Bangalore: The Garden City

Bangalore (AKA Bengaluru) is the capitol of the Indian state Karnataka. According to Wikipedia, Bangalore is nicknamed “The Garden City,” and  located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka. It is India’s third most populus city, and the fifth most populus  urban agglomeration (I admit I had to look up that last word). It’s also known as the Silicon Valley of India because of its position as the nation's leading IT exporter.

So, enough facts about Bangalore; I have some really great friends who live and work there, which is the main reason I started this blog. This is one of the first cities I started reading about when I fell in love with India.  I admit I had been quite niave about India and life there before I began reading about the country. People work, go to school, raise families, pretty much the same as we do here in America. Yes, there are cultural differences, but we are all basically the same.  We work hard to support our families and we pay bills, taxes,etc.

I would have to say the first thing that fascinated me about India were the massive celebrations. I wanted to be there in the middle of everything when I first learned about Holi. I first learned about Holi in the movie “Outsourced” (I highly recommend that movie). Then, when my new friends from India mentioned it I was hooked.

The next thing that interested me about India was the languages. Besides Kannada, other major languages spoken in the city are English, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. So I started to learn Tamil because that is what my thambi Kannan speaks. It has turned out to be a struggle to learn this language. Pronunciation is the biggest obsticle because it is not always pronunced the way it looks when written in English. I am still trying to learn Tamil and will eventually move on to Hindi.

I have also learned about cricket, I still do not understand how the game is played but it is interesting to watch and I have spotted people playing cricket in Colorado Springs to my surprise.

I recently went on to a tourist web site for Bangalore and it was very inviting. There seems to be so much going on there that you want to go experience everything. There are historical places, parks, lakes, palaces, temples, and places for the kids to have fun. I know my granddaughter would love to go to Kid Zone which is a children’s park within Cubbon Park. They have a toy train to ride through the park, swings, horse rides and tree houses. There is also Bannerghetta National Park where you can see wildlife in its natural habitat. The list goes on, Neeladri Amusement Park, Wonderla, Crazy Waters, Nagavara Lake and Lumbini Gardens, there is an aquarium in Cubbon park also. They also have a planetarium and a Disneyland like park called Fun World.  

I have been on numerous web sites about Bangalore and have found out that there is so much to see and do. It is a beautiful city from what I have seen and I cannot wait to visit!

Indian Festivals

One of the reasons I love India is the many different festivals and celebrations throughout India. The festivals celebrate harvests; commemorate historical figures and events, and many express devotion to the deities of different religions. Each celebration is centered around the rituals of prayer, seeking blessings, exchanging goodwill, decorating houses, wearing new clothes, music, dance and feasting. In India every region and relegion has something to celebrate throughout the year. Every celebration has the vigor and life-style of its people. Vibrant colours, music and festivity make the country come alive throughout the year.


Here are some of my favorite celebrations:


Holi – the Festival of Colors, is marked as the opening festival on the Hindu calendar and it falls on the full moon day in the month of Phalgun. Originally Holi was regarded as the festival to celebrate good harvests and fertility of the land. There are several legends and stories behind Holi. A popular legend says that Holi is remembered for the sacrifice of Holika who burnt herself in fire on this day.

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated on the 4th day of the bright half of Bhadrapad. This festival marks the birthday of Lord Ganesh. Lord Ganesha or Ganpati is one of the most popular deities in the Hindu religion. It is worshiped by both Shaivites and Vaishnavites. Even Buddhists and Jains have faith for Ganpati. He is considered to be an avatar of both Shiva and Vishnu.
For the Ganapati festival, a large number of idols are made of clay and other materials in all sizes. Some of them can be up to twenty feet high. People will buy idols and place them in their homes for up to ten days and then the idols are taken ceremoniously taken through the streets of the town and immersed in a river, the ocean or a well. Feasts are prepared, classical dance, and music is performed for the Ganesh Chaturthi celebration.

Diwali or Deepawali or Dipawali is one the most important and immensely cherished and celebrated across India and in parts of Nepal. Diwali is popularly known as the "Festival of Lights" and is observed as an official holiday across India. For Hindus it is associated with the return of Lord Rama to Ayodhya after his 14 years of exile and victory over the demon Ravana. On that day, he was welcomed to the kingdom to Ayodhya with rows of Deep, lightened throughout the kingdom.
And so the tradition of lighring oil lamps came about that symbolize the victory of good over evil and freedom from spiritual darkness. Diwali celebrations last five days with each day having its own significance and set of rituals.
The first day is “Dhanteras”, whe new utensils and silver ware is brought to the house. The second day is “Chhoti Diwali”, which normally involves preparation for the next day and the tradition of playing cards is observed in many families. The third day is the “Badi Diwali”, which involves the worshiping of mother Lakshmi, and the fourth day is the Govardhan Puja and finally the five days end with Bhai Dooj. Diwali brings happiness, togetherness, spiritual enlightment and prosperity for everyone.

 

There are too many celbrations to name all of them. I recently found out about Onam, which is celebrated in Kerala.

It is the largest festival in Kerala and it falls during the first month of the Malayalam calendar which is Chingam (August–September) and marks the homecoming of the legendary King Maveli. The festival lasts for ten days and is linked to many elements of Kerala's culture and tradition. Intricate flower carpets, elaborate banquet lunch, snake boat races, Puli Kali, and the Kaikottikkali dance all play a part in the festival.

According to the legend, Kerala witnessed its golden era during the reign of King Mahabali. Everybody in the state was happy and prosperous and the king was highly regarded by his subjects. He was that much highly regarded among the subjects that even the Gods under Indra became jealous of Mahabali, they approached Mahavishnu claiming that Mahabali is now equivalent to an Indra.

Since a world with two Indras represents imbalance, Mahavishnu assumed the form of a dwarf: the Vamana avatara and tricked him to Pathalam, the Underworld. However, as Mahabali is equal to an Indra, he is to wait until the next Yuga where he would be the Indra. In the meantime, with the grace of Mahavishnu, Mahabali visits his people on an annual basis. Mahavishnu serves Mahabali as a gatekeeper in the world of Pathalam as the Lord himself serves his greatest devotees.

It is this visit of Mahabali that is celebrated as Onam every year. People including children celebrate the festival in a grand way and impress upon their dear King that they are happy and wish him well.

Saving India's Coast

This entry is dedicated to my friend Manas, whom I greatly admire. He started a Facebook page to save India's coastline. We had met through another Facebook site for singer Joi Barua (awesome guy, awesome music...more about that later).  When Manas started his Facebook page I was one of the first to join. I figured even if I am not in India I can try to help save its coast, after all it is a beautiful country.

I love the beach and I think we all need to do our part to save the coasts in any country. (India just happens to be one of my favorites). So what can we do to save the coasts? Let's think about this for a minute, it's common sense really, I personally like to sum it up in one word...education. The more we educate ourselves and learn from our mistakes the better the world will be.
There are many beautiful coastal towns in India, Goa, Gujarat, Maharahstra, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and West Bengal.

An article I found online stated:
Economic growth is pushing the original protectors of India’s long coastline out of their homes and livelihoods. The waste generated by this takeover flows into our seas, endangering the ecology and health of millions. Infochange begins a new series on coastal nightmares, examining the extent of the damage and how coastal communities can respond.

http://infochangeindia.org/Environment/Coastal-Nightmares/Coastal-cities-need-to-clean-up-their-act.html

The picture above is Pondicherry, where my thambi Kannan is from. It is a Union Territory of India. It is a former French colony, consisting of four non-contiguous enclaves, or districts, and named for the largest, Pondicherry.

Manas I would like to personally thank you for giving me the idea of starting this blog!

You know, the more I learn about India the more I love it and I will help my friend Manas in anyway I can, even if I am thousands of miles away from India and its beautiful coast. Visit the Save India Coast Facebook page and learn something new.

saveindiascoast@groups.facebook.com

Love the new logo Manas!

My Indian Family

When at first I began corresponding with my Indian friends, I felt—almost instantaneously—as if I’d known them all my life. They happen to be one of the most special group of friends I’ve ever come to know, and in my way, I love them dearly. They have taught me a lot about the culture and the food of India.

I have known Kannan the longest and he has become part of my family. He is my thambi (Tamil for younger brother) and I am his akka (Tamil for older sister). I am learning Tamil so I can talk to his family in Tamil when I meet them.

                                                            

      

Then there is Hemanth my other thambi. He has taught me a lot about the festivals and celebrations in India. When he told me about the Ganesh Chaturthi I wanted to know more and I think that is when I started asking a lot more questions and researching the many festivals and celebrations of India. 

Ganesha Chaturthi is the birthday of Lord Ganesha who is the god of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. Ganesha is widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles and is the most widely worshiped among the Hindu religion.

I am still getting to know my newest friends Meenakshi and Deepak. I have also met some of my friends on Facebook. They all come from different regions of India and each have taught me something new about the country. I admire my friend Manas for the work he does with the environment. He started a FB page to Save India's coastal regions. There is so much to say about these friends



The literary musings of a suburban mind in an exotic land

I've always been fascinated by foreign cultures, however, when I began learning about India, I fell in love. With each fact I learned, I wanted to learn more about India, the people, and the culture. People I have met from India have become very close friends, like family to me; they have taught me a lot about their culture, and have fueled my interest in ways hitherto unknown in my American life.

As an American who is a very picky eater, I have found that trying new foods can be difficult. I have tried some Indian food, and have found it quite spicy for my bland American palate. I have tried chicken curry, shrimp curry, and naan bread, to name a few dishes. I've recently tried lamb biryani; Now, I have to say that I have been wanting to try this because one of my friends raves about this rice dish. So, I ordered it and waited for this wonderful dish to arrive. My first taste was interesting, to say the least. Then came the fire! It was way to spicy for my tastes. I really wanted to like this dish because I love lamb, but I have to say I could not eat it. My friends recommended I add ghee to cut the spiciness, but that did not work for me. So, I have learned to ask how spicy the dish is before I order now.

Moving on to other dishes...I will be attempting to make idli, which is described as a South Indian savory cake, it is made of fermented black lentils and rice. So I purchased a mix from my favorite Indian grocery and the idli stand so I can make the "savory little cakes".

And so I will end this first entry with this thought... life should be lived and learn new things everyday!