Thoughts From the Road

Somehow, my last full weekend in India is over. I can't figure out where the time went! For one last hurrah, my friend and I decided to go check out northern India.

With the help of our kooky Sikh cab driver, we started the day's tour of Jaipur's big monuments -- Amer Fort, Jaigarh Fort, and the Water Palace. Amer Fort was beautiful, and we got so completely absorbed in it that we spent three hours exploring before we realized how many other places we still had to see! So we wandered around above the city checking out all of the old forts. The view from all way up there in the hills was absolutely breathtaking.

We left bright and early the next morning to catch a train to Agra, the home of the Taj Mahal. The moment we stepped off the train, we were ambushed by auto drivers, and that ambush didn't stop until we were on our way home. Northern India is definitely a different world compared to the South, where I've spent most of my time. The auto drivers are relentless, refuse to use the meter, and charge exorbitant prices to bring you anywhere. Vendors are just as bad, chasing us around trying to sell bracelets and postcards. I felt like we spent the whole weekend fighting to prevent everyone from ripping us off. Honestly, it was exhausting.

We grabbed lunch at a restaurant overlooking the Taj, then haggled with an auto driver to get to the nearby Agra Fort without spending an arm and a leg. Around sunset, we finally headed to the Taj Mahal.

We'd seen glimpses of it all day, but there's nothing like walking through those front gates and seeing it right there in front of you, exactly like every picture you've ever seen.

It was sort of difficult to enjoy our time there, though, because everyone kept coming up and asking us for pictures. This had been happening all weekend, and had become impossible to take lightly after a guy followed me around all morning after I agreed to take a picture with him. I'm not really sure why we were the center of attention when standing in front of one of the world's greatest monuments.

Eventually we were too tired to do much else, so we went to go catch our train back to Jaipur. Only problem? The train was going to be at least 3.5 hours late. We were instantly swarmed by drivers offering to bring us to Jaipur for the "small" sum of only 5,000 rupees (compared to our 500 rupee train ticket). We luckily found a bunch of other foreigners who were also waiting for late trains, so we escaped the mob and went to grab some dinner while we waited.

As we drank some spicy masala chai and got to know each other, a wedding procession made its way through the streets below. Trumpets were blasting, and drummers were pounding out some crazy beats as everyone danced and cheered below. The groom followed the procession decked out in traditional garb on the back of a seriously spook-proof horse. For a while, we all forgot how tired and cranky we were and just had some fun.

Our train ended up being more than 6 hours late, leaving at 1am rather than its scheduled 7pm. Such is India, I guess. Overall, the trip was really nice, though. Jaipur was a beautiful city, with so many colors and such great views. You kind of forget that cities here can be nice, after living for months in such a chaotic city as Bangalore!

Jaipur & Agra, India

Dosa is a south Indian staple, a thin crispy pancake served for breakfast or as a quick snack throughout the day. Masala dosa -- or dosa served with spiced potatoes (aloo palya) -- is literally the first thing any foreigner eats upon landing in India, and it's pretty delicious.

You start with a fermented rice mixture, a common starter for many meals here including idly and dosa. Mix 2 cups of rice (white, red, or a mixture of the two) with up to 1 cup of chana dal. Add a handful of methi seeds (also known as fenugreek seeds). Let soak for a few hours.

Drain the water. Blend until mix is a fine consistency, then add water until the batter is thin. Store in a large, covered container in a warm space. Ferment overnight.

Cook your dosa on a large, nonstick pan. Heat the pan first, then spread some batter thinly over the entire pan. When the bottom is getting crispy, add a little oil or ghee (clarified butter) to the edges. Flip, cook briefly. This side will not turn as dark -- that's fine.

It's my first Thanksgiving away from home - I couldn't let it pass by uncelebrated.

Holidays here have been strange for me, especially since I'm one of those people who needs drastic changes in the season to signal what month it is. So I'm having a really hard time remembering it's "winter" or that I should be celebrating one holiday or the other.

I spent the morning wandering around the largest, fanciest grocery store we could find, looking for all of the things necessary to Thanksgiving, many which I had almost given up hope finding (like molasses, and vanilla extract...why does no one here sell vanilla extract?).

I put on some jazz to remind me of wintery weather in spite of the sun streaming in the kitchen window, and got to work making my first ever pie. We didn't have a pie pan, so it ended up being baked in a rectangular pan... certainly the most interestingly shaped pie I've ever seen!

Then on to the chicken, our stand in for turkey in a country that doesn't have turkeys natively. Pulled up a recipe online, tried my best, and tossed it in the oven.

By the time everything was starting to smell pretty delicious, one of my friends from the program had made it. We switched to Middle Eastern music to celebrate her Lebanese Thanksgiving traditions. She and my Iranian roommate danced around like maniacs, speaking combinations of Arabic and Farsi, until the potatoes threatened to boil over and it was back to work.

My friend whipped up some mashed potatoes and green beans. Then  came the iffy, not quite perfect side of our cooking attempts. We attempted (and failed) to make gravy, and again attempted (and failed) to make whipped cream for the pie.

But, in the end, it all turned out just fine.

We all sat around, explaining our family's Thanksgiving traditions, stuffing our faces with our favorite foods, and realizing that our time left in India is short, with the idea of holidays at home quickly approaching beyond the horizon of final papers and class presentations.

Highlight of the night? Eating that pumpkin pie, and having my host mom admit that she had thought pie was the main course in a Thanksgiving meal. I mean, let's be honest, it should be!

Curd is one of my favorite parts of any traditional south Indian meal -- just a small serving of thick yogurt to cut the spice and help with digestion.

Turns out, it's super easy to make. Just take some milk (preferably 2% or whole) and boil it on the stove for a few minutes. Let it cool until it's warm, add a spoonful of starter (you can just use some store-bought Greek yogurt the first time), and let it sit at room temperature for 4-5 hours.