Twelve years

It's been kind of nice to not have a working cell phone or internet connection for the last couple weeks. Still, I thought I'd pop into an internet cafe in Mumbai to post here.

Dixie's cousins, Farida and Vizak, have been accompanying us around Mumbai. A lot can happen to a city in twelve years, and I feel like this is a very different Mumbai than I remember. First, India's economy is much more open than it used to be and its culture is more cosmopolitan (at least in big cities like Mumbai). Having eaten my last hamburger at In-and-Out on the day we left and having enjoyed French food for a week, I thought I might be saying good-bye to good Western food for a while. Not the case -- unlike my last visit, international food, international brands and international people are everywhere. Nonetheless, we've tried to stick to local food as much as possible and we've been treated to some of the best dhabas, cafes and restaurants around (courtesy of Vizak, who fills in for Yelp quite handily in a country where Yelp doesn't exist).

Mumbai's bustle makes Manhattan look like Modesto. It's an amazing city, but you feel like you could get swallowed by it as soon as you leave the flat.

Together with my aunt Dhun, we also spent four days in Panchgani, which is where my mom and her siblings grew up. Panchgani is still a relatively quiet and picturesque place -- it's the Yang to Mumbai's Yin. Maybe it was the familial connections to the place, or maybe it was the natural beauty of Panchgani and our old property there (even though it fell into disrepair long ago), but I didn't want to leave. I have 450+ pictures from the few days we spent there, and when I finally get my laptop properly connected, I'll let them do the talking.

We still have another week of traveling before we get to Ahmedabad to start work. Better sign off. It's lunch time and I hear there are some battatawadas with my name on them.