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Sunday, July 1, 2012

Puri



Josh-bhai was in Puri some six years ago, about a year before I made my Great Yearlong Sojourn in India. He had warmly recommended it. Not so much because of the beach, even though it is on the Bay of Bengal; as the Lonely Planet aptly puts it, “this is no palm-fringed paradise”. The waves are huge, so besides being of dubious cleanliness, it’s not really my kind of waterfront, lovely as it is to walk along.

There’s also the the Jagannath Puri temple, a major (and I mean major) pilgrimage site. We arrived in the aftermath of a great festival, so the entire place was thronged, as only in India such places can be. Perhaps it is because, being the first port of call, I’m still enthused about being back in India; I can’t help but feel a very positive vibe in this place.

Adam is in shock pretty much all the time. However he’s enjoying himself, and at every meal he tries new things, which is a far cry from only a year ago. So far, we’ve established that he likes egg curry, Haldiram, and the Desi rendition of chow mein. He’s not a fan of chapatis, naans, rotis or any other breads; neither does he go in much for daal. Even daal makhni wasn’t to his taste, which I found a bit surprising, as it contains a ton of ghee, which should make just about everything taste good. And pickles are my weakness, but alas, mine alone. No matter.

The greatest pull of Puri however is the supposed ubiquitousness of bhang, ganja (and even, so I’ve read, opium). As a holy city, you cannot purchase alcohol (although our hotel discretely stocks beer). Instead, in licensed government shops, Shiva-wallahs and others can legally procure their stash. So far this statal source has eluded me, but we’re here for at least ten days, so I’m sure something will turn up.

There don’t seem to be too many Western tourists. It’s really only Indian families right now. I was also looking to buy the latest incarnation of a Bag of Culture, but the wares we’ve seen so far don’t quite fit the bill. Not really hippie-dippie enough. No rush. In any case, this is shaping up to be a rather different sort of trip than the previous ones. At this point, we’re still undecided on what to do next. We’ll be in Delhi on July 20th, as I have just too many good friends there to pass up at least ten days in the capital, no doubt my favorite metro in this country. Just now though I’m toying with the idea of Varanasi. Let’s see how things shape up.

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