We have many pictures for you all and I hope we have a chance to put some of them here for you to see. If not, we will have “Indian Night” at our house very soon – Indian cuisine followed by an animated tour of our slideshow. Only text from me in the meantime:
We all met up in Mumbai on the first day and made it to Pune the next day. We have been here for two days now. We are expecting to leave for Goa tomorrow. Goa is a small state in India, approximately the size of Los Angeles including all of its suburbs. We will put the two Bulls on the train and move south.
Two days ago Ryan and I were reunited with our Bulls. (the local popular slang for a Bullet is “Bull”) We have spent the last couple of days polishing up not only the bikes, but our riding skills. This is a very difficult place to navigate. Not only does one have to worry about bike and possibly rider, but traffic. There are rules to riding the streets of India, and they are NOTHING like the rules we have in Portland, Oregon, or anywhere else in the United States! For instance, if there is an barrier in the middle of the street, and you want to go the direction of the traffic on the other side of the barrier, it is okay to go opposing traffic until a break in the barrier is seen, at which point the rider finds a suitable lull in the opposing traffic and makes a dash for the hole in the barrier. Once there, the rider will rev up and hope to fit into normal traffic flow. Phew!!
We really are having a ton of fun though. It is very hot – approaching 40 degrees celsius. We are drinking a lot of water. Maia is not feeling very well today. She was up in the middle of the night running back and forth to the toilet. Everyone felt very bad for her. She is being pampered appropriately today.
On the cuisine front, I would highly recommend the Garfunkel Special for 45 Indian Rupees (about $1.05) at the Shiv Sagar vegetarian restaurant, Pune. A luxurious combination of green and white ice cream (I couldn’t distinguish a difference in flavor, only in color and texture – the green had chunks of nuts in it) surrounded by banana slices and topped with dried fruit. The final topping is what really gives it that Garfunkel flair though: edible silver papery stuff! Yes, that’s right, you can eat the silver film on top! I hope someone got a picture of it. It may be some time before I am deserving of such a decadent treat again.
Food sounds devine. Would be fun to see you all riding for the first time again.
Maia hope you are feeling better soon.