From Hyderabad

New hair cut

2005-08-18T01:21:00.000+05:30

New hair cut
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

This is my new hair cut from the last day in Bombay. Needless to say, back in DC it is much larger, and far from perfectly blown out, but I still like it.

Back

2005-08-15T18:21:00.000+05:30

snake charmer
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

So, Tom and I and all of our luggage arrived safely back in DC. I'm a little sad to have left, but it's nice to be in DC. For example, I am sitting in a coffee shop eating yogurt with granola and berries, which tastes like the best breakfast ever, but I'll be missing dosas soon. Anyway, my phone is reconnected, so you can call me. I'll probably be back in NC next week.

Delhi

2005-08-09T22:40:00.000+05:30

Delhi
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Crazy sign in Delhi. Now I'm caught up. It's been a really exhausting week, and places outside big cities have horribly slow internet connections (and by big citiest, I mean over 8 million people.)

Agra

2005-08-09T22:37:00.000+05:30

Agra
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

And this is me at Lincoln's birthplace. Oh wait, no...

Fatepur Sikri

2005-08-09T22:36:00.000+05:30

Fatepur Sikri
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I am told that this is Asia's largest gate. You don't really get a sense of how big it is from this pictures, but it's really impressive. It's at Akbar's deserted capital outside of Agra.

Jodhpur Haveli

2005-08-09T22:34:00.000+05:30

Jodhpur Haveli
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Jodhpur had pretty buildings.

Flooding

2005-08-09T22:32:00.000+05:30

Flooding
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

This was the flooding we saw on our train ride out of Mumbai. It looked like a lake, except that lakes don't usually have power lines running through them.

Jaisalmer

2005-08-09T22:20:00.000+05:30

Jaisalmer
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

jaisalmer

2005-08-06T16:36:00.000+05:30

jaisalmer
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

So, we spent one day in Jodhpur, two days in Jaisalmer, (inside the fort in the background. It was great.) We just got to New Delhi this morning, and are planning on going to Agra tomorrow. Getting kind of tired, but still having a really good time. I'm completely dreading the thought of being in classes again.

finally...

2005-08-03T10:52:00.000+05:30

To update from the last post, I managed to get tom's airline to tell me approximately when his fight was getting in, dash back to my airline to catch the last flight of the day to bombay about 5 minutes before it was scheduled to leave, with all the ticket people shaking their heads and making jokes about how crazy we were to actually want to be on that flight. It was pretty uneventful, until just before landing they mentioned that the flooding at the airport had damaged some of the equipment on the ground, so they had to land by sight. It was a little bumpy, but at least we didn't skid off the runway, as had a flight that morning. I got in at midnight, Tom got in around 3, and everything indeed worked out ok, despite the rain and the flooding in other parts of the city. They day before we were supposed to catch our train to Rajasthan, the weather forecaster said to expect heavy to extremely heavy rains, but they never came, and our train, despite being in the suburbs of Bombay, where the flooding was worse, left exactly on time. We did pass through some really bad flooding, where you could see that if the rains were just a little heavier the tracks would be submerged. You would have through you were passing through a lake, except for the power lines sticking up out of it. Anyway, I would post pictures, but I am in Jopdhpur and the connection is none too good. It's a gorgeous city, and we leave for jaisalmer tonight.

Crap.

2005-07-31T15:16:00.000+05:30

My travel agent wouldn't tell me what the status of my flight was. This irritated me. I spent over two hours calling the travel agent and the airline, and Tom's airline, without being able to get an answer out of anyone. Since I live close to the airport, I just decided to go and find out what was up. Turns out my flight is cancelled, and the people at Tom's airline couldn't tell me anyhing about when or if his plane would make it to Bombay (I'm worried he's going to be diverted to Delhi or something.) The people at his airline were also really unfriendly, but I was also flipping out a little, so they might not have been totally out of line. Actually, yeah they were out of line. So... the people at my airline said they could put me on a flight at 1:40, but it was already 1:15, and since my flight wasn't until 5, I hadn't brought my considerable pile of luggage with me. As it stands, I might be able to get on a flight at 8, if it doesn't get canceled. The website of Tom's airline isn't working, and no one is picking up the phone at their office. I ate lunch with my roommate and am trying figure out what to do, while knowing that the only thing I can do is wait and see.

I procrastinate...

2005-07-31T12:27:00.000+05:30

and yet, this time, knowing it's Tom's first trip to India, I decide to meticulously plan ahead. All train tickets were booked well in advance. Our hotel reservations are made. I did not, however, think of the possibility that Mumbai would get the most rain any part of India has seen since 1910. Apparently his flight is getting in at 2:30 in the morning, and that's from e-mails from his mom and a friend in San Francisco. My travel agent keeps telling me she'll call in 15 minutes, and never does (this has been going on for 2 hours), and no one picks up the phone at the airline. Seriously, this is the land of bloody call centers, and the airlines' phone numbers are always either busy or no one answers. I am a little worked up, even though I know things will work out. Eventually. So tha's it. I will post again when I get to Bombay, and post pictures of my last day in Hyderabad when I get somewhere with a USB port.

Another Charminar run

2005-07-30T10:57:00.000+05:30

Me in Lad Bazaar
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Since no one was in the office yesterday, my coworker and I decided we would get bangles for her sari to wear to another coworkers wedding today. So, where else should you buy bangles but next to the Charminar? So, this is me bangle shopping it was fun, although my friend complained that the prices go up when you're shopping with a foreigner. I'm finishing up last minute things today at work, but hopefully I'll be done soon, and can enjoy my last full day in Hyderabad.

Less than three days...

2005-07-29T10:55:00.000+05:30

Country Club
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Oddly, in the last few weeks I've actually broken down and joined a gym. At the Hyderabad country club. The gym is not great (the pool is cool, but it's always raining these days, so I haven't used it), but it's close to my house and since it has the allure of hot showers, which my house does not, I have been going regularly. The main building in the picture used to be the house of the prime minister of the Nizam's government, and while walking past its tiger skins on the wall makes me kind of sad, I can't deny that it's atmospheric. There are even silly-looking white geese waddling around the lawns.

Last few days in Hyderabad...

2005-07-28T09:43:00.000+05:30

legislative assembly
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

This is the Gandhi statue in front of the pretty legislative assembly in Hyderabad. I've always liked it. I would've tried to get a picture without those wires in the foreground, but I couldn't tell if they were electified of not. I mean, if they were I would have expected a sign warning me about it, but why else would there be high tensile wires on the other side of a wrought iron fence? People don't seem to be worried about cow's getting out here. I didn't feel like risking anything by putting my hands through for a better shot.

Um,

2005-07-28T09:34:00.000+05:30

Gun Park
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I've walked past this little park probably a hundred times without noticing the name. It has some very cool old cannons, but seriously, the worst name for a park I've ever seen. I would also like to mention that it's near a big billboard with a picture of people holding hands that says "WE RESOLVE TO FOLLOW TRAFFIC." There are lots of sort of ineffectual signs by the roads here, my favorites being "traffic police: we lead you safe," "wear helmet, care life," and "speed thrills but kills." However, I find this billboard unsettling, first because people are resolved, not "there will be actual repercussions if you don't follow traffic rules," and that they're called "rules," not "laws." In my head there's a big distinction.

Mosaic

2005-07-26T09:29:00.000+05:30

Mosaic
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

So, I've decided I'm going to update every day this week, since I don't know how often I'm going to do it once I leave Hyderabad on Sunday. I went to a park by the lake in the middle of the city today, thinking I could get a good picture of the Buddha statue in the lake to post. However, once I got to the park, I realized that you can only see the back of the statue. However, you could see this big mosaic mural. From further away you just see dolphins, but as you get closer, you ask yourself, "is that a shark eating the dolphin? And who thought that was a good idea for a mosaic?"

Not much to say...

2005-07-21T12:30:00.000+05:30

new sari
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

One of my classmates who had been in the peace corps gave me some really good advice once—when you move somewhere, take all your pictures the first week. The first time I came to Hyderabad, I was a little wary of looking more like a tourist than I already did, and therefore waited to take pictures of the city until the end, and didn’t end up with as many as I would’ve liked. This time around, I took tons in the beginning (I've taken more photos now then I did the whole nine months I was here beofre) and now… not so much. So sorry I haven’t been updating very frequently. Anyway,this is me in my new sari. It's too blurry to see, but it has little batik butterlies on the border. Very cute. Tonight I'm having dinner with my old Telugu teacher's family! I'm really excited. Her mom made some of the best food I've ever had.

cookies.

2005-07-18T09:35:00.000+05:30

cookies.
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Well, this is what happens when you try to make chocolate chip cookies in an Indian kitchen, even if it is eqipped with an "electric tandoor". I was so sure I could do it, but then the chocolate chips in the batter melted, and the tandoor only has an on or off setting, so the heat wasn't exactly under my control. i was a little demoralized about this.

Summer in DC

2005-07-15T16:18:00.000+05:30

I am missing DC in the summer, just a little bit. Then I remember how miserably hot and sticky it is, how big my hair gets, and how nice it is in Hyderabad right now (oh, and how the tax on a burrito at chipotle could buy me a thali here, but I digress) .

One of the nicer aspects of DC summers is Screen on the Green. These are the movies for this year:

July 18 -- "The Way We Were"
July 25 -- "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre"
Aug. 1 -- "Suspicion"
Aug. 8 -- "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"
Aug. 15 -- "The Big Sleep"

I will be in town for the last one, which I'm extremely happy about, although it remains to be seen if I will be sufficiently de-jet-lagged to enjoy it. While I was looking up the schedule, I came across this reader comment on the Washington Post site:

Well Planned, Poorly Executed
Posted by chbaker on Jul 07, 2005
It's a great way to spend a Monday night in DC anyway, but how much better would Screen on the Green be if they occasionally chose a good, modern movie? It's not supposed to be an event for film snobs. How about A Few Good Men, Apollo 13, Air Force One, Election, Forrest Gump, JFK, Silence of the Lambs, War of the Roses, etc etc?

The whole point is watching good movies that you probably wouldn't have seen otherwise. If you want to watch Shrek outsidea, you should go sit in the backseat of your SUV with the little DVD player inside. I bet they're the kind of person who brings high lawn chairs that people on blankets can't see over...

homestretch

2005-07-11T15:54:00.000+05:30

Buffalo
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I finished my week in the field, and now I'm back in Hyderabad for my last three weeks in the office. After that, travelling for two weeks, and then back to the US, and Chapel Hill. around two months is a pretty nice chunk of time to spend in a place... it's long enough that you can settle in, short enough that you don't start missing things too badly (e.g., cheese, bagels, and the dailly show) and thus spend mental energy wishing you were someplace else, rather than enjoying where you are. I have so many plans for the next few weeks. Oh, and as for the picture, this was on the way to one of the program sites.

Black light poster of Balaji

2005-07-07T12:26:00.000+05:30

Black light poster of Balaji
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

So, this is what I did on the fourth of July-- went to a big temple, where this god lives. Since I got to wait in the car for a few hours while some people tried to get tickets for us, I found this stall to get my picture taken. Notice I am not wearing shoes-- I got yelled at for leaving them on by someone who looked really upset. This is the god you go to if you want success in your career or to have children, so it's a bad idea to piss him off.

I'm back

2005-07-07T12:19:00.000+05:30

write the caption
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Anyone care to take a crack at this?

In Tirupati

2005-07-03T18:21:00.000+05:30

I’m at a business center in my hotel here in Tirupati. This is my first real business trip, really, and it’s nice. However, the internet connection is very slow and I can’t upload my pictures from the weekend.

I met up with someone from my program for the weekend in Chennai, which was really really fun. I didn’t know how it would turn out, because although we knew we liked each other, we’d never really had much interaction. It was also nice to find someone who also had a horrible, soul crushing year. We saw a temple, went sari shopping, and drank filter coffee. We also saw a salsa band made up of Columbians and Brazilians at the tapas bar we went to. I kissed a Polish man on the cheek, because it was his birthday, and because Indian beers are very large and the waiters fill your glass when you aren’t looking.

For Luke—I bought two Madurai saris, one with elephants and one with butterflies. I am going to wear the elephant one for my training tomorrow. Pictures when I get back to Hyderabad.

When was the last time your Starbucks cofee talked to you?

2005-07-01T09:07:00.000+05:30

at cafe coffee day
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Hmm, haven't posted in a while, since the power has been out most days here at work, which is a huge pain. Tonight I'm taking the Charminar Express to Chennai/Madras, which I'm very excited about, so hopefully lots of new pictures next week that aren't of Hyderabad.

I realize it's a crap picture

2005-06-26T12:35:00.000+05:30

New glasses
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

but how do you ike the glasses? (comments appreciated)

Yesterday

2005-06-26T12:34:00.000+05:30

More Golconda
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

While I was at the tombs, I noticed another foreigner, and since he had a guide with him, I went up and said hello and asked some questions. It turned out that he was from Charlotte, NC, and was in town on business. He was in town for business, and had a car and driver for sightseeing that day, so he invited me along. In this way, I ended up seeing not just the tombs, but Golconda fort, the Salar Jung museum, Lad Bazaar, and the Chowmahalla Palace, as well as a Biryani at the Shadab, my favorite restaurant in the old city. Towards the end of the day, he said he had thought I was Indian, and wondered how an Indian woman got a Nalgene bottle, and had thought my English was really good.

A nice, unexpected kind of day.

Qutub Shahi Tombs

2005-06-26T12:28:00.000+05:30

water buffalo
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I'd never been to the tombs near Golconda fort in Hyderabad-- I'd seen them from a distance, but I wasn't really that interested, but I went yesterday morning, and they were fantastic. I didn't realize how big they were, and this is one of the few pictures I took that give a sene of the scale of them. It's really peaceful there, which made me realize that after a month here, quiet kind of makes me nervous. However, while I was inside one of the tombs I heard the familiar and intensely irritating sound of someone just outside GOING THROUGH ALL THE RINGTONES ON THEIR CELL PHONE. But in all, it was really beautiful. I took lots of pictures, but got lazy about labelling them, so sorry if it's not that informative.

the roads and the weather both suck

2005-06-22T09:36:00.000+05:30

the roads and the weather both suck
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I really, really miss nice, long peaceful walks. There's a road-widening project going on, basically between my office and my house, and while not all of it is quite this bad, the motifs of "nowhere for pedestrians to walk" and "exposed wires everywhere" is recurring. I had to do some errands yesterday, and since I refused to take an auto for a ten minute walk, this is what I was faced with. It's really really irritating.

alcohol problems

2005-06-20T18:49:00.000+05:30

alcohol problems
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I went to the health museum again today, since I was in the neighborhood, and got a clearer picture of this poster. Apparently the penalty for a DUI in Hyderabad is a 500 rupee fine. This is about $12.50, and I am scared.

I remembered that a lot of the best sayings were close to the front desk, where I couldn't take pictures, so I took some notes:

"Accidents can be prevented!

Plantain peelings on the floor causes sliping while treading upon (child slipping on banana peel. Yes, the sign said 'sliping')

Can with hot milk pouring on the body if properly not handled (child being scalded by a pan of milk)

Loose sari end catches fire due to the carelessness of the woman (woman on fire. She was apparently careless)."

Other favorites:

"fresh air: elixir of life!"

"some are born with disease, others have it thrust upon them, but most bring it on themselves with their ways of living." which is only funny if you've been reading article after article on the social ecological framework approach to health promotion.

Finally, there were two pigeons nestled together, sleeping on a painting of Hygeia. They were very cute.

As close as I got to Falaknuma

2005-06-20T18:40:00.000+05:30

As close as I got to Falaknuma
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Yesterday I decided to just try to get near the Falaknuma Palace, since I had already hit most of my Hyderabad landmarks. It's outside the city, South of the Charminar, so it was nice just being somewhere less densely populated. It's a huge palace up on a granite hill, so you can see it from pretty far away, and can tell that it's massive. There are a few old mosques on the hillside that look like they predate the palace, and this temple, which marked the closest it seemed I could get up the hill without be chased by a security guard. Anyway, I walked up to the guardpost to see if I could talk my way in, and while I couldn't I spent a pleasant half hour talking with the security guard in Telugu. He was really nice, but not nice enough to let me in. However, in the half hour I was there, at least 4 other people in cars or on motorcycles tried to get in, too, to no avail. So, maybe it's not meant to be. And after all, a European influenced palace is nowhere near as interesting as the Indosaracenic ones around town, even if it's dining room table does seat one hundred.

"Modern Hair Dressers"

2005-06-19T16:05:00.000+05:30

"Modern Hair Dressers"
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

The sign says "modern hairdressers," and before you think my Telugu is good, the English is just spelled out phonetically in Telugu script. It's near my house, and I like seeing it in the morning. Nothing says hot like the thoroughly modern mullet.

The worst pants in the world

2005-06-19T16:01:00.000+05:30

The worst pants in the world
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

They are called chudidars, and they are the weirdest pants ever. I actually changed me mind and am taking them back. They're too demoralizing.

Mysore bhajjis!

2005-06-19T15:59:00.000+05:30

Mysore bhajjis!
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

These are Mysore Bhajjis, perhaps my favorite Indian snack. This might be because they aren't served many places, and when they are, they're only served between 3 and 7:00, and no amount of cajoling can get them to make it for you outside those hours. I still don't have a good explanation. Anyway, they come with sambar, two kinds of chutney, and ketchup. Yum.

oh yeah,

2005-06-18T17:01:00.000+05:30

The Vengaboys are on the stereo, I am so happy.

I am waiting to watch Mr. and Mrs. Smith, which you could not pay me to see if I was at home. Why am I here? Ah yes, air conditioning.

Sorry I'm not doing anything terribly exciting this weekend, so very few pictures to show. However, i promise to show you a picture of my chudidars, also known as the ugliest pants I've ever seen, yet still wear.

Good slogans

2005-06-14T18:47:00.000+05:30

I really like some of the slogans I've been seeing around town. These are my two favorites:

Background: on the rear windshield of a car
"Beware! Zombies 'R' Inside!" (in that profoundly un-scary dripping blood font)

Background: Man in bikini underwear, behind bars
"Euro men's unders: prepare to be ASSAULTED!"

Inside the Charminar

2005-06-14T18:44:00.000+05:30

Inside the Charminar
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Today I broke down and bought another copy of White Mughals, mainly for reference and for new ideas of places to go around Hyderabad. For those of you who haven't read it, he talks about how shocking it is that so little historical research (in English) has been done on the Deccan, and how little interest there is in Hyderabad. This is my favorite line: "Unlike the immediate, monumental splendor of Agra or the Rajput cities of the north, Hyderabad hid its charms from the eyes of outsiders, veiling its splendours from curious eyes behind nondescript walls and labyrinthine backstreets. Only slowly did it allow you in to an enclosed world where water still dripped from fountains, flowers bent in the breeze, and peacocks called from the overladen mango trees. There, hidden from the streets, a world of timelessness and calm, a last bastion of gently fading Indo-Islamic civilisation where, as one art historian has put it, old 'Hyderabadi gentleman still wore the fez, dreamt about the rose and the nightingale, an mourned the loss of Grenada." It's the most perfect description I've read.

Anyway, if you look in your trusty copy of the book (Megan, I'm basically talking to you), you might recognize the symbol from this picture, unless its only included in the "for sale in the Indian Subcontinent only" version.

Outside where I checked my e-mail

2005-06-13T17:55:00.000+05:30

Outside where I checked my e-mail
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

There are lots of camels in Hyderabad these days. It makes me happy.

British Residence

2005-06-13T17:53:00.000+05:30

British Residence
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I got it into my head that I wanted to go to Raymond’s tomb on Sunday. No particular reason, except that I had not checked it off my list of things to do in Hyderabad, and for some reason I thought it was in seconderabad, where I was and, as it turns out, it was not. After a lot of random driving and asking people about it, I gave up, and went to the Osmania University College for Women, AKA, the British Residency. At the Nizam’s museum, I saw the letter that ceded it back to the Nizam at independence in 1947. I’m guessing went down hill a bit for the building since then. It is a mess. Crumbling, there is literally a pack of feral dogs and piles of burning trash lying around (and keep in mind this is a functioning college). At the same time, it’s beautiful – you can absolutely tell how grand both the grounds and the building used to be, and it’s very quiet and peaceful (except when the feral dogs start fighting.) I actually ran into the same guy from the UK who had been at the HEH Nizam’s museum – he was with the principal of the school, and said his company was going to finance part of the restoration that’s going to take place, so that made me happy. After walking around outside, I decided to be bold and look inside the foyer.

I lived in DC long enough to pick up on the fact that lots of the really fancy buildings around town are horrible, soul-crushing thowback to the 70s cubicles inside, which give you no concept of what kind of building your actually in. While I know that it’s different here, I was still expecting the same kind of thing. I looked in the front, and there were beat-up desks in the room, but when I looked up, there were huge chandeliers, and even in the dark I could sort of make out the detailed, Islamic designs painted on the ceiling, two flights up, and a beautiful, if dusty balcony. But I lost my nerve, and didn’t start poking around (like a big jerk, I might add.) The guard who let me onto the grounds (partly, I think, because he seemed really amused by my bumbling Telugu), said that I should come at nine the next morning, and although I tried to explain that I had to work, I think I might take him up on the suggestion later one this week, when everyone is on their retreat, because I’m dying to see more of this building.

So more later. It was a really fun little outing. I really like this town. Even on the way home from my little excursion, I saw another huge palace up on a hill (and this was is really enormous) that I had never seen before. It seems like the supply of gorgeous ramshackle buildings just doesn’t run out here. So why isn’t anyone interested in seeing them?

Fish cure

2005-06-12T12:03:00.000+05:30

Fish cure
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

These are the fish from the famous fish medicine. As you can sort of see, they aren't that big, but they are definitely, wrigglingly alive. If made a video of that, so e-mail me if you'd like to see it.

Purani Haveli

2005-06-12T12:01:00.000+05:30

Purani Haveli
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

A picture of the Purani Haveli palace complex. I'm out of storage space on my photo hosting account, so let me know if you want to see more and I'll send the link to my snapfish photo album, which has all of my amateurish, blurry photos for your perusal.

Hyderabad Monument Quest

2005-06-11T15:08:00.000+05:30

I'm trying really, really hard to find someone who will get me into the Falaknuma Palace (it's closed for rennovation by a big hotel chain). Apparently, people staying at the hotel could get in for a while, but now when I asked them, they said that the only way to see it was from a hill half a kilometer away from the place itself, but I am not taking no for an answer. Since this hotel company has a couple of places in Hyderabad, I am going to try another one and see if they can help me out. I've taken to going to extremely expensive hotels and buying one drink on Fridays after work, so I can spend some time in air conditioned comfort reading (at the one I went to Friday, they bought my a tray of olives and lychees, which I hadn't had before, so that was cool, too).

However, today I did score with the Purani Haveli, which is another Nizam-era palace. When I got there, I realized I had seen it before on a tour of Muslim Hyderabad when I first arrived. At that point, I knew almost nothing about Hyderabad history, and absolutely nothing about Islam, so the tour was totally wasted on me, which was too bad, because the tour guide was incredibly knowledgeable, and I feel embarassed now that on the 5th or 6th dargah one of us asked "so what was the battle of Karabala?" He just recommended we read one of his books. So...the palace was really, really big, and most of it has been turned into a couple of schools, but one part has recently been turned into a small museum. The best part about it is that there lots of pretty silver replicas of buildings in the city, which was really cool, because they're places I'm really fond of (fond is a fussy word, but it's accurate.) And there were lots of requisite ivory hookahs and ugly french plates and things. But it was really just how stately and serene the building was that made it interesting. The museum staff were nice guys, and outside, no one seemed to mind that I was walking around their school taking pictures. If you're coming to Hyderabad, admission is Rs. 60, and pictures are Rs. 50 each, which is unfortuante. Just ask for Purani Haveli, and auto drivers seem to know where it is, and once you get close, there are big signs up for the museum. My pictures up soon.

In just thirty mint's

2005-06-07T10:05:00.000+05:30

boldness
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I don't know why I like this guy so much, I just do.

Charminar from Lad Bazaar

2005-06-06T11:20:00.000+05:30

Charminar from Lad Bazaar
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

City gate

2005-06-06T11:19:00.000+05:30

City gate
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

This (I think) is one of the gates from the original walled city. I've been reading more about Hyderabad, and looking at old paintings, and it's really hard for me to imagine what it was like before it became sprawling and massive. I know that the temperature in the area has gone up a lot, with more roads and buildings, and fewer trees. It's a city of 7 million people and everyone burns their trash. I've never been anywhere where the impact of people on the environment seems so clear and immediate.

Charminar

2005-06-06T11:11:00.000+05:30

Charminar
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I went to the old city this weekend, and found out that they had opened the upper levels, for 5 rupees Indian, 100 non-Indian. I think I could've gotten through, but one of the post card hawkers I had blown off ratted me out. Still, it was worth it.

tiger and dog

2005-06-06T11:08:00.000+05:30

tiger and dog
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I know this isn't a great picture, but I wanted to put it up. In the family I'm staying with, the father was both a forestry official (through which he wa shot in the face stopping illegal loggers), and a zoo curator (through which he was bitten by a cobra trying to protect lion cubs.) He's a really amazing person, and this is a picture from his book on tigers. It's of the tiger that he raised in his house. I really like the dog's expression.

Barkatpura flyover

2005-06-01T14:44:00.000+05:30

Barkatpura flyover
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

I never would have believed it, but there it was, the flyover, which takes you right from the Barkatpura bus depot lane to Himayat Nagar.

Cholera

2005-05-31T11:18:00.000+05:30

Cholera
Originally uploaded by Maleaji.

Promise made, promise kept. The state health museum is now possibly my favorite place in Hyderabad.

This weekend

2005-05-29T15:20:00.000+05:30

Every day since I moved into my apartment has been pretty much the same-- I get up in the morning, go to work, come home, eat, read, and go to sleep. This seems weird even to me, because I'm in India, and I should be making the absolute more of every second, right? Except that the heat makes me so tired that when I'm outside I feel like I'm bring sucked into the earth (I don't know if that makes sense unless you've experienced it, but it's the most accurate thing I can come up with), and I'm by myself, plus I have food waiting for me at the house, which was always my chief reason for going out when I was here before. On Saturday, I decided that I was at least going to make the most of my weekend, which I think I did. I went to the public gardens in Hyderabad, which are nice, if not the most spectacular gardens in the world. On the grounds of the public gardens is the AP state health museum. The lonely planet mentions it briefly, but after going, I can't recommend it highly enough. Lots of dodgy (and many disturbing) dioramas on nutrition and disease. They say you're not supposed to take pictures, which is why my digital camera is awesome, since I can turn off the flash and actually know if the picture turned out. Because... I just have to post the pictures (although rest assured that I did take any pictures of the jars of fetuses or jars of tumors. Or the wax models of venereal diseased genitals. Those were not cool. (Tom, I promise you will like the cholera prevention poster.)

Slightly shell shocked, but having my confidence in the weird awesomeness of Indian museums, I went to the AP state museum. It had a lot of pretty stuff in it, some interesting sculpture from around the state, and an extremely sad looking mummy, but mostly it was pretty just because of the architecture-- sort of a white, Mughal-inspired wedding cake, and it was really peaceful, and would have been even better if there wasn't a burning pile of garbage right outside the entry.

After that, I went to Kalanjali to shop, and bought material for a new salwar kameez. I might be getting carried away with the clothes that I'm buying, since I'm really not going to be here very long at all. The thing is, I kind of hit my stride in Indian fashion just before I left the last time. Now that I know how and where to shop, it's hard not to buy clothes, because they're just so pretty. I mean -- the last time, at firt I bought clothes that were some of the ugliest things I've ever put on my body-- worse than anything my mom ever picked out. The bright turquoise seahorse kameez. The sargent pepper kameez. This time, I look good. I get compliments. And I walk past shopper's stop twice a day. And there's a fabindia here now! But aside from that...

I ended up just taking auto rides around the city (which felt like a convection oven -- dry, hot, windy), but helped me remember how everything fit together again. I went to Minerva, and had the most amazing Chole Bathura (Puri-as-big-as-your-head) that I've since I ate at Minerva last. They're extraordinary, they're massive. And they are awesome with Thum's up. Since I was in Himayat Nagar, I caught an auto to Barkatpura. The auto driver was strangely excited about the way I said "Barkarpura bus depot lane keltunara?" As we drove along, things looked the same, and then slightly different, and then I realized I was on the flyover!!! The Barkatpura flyover!!! The driver said that it opened 2 years ago. Not too bad, I guess. And it is more convenient. I walked past the program house, past the wall of the urinating men... I didn't go to the apartment building.. I don't know why, it was just the middle of the day, and it just felt too weird. So I went back to Begumpet and did some more shopping, a few errands.

When I went home that night, I talked to the owner of the apartment I'm living in, and we started talking about Tigers. He used to be a zoo curator, and a forest conservation officer, and is just generally a super nice, really interesting guy. He gave me his book to read, which is about tigers, and has a chapter on the tiger that he raised in his house, and that used to play with the monkey, dogs, and puma that he also had in his house. It was awesome.

Anyway, I'm at a crazy mall / movie theater on Hussein Sagar, and my movie (star wars) is about to start. So more later.

This is for Tom

2005-05-27T14:28:00.000+05:30

I woke up this morning, and what did I get but pickle sandwiches. That’s right, mango pickle on white bread. I ate one (there was a pile of them), but I really couldn’t eat more.

This is the end of my first week of work, and I think I’m settling in. I’m still really not sure what I want to do over the weekend. Star Wars at the Sangeet? Shopping at Kalanjali? Finding a new book at A.A. Hussein? It’s wide open.

First try

2005-05-27T12:16:00.000+05:30

This is my first try at a blog. I'll keep you all posted, rather than sending lots e-mails to different people. I will try not to be to narcissistic, but please rein me in if I start to be.