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!

013; "it's not a Slayer concert." - Dallas Green

In honour of the 40th Juno Awards, the people of the Juno and Sirius radio organized a lovely little Juno Block Party. The line up included:

Shad is a London (nearby Toronto) based rap artist. I didn't know much about him prior to the show...I actually didn't know he was going to be at the show. I just knew he that he did a song with Dallas called Live Forever.

Also my first rap concert! which I did enjoy. He has these clever rhymes and raw stylistic flow. I'd say he's worth checking out if, especially if you like alternative hip hop, spoken word, or rap.

Live Forever!

Hannah Georgas has her roots from Vancouver. She has a Metric+Stars kinda sound. I had no idea who she was before the show.... in fact I thought she was going to be a terrible pop star. I'm glad I was wrong though. She's got a lovely voice and her band was wonderful too. 

City and Colour during sound check

Dallas Green - the man of the evening and the reason I was standing there for more than 3 fuh-reezing cold hours. I couldn't feel my legs and my hands were numb but it was worth it. He played two new songs, one of them I really liked and the other one was okay. Nonetheless, Little Hell should be a promising album. He started off with Sleeping Sickness and The Death of Me, ended off with Bring Me Your Love and Sometimes for the encore in a 30 - 45 minute set. There were  some  "remixed" versions of some of the songs because it was too cold to play the acoustic guitar. I really wanted to here The Girl (favourite C&C song) but he didn't play it...and oddly I wasn't too bummed out about it. 

you can see his breathe

GTFO

In the middle of his encore, he stopped singing and everything just stopped. Dallas put a pause on the show and asked this guy if he was fighting and told the guy to get out. After a few more words from Dallas and the crowd chanting "you fucked up", the guy left the crowd escorted by the security team.

Lesson to be learned:

1) Dallas Green does not take shit.

2) In any type of altercation he does not fuck up, rather it is the other.

The whole set list: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_obYW1Nlbw&feature=channel_video_title

Jan 21; I found Pete Wentz in India! sorta.

Day 16
I think it's about time to introduce some of my house mates:

L-R: Spanky/Maggie, Fu Fu, Chubby

Fu Fu is a total cry baby. He cries when he wants food and cries when he misses someone. He'll wait by the door and cry and when someone calls my cousin's name (who is the "owner" of the dogs). He'll race to the door and weep. He's definitely the horniest and I speculate he's gay....

Chubby is the only female and she's actually overweight, thus the name. I kinda feel she's the most unloved because she's never allowed to sit on the sofa...

Lastly, there's Spanky or Maggie (I never figure out his name but he responds to both so whatever). My personal favourite. But I'm bias because I like pugs.
I went out exploring the streets of Mumbai again  and started off with all natural ice cream. 

Natural - Juhu Scheme Ice Cream
[http://www.naturalicecreams.in/]

I ended up in Lokhandwala which is an area full of shops of all kinds. There are jewellery stores, clothes, shoes, food, hookah (I REALLY wanted one but I had no idea how to carry it back in one piece), henna services on the streets, and even tailors who work on the street. I even found an instrument store! I went in to ask if they sold ukuleles and no luck -- the guy didn't even know what a ukulele was.

  Across was the instrument store was a salon. Not just any barber shop though! Apparently, this shop has been featured in Ripley's Believe it Or Not because one of the barber's trim hair with candles rather than the traditional scissors. Funny cause I noticed the image of Pete Wentz before anything else....Then I began examining the wall of people with nice hair and then my eyes shifted over to the sign of the store.

PETE WENTZ!

To end off the day I went to get a snack and I found this super cheap place which was super yummy too. 

Veggie frankie = 25 rupees = 50 cents

012; nihon ga daisuki

Dear Japan,

I hope all this crazy shit stops and you recover soon.
I'm sorry that even your highly advanced technology is no force against mother nature.
I'm sorry that you could not save the alcohol aisle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9QNzGY0qxw&feature=featured 
It will all get better soon because Japanese people are brilliant:
Karaoke, Pocky, vitamins, DSLR cameras, Tetsuya Nomaru (Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts), Hayao Miyazaki, vitamins, walkman, sushi, POKEMON. Need I say more?

I will be visiting you soon.
Love,
Angel

Jan 20; Downtown Mumbai vs. Terrorist Hotspots

Day 15
I had the pleasure of spending my whole day downtown Mumbai.

I went to visit family I haven't seen in a really long time, which was super nice. At my aunt's and cousin's beauty salon, I was (once again) kind of forced to get a manicure/pedicure/get my hair done. The workers got me McDonald's for lunch and it was soo good. I hate American/Canadian McDonald's but India's was so good. I had something called the McAloo Tikka Burger. The burger portion was a masala flavoured potato filling with a breaded crust. (I miss it.)

Terrorist Hotspot# 1: Leopold Cafe

The terrorist attack back on the night of my birthday in 2008 forced the cafe to close for a while. When the cafe reopened, business continued to do well and the world-wide media attention actually helped promote this cafe, especially with foreigners. Never mind the food, but the bullet holes in the pillar are the main attraction in this continental cafe.  

Terrorist Hotspot # 2: Gateway of India

So it was nothing spectacular really. Just a really big gate with a lot of annoying photographers. Why would I pay for an overpriced photo when I have my own camera. But I was in the area so might as well visit

Terrorist Hotspot #3: The Taj Mahal Palace

Again, nothing too spectacular about it. It's just a normal fancy hotel. I went in and so saw overpriced food and fancy boutiques. Really nice amenities though. 

The architecture of the surrounding buildings in the area were very British-like. So pretty.

After all the sightseeing, I went jewellery hunting/postcard hunting on Colaba Causeway. Then went to Fashion Street which is pretty much a whole road full of accessories, clothes, shoes, and kids toys. The people were pushy, like usual. 

Jan 19; it happened.

Day 14
what i thought wouldn't happened, happened. I shall explain later.

There was no bread in breakfast special at the hotel, but that's okay because breakfast for 4 people cost $6.  I’m loving the cheap food prices.

On our way to Nashik, there were many small groups of individuals who were walking on the unpaved roadside wearing orange. They are on a pilgrimage of some sort to Shirdi Saibaba's Temple.

Why this place is so big? In a sentence, this is a place to worship Sai Baba who is a saint because he helped the poor.

The whole "religious” experience... was kind of intense. No shoes, cell phones, electronics, or purses. Just offerings. Going into the building with the “main attraction” was hectic! All I did was go up 3 flights of stairs, give the offerings and walk out. It was crowded as hell, like no space to move. Like mosh pit crowded but less aggressive. Something worth mentioning, there was a dog just lying on the ground and as people were passing by, they were touching it like the animal was sacred. I can tell you there was nothing sacred about the dog. Just the fact that it was lying in this holy place made it special to some people. kind of strange...

On my way out of the building, I went to go retrieve my sandals. And I can’t believe what happened. it happened. I shit you not, it happened. Someone stole my shoes! IN A RELIGIOUS PLACE. I was furious and cursing and I wished the person who stole it got hit with a rickshaw. And someone had the guts to tell me that if your shoes get stolen, that’s a good sign because all your bad luck is taken away with it. I’M NOT A FREAKIN IDIOT. SO what did I do? I went looking around for a place to buy shoes because if this happens all the time, I figured they would have some sort of store… but nope. So I had to “borrow” someone else’s shoes. I would have walked around bare feet if a) the ground wasn’t so dirty b) there was actually a sidewalk to walk on instead of dusty road c) the walk wasn’t so distant.  I still kind of feel guilty about it though..

I met with a chaka/hirja today. My cousin and gramma told me tales about chakas when I was in northern India. I found it most intriguing, probably because I’m into the who LGBT thing.

 The story behind the chaka

Note: This is what I heard from my cousin, so there are variations and some detail change.

A transvestite who was born a male and raised as a female. Word spreads by mouth when a chaka is born in the community and then chakas, who tend to travel in groups, will then come and take the baby away to raise it as one of their own.  They wear saris, make-up, have long hair, and just generally very feminine. When you encounter one, they clap their hands and ask for money. If you don’t have money, they ask for anything you own like jewellery. If you upset a chaka, they curse you. If they leave happy, they bless you. Apparently their blessings/curses are "powerful". Indians tend to be very superstitious people, so they will always try to satisfy them or leave on a good note. Knowing that the population is pretty superstitious, chakas tend to appear during special occasions where blessings and curses matter most like weddings or birth (especially male birth).

I encountered two today, one before my shoes got stolen and one after my shoes got stolen. The former was kind enough to bless us despite the absence of anything to give. And the latter left us alone because we again, had nothing to offer. 

heading back to mumbai

flower man stealing sugar cane

India's To Do List:

• Not get my shoes stolen (or any belonging actually)

Mosquito Bite Count:  15 + 3

Jan 18; On the road to Nashik

Day 13
It's going to be a long day.
I didn't do much today. It was just sitting in the car and catching up with some readings for school and listening to whatever music was on the road mix. I heard things from Enrique Iglesias ft. Ludicras (what a fucktarded song btw), Katy Perry, Owl City, Cobra Starship, Bruno Mars, Akon.... I miss my music. 

India on Justin Bieber: 
They like him for his music, not his looks - that's refreshing to hear. He has a lot of hits there, but Baby seems to be the favourite. Personally, I don't like his music but I can respect that others do. We've all got opinions. It's just when people get crazy and insist on marrying him... that's the part that annoys/pisses me off. 

 Back to the trip, first stop was the Infant Jesus Shrine.

I don't go to church very often but I do believe there is something greater. So if you can call that religious, than I guess I am religious to some extent.

Driving here took most of the day, so when it came time to call it a rest we found a hotel for the night.

1 family room = 1350 rupees = $33

(That's pretty damn reasonable!)

Mosquito Bite Count: 11 +4

Jan 17; Not even tinted windows can blind one from observing corruption

Day 12

Just a few steps away from my aunt's house is a stall with everything a convenient store has. It's quite convenient. I wish I had one of these outside my house.

On my way to do more shopping, I encountered corruption through my own eyes.

My cousin drives a car with tinted windows and tinted windows are apparently illegal, I know not a smart choice. But anyway, the cop pulls us over and he asks for my cousin's licence. My cousin who doesn't have his licence on him at the moment, talks to the cop to the side. As the cop takes out his notebook/ ticket book, my cousin slips a bill in the notebook. The cop leaves us alone and the we go on our merry way. Oh yes that really did happen. 

While roaming the city, I saw many schools. On the outside walls of one school, students drew pictures that convey some sort of anti-global warming message. 

deep frying food

Naturally, I got hungry while shopping so I had this thing called a paneer frankie - SOOOO GOOOD.  It's paneer and a little bit of veggies wrapped in roti. 

Bottled Water + Dosa + Paneer Frankie = ~$3

Mosquito Bite Count: 10 +1

Jan 16; Chickens in the morning & Hornets in the night

Day 11
I went to the market in the morning and I saw this:
Organic, fresh chicken, straight from the market. Yum? uhhhhhh....

Choose your chicken

Watch your chicken get slaughtered.

I wish this system existed in Canada so people knew where their food was coming from...and what exactly they were eating. And maybe even think twice about what they eat.

Note, I'm not a vegetarian (for health reasons) although I plan to be.. but that's another topic.

In the night, I watched The Green Hornet (in 3D). The theatre totally meets Canadian standards. Unlike theatres in Canada, there are intermissions. At first when the screen went blank and the lights came on half way through the movie, I thought the fire alarm went off or something...cause that's what usually happens at the theatre I used to work at. But no, it's just time for snacks and washroom breaks. but hey, if you don't feel like getting up, one of the employees can get snacks or even a blanket for you. Unfortunately, there is nothing he can do to bring the washroom closer.

Mosquito Bite Count: 5 +5
(bug repellent isn't as effective as it should be...)

Jan 15; Shopping in Mumbai

Day 10

I went back to Mumbai early in the morning. I just want to say again, I hate planes.
While waiting for my cousin to come pick us up from the airport, I noticed this guy who was on the plane with us. I recognized him from my trip to the Agra Fort and Taj Mahal. My mom said she's seen him on TV. Plus the air hostess' were kind of swooning over him. yay celebrity?!

Guy on the right

Anyway, if you know who this gentleman is, please leave his name in the comments. It would be much appreciated!

Palladium Mall

It had multiple levels - again, can't build horizontal so vertical it is. There was a lot of familiar stores like Zara, Diesel, Converse, and even Burberry (which is over-overpriced btw). There was also an ED HARDY which got me super excited. I liked this brand before this whole Jersey Shore - douche bag scene came about.  I really liked the style, colours and tattoo inspired designs. I just thought it was different and pretty. So what I'm trying to say is that I like the brand but not the associations.  And I can't believe India has an Ed Hardy but Canada doesn't.

outside the mall

Pallidium Mall is connected with some other malls and department stores. All you have to do is walk outside and the next shopping place is next door. Quite convenient.

 They had green ice cream!! I wanted to try it so bad, but it was soooo busy. I think it might have been pistachio flavoured. Yum. On the topic of food, I passed by a Subway and it smelt like how Subway should smell. Just thought I'd throw that in.

A really big toy store =D

After this mall, I went to Lincoln Road which is pretty much an area road full of stores and all that kind of good stuff. I love shopping...