As someone who grew up and has lived a long time in the US I am on pretty firm ground thinking and writing about Thanksgiving and Hanukkah, at least the Hanukkah that manifests in the US given that Christmas is what it is. I know their histories and I have opinions about them. When special times such as these come up out of context, such as here in India, they are pretty easy to ignore. But I get some pleasure from marking them mostly becuase they are attached to some good memories.
So, I reduced thanksgiving dinner to pumpkin pie, which I made using a squash that was similar to pumpkin. It tasted authentic and had a perfect texture. I didn’t do as well with the Latkes that I made as a diminutive nod to Hanukkah. I followed the usual vegan recipe but since I didn’t have a vegetable grater I diced the potatoes. Vegan Latkes tend toward crumbly no matter what. As you can see these didn’t hold together at all so we had hash browns with apple sauce.
As someone who did not grow up in India and in fact just got here, and also grew up with no religious faith of any type, I am am on very infirm ground when writing about Hindu worship. So I am just going to say that the displays of worshiping nature that I see around on the IISc campus are intriguing. The photo on the left is a termite hill with pictures of deities leaning on it. Not all the termite hills I have seen around here have pictures on them, but many of them do. The photo on the right is the bottom of a tree with a bracket fungus growing at the base, as a platform for the Hindu figure. They are covered with colored chalk. There was another adorned bracket fungus on a nearby tree. The trees were next to the sewage treatment plant.
This campus is beautiful. There is the rich diverse forest and the birds and monkeys and dogs, and the organic arrangements of buildings among the trees, and the people on bikes and kids playing badminton in the street. I am glad to be in this comfortable and safe place that has its own depth, but is separate from the chaos and overwhelm of the city of Bangalore. Nonetheless, sometimes I feel trapped. I don’t know my way around outside of the campus. In fact I have hardly been anywhere in Bangalore. I can’t drive here and even being a pedestrian is a challenge becuase of the traffic. When I want to cross the street I wait for someone else to come up next to me and cross with them, banking on their good sense. I am used to Ithaca, where I can jump in the car or on my bike and go anywhere. And I am used to Åland where I have driven on nearly every road, many times, and where I know the good swimming spots where ever I am.
I took this picture the other day from the roof of the biosciences building where I work. What I hope it shows you is the mix of safety and tranquility with claustrophobia that I feel. The trees are on the campus. Then there is a wall you can’t see, and then there is the city that goes to the horizon.
Great description! Look forward to all of your postings.
The food looks good and the plates are fantastic! The Hindu people have right in that they worship the nature, but why there is so little left of it in the cities? Life is no good without worshipping and celebration, please join whenever you can! I see that the writing is coming back to you, halleluja!
The plates are nice! Actually, I didn’t appreciate them so much until you pointed it out.
Hi, Saskya: Great post, the pie looks delicious. Since you need to go to the market and find a grater 😉 I strongly suggest you find a driver who can get you where you want to go. Having spent a lot of time in “3rd world” cities, I can attest that their walkability scores are in the toilet (so to speak). But you can find a reliable driver for a very reasonable cost who will take you where you want to go, on your schedule, probably walk with you during the walking part of the errand or trip, and be your fixer and guide. You will be much freer and have someone explaining what you are seeing or showing you things you wouldn’t otherwise see. My driver from my time in Haiti 10 years ago is still a good friend. Just a thought for your consideration. Thank you for sharing your adventures.
Priscilla: We were offered a car and driver. But that was too much for us. The compromise that we envisage is to get good at using uber and taxies and auto-rickshaws. For now, though, that doesn’t go easily because we are not well enough in the banking system to be able to pay, except with cash. So, we can’t order a car on the phone. Once we get that worked out, going on little expeditions might be less intimidating.
Many places we’d like to go are within biking distance, but basically biking is probably simply a bad idea. I’ve done it some and I wouldn’t encourage anyone else to try it. Or, we are in walking distance, but some of the street crossings are just too anxiety laden. So, getting to that easy-to-call-for-a-ride state will make our lives nicer, I think, even if we don’t have a full time car and driver.
Yes, as Andy says we haven’t made peace with the idea of a driver. But I think a compromise will come because as it is we are too constrained.
I have a grater now!
You have a wonderful ability to express your view of your surroundings. Thanks for taking us along for the ride.
Thanks Dan. And thanks for coming along for the ride.
Thank you Saskya! It is so enjoyable reading these posts and it helps keep you in my mind. You are a beautiful observer, writer and human.
Love your pictures, the feeling comes through in this one.