But wait..there's more.

A couple of weeks ago, I made the very impulsive purchase of a motorcycle. Brand new Bajaj CT-100...green. The impulse was motivated by a few different reasons, the main one being the lack of transportation where I live and the complete hatred of rickshaw drivers as the only reliable (and this causes me to laugh at the irony of using that word in this context) mode of transport. The other reason for this impulse, other than motorbikes being incredibly fun, is that I was spending quite a bit of time on the back of one, and decided it was time to take wheel (or handles in this case)



Hugo (burly French Canadian in the picture above) has been one of my nicest surpises while in India.He has been traveling around India, and volunteering with computer organizations, and our paths happened to cross one evening. It's been a short time since we've known one another, but I'm looking forward to getting to know him more. What can I say? I'm an incredibly patriotic woman to my country.




A couple of days ago, we took our bikes to a place called Nandi Hills, where I practiced climbing up and coasting down winding lanes. I should mention that before I got this bike, I had no idea of gears, clutches, two-wheelers....but a week of early morning driving, and some tips from seasoned riders, and I feel like I've been doing this forever. I suspect it has something to do with all the racing games I played on Nintendo as a kid. Thanks again, Mom and Dad.

It took 7 months...but I finally saw a tiger in India....actually about 10 of them. Recently went to a place called Bannerghatta Park....a zoo, but also a reserve for tigers and lions. They are very used to humans, so our bus was able to pull right up next to them for some great photo ops...incredibly beautiful.

Some good art and music times as well...jamming with the boys and Fab as a sit in guitarist...doing Holler songs in a Bangalore basement....and my friend, and colleague at school had an art show at the local art college. It was incredible successful...those are Devaki's paintings in the background.

And now for the good news....I will be having my first art exhibition, and it will be taking place right here in Bangalore on Sunday. To see the advertisement, click on this link. www.opusbangalore.blogspot.com I will post more pictures after the opening event...Thanks mom for all those weekends doing arts and crafts...it finally paid off!

Backtracking....

This last weekend gave us an extra day with the holiday known as Ugadi. Not sure what the holiday is about, but its a religious one, and I paid homage to the gods of the beach, booze and relaxation. Andrea , Fab and I took off to Mahaballipuram..a place that I had previously gone during the Diwali break. It was hot as hell (over 40 degrees celcius) but the pool and ocean helped with the heat immensely. As well, friends from Toronto, Ananda and Jose are travelling in India and happened to meet up with us for the weekend. We drank "French" wine, Tamil Nadu beer, ate lots of seafood, rode around on mopeds, swapped books and generally caught up by the pool. It was lovely...thanks again for the good company guys!

The best part of the trip was that I was able to visit the small studio of two Rajasthani artists whose art work was the inspiration for my monochromatic jazz portraits. I had seen their artwork when I was in Maha the first time, fell in love with it and tried the watercolour technique with the Thelonius Monk portrait almost immediately after I got back. This time, I spoke with them about their technique and their painting history. It was very interesting, and I left with two paintings and some photographs.

Guess who's in town?

So...a few days ago Fabio (former member of Miss Holler & The Blue Callers) arrived from Toronto...new to India, straight from the cold, and without luggage. Welcome to India! But, of course, everything worked out and we've been having a fun time being tourists in Big Bad Bangalore.This weekend, we're taking a trip to the ocean with some friends and I'm sure they'll be pictures to share, but for now, here are some pictures of a place called City Market and Chickpet. I hadn't been to either of those places, but, having a friend visit will turn you into an explorer. City Market and Chickpet are places in the middle of Bangalore that are produce and goods markets. It's a good way to get a snapshot of India and realize the mass population of India. Something one can forget in Yehalanka. My favorite part was the flower market in this building that actually reminded me of the St. Lawerence market structure, but I couldn't find the crepe stand or polish sausages!

School's fun...Here's why...

This past week we had a multicultural caravan type thing...us being an international school and all. It was pretty amazing with food, clothes and games for each culture at our school (actually, not all were represented). But, those who have been at the school for a while anticipate this event and the parents really go all out to decorate and adorn their booths. Take a look at some of them. I still like the Canadian one best, partly cause i helped decorate it, and partyly cause we served poutine, pancakes and maple syrup, and polar bear shaped shortbread. Representin'!