After our discussions with Augustine, we went for lunch before heading to a Kerela Ayurvedic massage that Augustine had helped us arrange, thanks to Alex's excellent suggestion!
I found the massage a bit challenging as it involved being basically naked for the whole thing - and actually naked for some of it - while 2 people rub hot oil over you (women massaging women, men massaging men). Body self-consciousness aside, the actual oil rubbing bit felt really nice, and I tried to think of it as a very Indian-spiritual lesson in not paying attention to the discomfort I was feeling about the situation, but focussing really hard on the other elements - the warmth and texture of the oils, the gentle pressures of the massage, the fragrances from the Ayurvedic preparations in use...
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| The massage room, the amazing wooden massage table and my two massage therapists |
After the massages, Alex and I had to get some more passport photos taken as we needed them to go with some forms that were required to register our presence with the police. Another thing India is famous for is its bureaucracies!
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| Driving back from the massage clinic |
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| Driving back from the massage clinic |
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| Driving back from the massage clinic |
Getting the photos involved finding a small photography studio that wasn't too far a walk from our house. As we were out, we decided to spend some more time just walking the streets to see what was around and to get more of a feel for the city.
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| Another friendly cow |
I have often heard India described as a place of contrasts and contradictions. One of the most confronting contrasts I've encountered so far is the incredible beauty, contrasted with the incredible pollution. Each time I see the waterways clogged up with litter, animals foraging amongst the waste, people dropping litter carelessly in the street, or people having to live or work with the filth, my heart breaks a little.
A more positive contrast I've encountered is that between the tourist perception of India I've been given - of having to be careful of being ripped off, robbed, or harassed - with the friendliness of the encounters we've actually had here. Walking back to the house after exploring today, a couple of slightly unsavoury looking young men got talking to Alex, and then asked him to take their photo. Alex took a few pictures, then they asked for one with him in it as well. I obliged and took the photo for them, and Alex took back his camera to review the pictures and show them to his new acquaintances. As they took hold of the camera to view the screen, a group of other men grew around us. Soon a few words were spoken, and the men from the photo went on their way. It turned out that the other people had seen the men take hold of the camera, and had all come to our aid as they had thought the men were trying to rob us (they weren't). This community mindedness and spirit of protecting each other is not only in contrast to the warnings I had been given, but is also in contrast to the experience I had back in Australia where I collapsed at a train station and everyone walked by me with not a single person offering any help.
The friendliness we have encountered is not only limited to Baba and his friends at the shop in Commercial Street, but in ordinary encounters as we just walk down the road. People smile hello, or stop to ask about where we are from, or sometimes have more of a conversation. The man in the photos below, Rajulu, came out from his guard hut at a convent school just to talk to us. He explained that he had previously served in the Indian Army, and showed us his medal commemorating 50 years of Indian Independence (the round medal), and for his service in Kashmir (the coloured bar above). When we asked for a photo, he went and got his hat and glasses so he could strike a suitable pose for us :)
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