Pongal and Eclipse in Mamallapuram

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Day 4 and we already feel we have a month’s worth of India experiences. Today is the Southern holiday of Pongal (Harvest Festival) and an 82% (that’s what it is advertised at) solar eclipse There is unbelievable energy in the air with tons of people all cramming to get to the famous Mamallapuram sites – temple, ancient rocks and the Bengal Bay Beach. Like Steve said “its orchestrated chaos with a symphony out of tune.” It’s hard to decide what photos to attach because it is endless the photo opps here – colorful and interesting, the best part is that the people here WANT their picture taken. I was almost mobbed at a temple in Kanchipuram with locals wanting their picture taken as if it was a blessing of some kind. And yes, we were blessed at the temple by Kali with the red dye dot to the forehead. Many locals want to meet us and talk with us, and invite us into their home.

Just a few things we experienced over the last couple of days:

-Fantastic walk in this town of ancient temples, caves and granite boulders.
-Day trip to the temples of Kanchipuram and silk factory – bought silk scarves for $2 each.
-Two more nights of traditional dance, music and chants
-I had a great ayurvedic massage but need to be more selective on location – a real dive.
-Steve got a local “shave and a haircut for $2”
-Bought two cell phones (no. posted on the site)
-Fantastic food – very inexpensive – avg. $10 a meal
-Great yoga classes at the hotel
-Internet hook-up very slow – hopefully next city better
-Hari Krisna commonplace and not a nuisance

Tonight the night train to Madurai…. We hope for no problems

Laurie