Click on a picture to see a larger view
TEAMSUSHI.com

Oh, this is the sanctuary or whatever inside a small temple in Phaltan, the small city where I live. I think that character's name is Sankar, who is somehow supposedly related to Ganesh

Whoohoo, number two! This one is your basic street scene in Phaltan, where the vegetable market is. Though this is a side street so it's a little less busy. This was my first day out in the city when I arrived. Everyday there are tons and tons of fresh produce available in crazy varieties that we don't even have a word for in English sometimes. And i love everyone's reaction when I try to negotiate the price in Marathi, they usually just about give it to me for free becaus they're so excited a foreigner, and an american, is learning their mother language. Just today I was haggling with some rickshaw drivers who were trying to charge me double the price in Pune and a policeman stopped by only passingly interested in teh exchange, but when I started speaking marathi he flipped out and said forget them and gave me a ride himself for free!

This group of ladies were all having dinner in the hotel my first night in India. This is mainly what all the women wear in Phaltan, which are called Saris (pronounced sa-reez). In the large cities, it is more modern and some women will wear western style clothes, but not so much here becuase it is pretty rural.

The is the outside of the temple from picture 0376. THe walls were covered in intricate carvings all the way around. This little temple was impressive becuase it is only a minor temple in a small town in the middle of nowhere. the big temples are really amazing.

Hotel Pink Hill - The is the 'restaurant' where we eat lunch every day. I was way sketched out when we first came here, but it's the only game around since we are about 6km outside of town. It turned out that the food was really good even if the hygiene was not. Oh well, it's been a month and none of us has died yet so i guess it's ok!

The ox cart is still a very common mode of goods transport here since both tractors and fuel are way out of the price range of the average farmer. (gas prices are about the same as in Europe, which is really a lot for an indian cosidering that everything that's not imported costs 1/5th of what it does in the states) But everyone is always fascinated by the digital cameras and wants to see there photo after you take it. It kind of sucks a little because every time I want to take a picture of a street scene or someone doing something, they all stop, jump up, and ogle the camera! Its fun though. I manage to sneak some in now and then.

This a temple at a place called Shindrapoor. Our friend Mahesh, who we met when he helped us out one day, took us here to show us around and explained everything to us. It was on top of a really big hill, not quite a mountain, but big. The pink tower was covered in small stone figurines that were painted really colorfully. There were also tons of monkeys around everywhere, since people fed them as a part of the religious thing.

This is the view from outside the temple. The land around here is fairly bare, but the hills are significant. The actual city of phaltan though, is much more flat, a fact that I greatly appreciate since I get around mostly by bike.

Here the girls are modeling their Indian clothes. They opted for these almost immediately. As westerners, and since cecile is blonde, we get stared at enough as it is, but since western clothes are much more form-fitting, they were getting tons of cat-calls and what not. Now, they still stare, because we are westerners in a town that never sees foreigners except mabye just passing through, but it's not so harrassing.

Oh yeah, and this is an autorickshaw, in case you didn't know what one looked like, because I certainly didn't before I came. I think they take the engine that would normally power a small push-assisted lawn mower and then put about 300 pounds of metal on it, a driver, and up to 4 passengers. It's a wonder the things move at all, but somehow they manage!

This is a closer view of the pink tower on the temple at shindrapoor. There is pretty good detail if you can zoom in on the photo.

This was a 'welcome band' that was playing on the opening night of a five day festival of performance in Phaltan. We had made friends with one of the guys responsible for organizing the show, so he very graciously gave us front row seats for every night. The music was, uh, interesting and the dancing was pretty cool. The skits in between were quite lengthy, though, and being that we've only been studying Marathi marginally for two or three weeks, we only understood about one word in a hundred. But it was definitely an really awesome opportunity. The also invited us on stage one night to receive flowers, which is a common method of thanks, where would maybe give a plaque or certificate, as honored guests of the community. I actually missed that one, though because I was having a late dinner and it was a surprise.

I guess even upper middle class kids in India love punk rock. Check out the shirt.

This the front view of our hotel. The sign says Hotel Aryaman in Marathi. it's definitely the nicest place in town. For example, the prime minister or somebody stayed there when they came through town. However, a reputation of excellence in india apparently doesn't require cleanliness. The staff are really awesome though. They are super nice and helpful, but genuinely so, not just because its their job. they've been the main ones giving us marathi lessons in the morning while we wait for tea before work.

This is me, Maelle, and Cecile in a rickshaw on our way somewhere. They are two french girls from the same agricultural school outside of paris. They are here for the same 3 months that I am, except that they have to go home right after rather than travel around for a month like I am. I definitely glad they came because it's a lot more fun when I get share my culture shock with someone. They've also been patiently helping me with my french.