Mysore and The Indian Foot Fungus

Today is Saturday, which normally is a day for sleeping in. However, when you're in India for only 2 months, sleeping automatically falls to the bottom of the list of priorities - sometimes regretfully. This morning I went to a city called Mysore which is about a 2 hour drive from where I'm staying in Bangalore. I went with my coworker Melissa and my new friend Vinutha who I also work with. Vinutha arranged a car to take us from Bangalore to Mysore and back so we didn't have to deal with the inconsistencies of the trains. Our driver's name was Govind, and I'm not sure I would recommend him to any visitors. You can't drive fast in India because there are too many cars, people and animals in the road. Also, there are speed bumps every 10 feet, which creates a hindrance for speed as well. However, Govind seemed to be in a hurry today. The drive there and back was constant speeding up just to slam on the breaks before we bottomed out on a speed bump, or hit a resting cow in the middle of the road. Needless to say, I was grateful for a safe journey, but even more grateful to be out of the car once we made it home.

We started out in Mysore at the Tibu Sultan Palace. The outside seemed small and insignificance, but the inside was incredible. Every wall was an intricate wood carving with painting. You can't take pictures inside of palaces so unfortunately I will probably forget the incredible detail that was in that palace, but just seeing it today was amazing. It is also unfortunate that it is not being preserved very well. The palace was built in the 1800th century so not only is it really beautiful, it is really old. However, it's not being preserved so the paintings are fading and the walls are being destroyed.

After the palace we drove to the top of Mysore and visited the Chamundi Temple. We had to take our shoes off again. I struggled a lot more with it this time than at the last temple because this area was a lot dirtier, however I did it and now I'm certain I have the Indian Foot Fungus. I can't really explain this ailment, but I'm sure you will be curious to see the symptoms when I get back to Utah. We went through the temple where a sacrifice was being performed. I'm not sure what was being sacrificed, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was something human - the smell was awful. From the steps of the temple I could see all of Mysore below and it was beautiful. I also drank coconut milk from a coconut. It wasn't what I expected, but I liked it. Vinutha and Melissa then ate the coconut meat from their coconuts, but I didn't think it had any taste so I didn't eat mine. There were a ton of people at the temple area, but most significantly there was a group of little boys rolling tires with sticks. They were adorable. I took a picture with them and then gave them each a Rupi. I also saw four monkeys in the trees and on a building. That was pretty great. The weather at the top of Mysore was crazy. This is monsoon season in India and I think that's what we experienced today. The wind was so strong it was difficult to stand against and the rain soaked right through my sweater.

We went to the Mysore Palace next. This was the kind of palace I expected to see in India. It was amazing. Every single wall, ceiling, arch, window, door and anything else you could think of was ornately decorated in the most lavish way possible. My favorite was a set of doors made of cherry wood with tiny inlaid ivory ornaments. It was incredible. This palace was also built in the 1800th century, but it was maintained so much better than the Tibu Sultan Palace. In fact, to protect the floors you have to take your shoes off before entering. I didn't struggle with it so much this time because I had already succumb to the fungus at the temple. After we had gone through the palace Vinutha and I were waiting for Melissa by the shoe drop off/pick up area. A Japanese woman and her Indian guide came up to the table to drop off their shoes and umbrellas (the monsoon had followed us to the Palace). The only problem was that the Japanese woman was not aware that she had to take her shoes off. The guide told her the bad news and it didn't go over very well. She was reluctant and told the guide if they were going to make people take off their shoes they should provide booties. The guide responded with the fact that 10,000 visitors go through the palace every day and they were not going to provide booties for every visitor (especially when the Indians don't ever where shoes anyway). She then looked at me and Vinutha and with a grimace on her face asked if our feet got hurt when we went through the palace. We told her our feet were fine and I refrained from telling her of the Indian Foot Fungus I had contracted earlier. I didn't think it was the right time. I saw an elephant as we were leaving the palace. That was my first elephant sighting in India, but hopefully not the last.

We ate lunch at Pizza Corner which had pretty good pizza and had a nice ambiance with Shakira playing in the background. We visited the Sagamohan Palace, which really wasn't much of a palace, but was actually an art museum. This museum had a few paintings by the painter Ravi Verma. I wasn't familiar with him before coming to India, but he does the perspective painting where the subject's position moves to face you and you move around the painting. I don't know how he does it, but it's neat.

Our last stop was Bridaran Garden and KRS damb. It's a garden that reminded Melissa of Alice in Wonderland, which is precisely what it was like. It was very colorful and a nice garden, but probably not something that would be too impressive at home. We saw the tallest man I have ever seen there, and he was Indian. He was close to two of my height. Now, I know I'm pretty short, but still, two of me is tall. The garden was peaceful and it was a nice stop.

Mysore was a good trip, but all of the people and the noise started to overwhelm me towards the end of the day. There are just so many people everywhere, and so many cars, and the noise is incredible. Even out in the rice patty fields, which was a nice change of scenery from the city, there is still people everywhere. I guess in a country of so many, they need to be somewhere.