Jan 22; puja, pav bhaji, and saris

Day 17
I am not a "bad" Catholic. I'm just open-minded.

On Saturdays, my cousin goes to the temple for puja/pooja (prayers). I decided to go with him since it was my last weekend there. It was so different from my usual Catholic rituals. At the temple, there were several sections where you can give your offerings. Once you give your offering, the man (sorry, I don't know what the correct name is) will bless you and paint a dot on your forehead (sorry again, I don't know what the dot is called). I found one of the rituals particularly interesting: There is a statue of a Hindu God (sorry, I can't remember which one) in the middle of a room. There is a man standing in front of the statue who prays for you with the information you provide (name and horoscope). After he prays for you, he gives you a candle lamp and you carry it around the statue going 7 times counter clockwise and 2 times clockwise - DIZzZZzzzZy. Once completed, the man will pray for you once more and then you take the candle outside to put it out.

outside the temple

Outside the temple, there were TWO cows waiting to be fed. You pay for the food and then you can feed the cow (cows are sacred in Hindu religion).
* if anyone wants to educate me about the religion/what i said wrong - i encourage you to do so below!

Lunch: Smokin' Joes Pizza. The most gross-est, disgusting-est pizza evers. Where the hell is my tomato sauce? 

Large Pizza (with ham and some other nastyness) = 700 rupees = $15.56 

(oh ya, and with every large pizza, you get a free small pizza)

Dinner: Bombay's famous pav bhaji. It is pretty much bread that looks really greasy (or at least mine did) and a red sauce made of tomatos, potatoes, and some other veggies. Simple, but so good! 

For the rest of the evening, I just hung out in my aunt's salon watching people get their hair done, face done, putting their sari on too. Who knew it takes that much skill to put on a piece of cloth. I REALLY wanted a sari - the designs were just beautiful, intricate, and shiny. I would have no occasion to wear it on but it's just so pretty! I probably would use it as an extravagant curtain or table runner (Nate Berkus brings out the home designer in me).

Something worth mentioning is Hrithik Roshan's aunt came by the salon that evening. Roshan is a huge Bollywood celebrity.

India's To Do List:
See a Bollywood Star ✔-ish

Mosquito Bite Count: 18 +3

*looking back i really wish i bought a sari!