I ate India

I just got back from two weeks in India and when I got dressed for work this morning I felt surprised that my clothes didn't fit. So I did the math and calculated that I ate approximately nine meals worth of food each day while I was away. Basically, I ate India.

Never ending thali plates.

I don't regret my choices because Indian food is delicious/nonexistent in Turkey. I needed to get in as much as I could in my limited amount of time. It didn't help that the clothing that I wore throughout my Indian travels were more like pajamas then anything else -- so I didn't recognize the damage until I was home. But I'm OK with my decisions to eat each meal as if it were my last as a prisoner on death row. Indian food delights me.

Also, I feel like I really blend in India.

blending

I want you to take these things into account:

#1 The food agrees with me (obvi)
#2 I love being barefoot
#3 Coconut oil works wonders on my hair

Unfortunately, the folks that actually live in India may not agree with me, in terms of my blendability that is. I mean they liked me, don't get me wrong. Everywhere I went people stopped and asked for photos with me and my friends. I felt SUPER popular. It is probably the closest I'll ever get to being famous, minus being famous, plus being pale.

and 

and

and

You can hardly tell from the photo, but Krishna really liked me. 

All of this notoriety made me want to dig into pop culture a little bit so I bought a couple posters -- one of Ganesha, one of Vijay.

Ganesha is a god, Vijay is a movie star. I had a lot of BK (BK = Background Knowledge for everyone out there who is not an elementary school student or teacher) on Ganesha already but Vijay is still a bit of a mystery. I'm not sure if there is any connection, but in my research (i.e. asking my friend Charlotte) I did come across a music video that stars a guy that resembles him. It even COULD be him. I have no idea, but the video is really good.

That's as far as I got in my quest for Vijay knowledge.

Overall, my trip to Kerala was perfect. Delish food, amazingly kind people, fab travel companions and utter beauty everywhere I looked.

Until we meet again, fair India

PS: As a side note, I didn't find anything to be really strange/random/wtf-y while I was on my Indian holiday. I mean having folks follow me around with cameras is not something that I experience on a regular basis, but I'm not going to kid anyone -- I loved the attention.

I did however, immediately notice upon my arrival to Istanbul three airport employees pulling a large plastic bonsai tree on a cart around the Duty Free shopping area. In circles. They passed me four times within the span of 20 minutes, each time with a look of sheer determination upon their faces. And with a small inward chuckle, I noted to myself that it felt good to be home.