Russian dancers pose after their performance with flags of India and Russia.
24 January Chennai
I hung out in my room during the morning, then grabbed
a late South Indian breakfast at Chennai Saravana Bhavan. The Chennai Express
was running about 40 minutes late and reached Chidambaram Junction a little past
1 p.m., when I easily got aboard—no pushing and shoving—and had a comfortable
ride of about six hours to Chennai. I spent most of that time trying to catch up
on writing this journal. I had a chat with a young Tamil fellow who lives in
Holland and had come home on a two-week holiday to visit family at a village
near Chidambaram and in Chennai. Despite the crowds milling around the vast
Chennai Egmore station, I managed to get an Uber taxi to Airbnb ‘Rose Petals’
where I had stayed three weeks ago. Then I dodged rush-hour traffic to walk over
to Amaravathi Restaurant for a super-tasty set meal of Andhra Pradesh cuisine.
Tired of walking on and along busy streets, I then got an Uber back to the
Airbnb. The wi-fi works well in my room, which I appreciated because most places
I’ve recently been lacked it.
25 January Chennai
I took it easy
today, sorting photos and working on text for the journal. In the evening I had
a choice between Bharathanatyam dances or a piano recital, and chose the piano,
played with great skill by Chennai native Anand Seshadri at the Alliance
Française of Madras. His program offered a Chopin nocturne, three intermezzi by
Brahms, a Bach prelude and fugue, and a Mozart sonata. Afterward I checked out
nearby Cream Centre, which turned out to be a high-end vegetarian fusion
restaurant. The heavenly malai kofta had very rich and creamy flavors. Taxis
were busy tonight, and I had to wait nearly half an hour before an Uber pulled
up for the ride home.
26 January Chennai
Today is Republic Day, which
celebrates the date on which the Constitution of India came into effect on 26
January 1950. In late morning I walked to the nearby Russian Cultural Centre for
an International Dance Festival by a group from Rostov-on-Don
in southern Russia. The dancers presented a huge variety of ballet, folk, and
contemporary works plus they showed their versatility by performing two Indian
dances. Dim lighting made it impossible to photograph the dancers in motion,
however.
Russian dancers
pose after their performance with flags of India and Russia.
Afterward I wandered over to Amaravathi Restaurant for another of their wonderful set meals. Then, on the way home, I chanced to see a sign for India Quilt Festival 2019 and headed inside to see many styles of much-admired quilts.
Indian
quilters love to depict peacocks!
A doodled
portrait of Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page on his iconic double-necked guitar,
the Gibson EDS-1275, most notable for his live performances of Stairway to
Heaven.
Guitar strings embellish the quilt. By Priyanka Gopalaswamy, India
“This quilt is a tribute to the countless unseen and marginalized women of this
country who, for the better part of their lives, toil day and night to support
their families
but yet are not treated as equals in the family and social
hierarchy.” Entered by Lalitha Rajan &
Mary Eby Mathew (Prabha), India.
Quilted by Kalindi Hambir. It won First Prize for Art Quilts!
The
Predator and Its Prey (oriental dwarf kingfisher)
Entered by Mary Eby
Mathew (Prabha), India. Quilted by Kalindi Hambir.
27 January Chennai (airport)
Performances of Indian classical dance filled
the day. On my walk back to the Airbnb to pick up my bag I stopped at a
supermarket for a supply of snacks to take with me. Traffic on a Sunday evening
was a tad lighter than normal, and my Uber taxi soon reached the airport. Check-in
with Air Asia took a long time, as usual, then around midnight I got on an
Airbus A320 for Air Asia FD 154 to Bangkok. There I would have a dozen days of
my usual contemporary art exhibits, Buddhist events, and meeting up with
friends. Then I took ol’ Bessie Too the Bicycle with me to the Philippines for
rides there; story and photos are up at
www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/PhilippinesRide2019.
Back to Beginning of South India Backpacking Dec. 2018-Jan. 2019