out how this worked, the wave of food started. The style here reminded me of Dim Sum. There was one guy who brought around four different dishes, and he put some of those in four of the little ramekins. Another guy brought around more kinds of food, and another guy brought around a fantastic soup and a little soup bowl. There was water and yogurt to drink, and another brought two kinds of bread; another, four kinds of sauces (dabbed on the tray); and another, two more kinds of bread. Then came two kinds of rice. And the taste of this variety of food was simply the best I’d had in India. It tasted fresher -- sharper and more distinctive -- than the other food I’d had. Oh…then dessert, which I just couldn’t manage. I’ll be back there, for sure.

After the food orgy, I could hardly move, so I sweat-waddled my way back to a nap. Then coffee. Then shopping more. I also found that, in the state government emporiums, while some stuff was high, if you looked, you could find some kind of nice things that were more reasonably priced. It was a great, relaxing day.