Thursday 7 July 2011

Out In The ஸ்ட்ரீட்

HTemp:  36c
Rain:       1.0"
`-$:         44.43


OK, enough with the temple talk, the bottles of glue, the apartment, the cows.  All nice details, but what's it like?  I mean, what's it really like out there?

About as serene as it gets
You know, out in the STREET?  Crazy, right?  Mayhem.  A kazillion people and things, a riot of color, smells and textures -- too much for the brain to process?  At all hours? Days chock full of hustle and bustle? Babies being born, airplanes landing, streets opening up, frogs raining down, right?  Pure National Geo stuff, right?  RIGHT?

Right.  Maybe.  We'd call it controlled chaos, but that's being a little generous on the controlled part.  It works for India.  Or fits the all-purpose answer we've recently been taught: "TII"- "This Is India."  Indeed it is!

The street is exciting, no doubt about it.  It's full action, unless you prefer sleeping on the sidewalk, because it's so hot.  Or maybe peeing against a wall because bathrooms aren't around and that's just what men (and school boys) do and it's frankly a disgusting habit to witness.  But we digress, it's the street that's exciting and that's where we want to be, out in the ஸ்ட்ரீட் !



Shops on the ground, apartments above

Totally typical, cow included (who said no more cows?)


Hot Chips!

The living is all in the open in the heat




If you can move it, you can use the street

A lot of saris and a lot of uniforms in the street


Everything is a business in the street

Sleeping, waiting for a bus, it's all the same...


There's much more to the street: the traffic, the shops, modes of transportation.  The filth.  Look for more details in upcoming postings.

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