Chennai, India

We arrived in Chennai on March 11^th to the dirtiest port we had been to all voyage.  It was a long walk to get out of the port and since immigration was at the end of the port, we couldn’t take a taxi directly from the ship nor could we take a taxi all the way back to the ship.  This meant that we had to walk along a dirty, polluted road with loud trucks every time we entered or exited the ship.  Luckily we were only in this port for one night. 

We spent our first day at a marketplace called Spencer’s Plaza that was recommended to me by Vichram, the inter-port student.  We took a rickshaw to the market and once again witnessed some insane driving.  By now, I’m kind of used to driving into oncoming traffic.  (I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.)  It seems that everywhere we go the driving gets worse and worse.  In India there are cars, taxis, motorbikes, and rickshaws.  Taking a rickshaw allowed us to see (and smell) everything we passed along the way.  We noticed women riding side-saddle on motorbikes, which we later realized is because they can’t sit facing forward in their long dresses and saris.  We saw men riding with other men and holding onto each other’s waists and shoulders.  We also noticed men walking across the street with other men holding hands.  (We learned in Global Studies that it is very common for men to show other men affection.)

At the marketplace, we did a lot of shopping.  Instead of the fake designer stuff we had seen in China and Vietnam, India had beautiful handmade clothing, artwork, and jewelry that were all so unique.  Once again we had fun bargaining.  However, we were disappointed to learn that India is not nearly as cheap as Vietnam or China so we were definitely paying for the better quality.  Another difference about India is that almost everyone speaks English so it is much easier to communicate.

After shopping, we had a delicious vegetarian lunch at Hotel Saravana Bhavan, another recommendation from Vichram.  I knew it was a chain but I assumed it was an actual hotel so I was quite surprised when I saw it in the food court of the mall.  (Apparently a lot of places have the word Hotel in their name but are not actually hotels… confusing.)  Either way, the food was really good and I was relieved not to have to question whether or not there was meat in the meal.  I admit, however, that it was initially hard not be grossed out by the way people were eating with their hands.  To me, it is much different eating a cheese burger or pizza with your hands than it is to eat rice and various sauces with your hands since the latter usually involves your hands getting in your mouth.  I did notice there were “hand wash” stations in the restaurants, which was comforting.  During our meal I was introduced to sideways, figure eight, head bobble—the gesture for “yes” in India.  Instead of nodding like we do, they tilt their head side to side a few times.  It is similar to the gesture we make for “I don’t know” so you can imagine how confusing this could get.  But after a week, we found ourselves head bobbling right back at them. 

Later that night we went to the Park Hotel for drinks.  We learned that there is not much nightlife in India and the only places to go out are inside hotels.  Not only did the hotel have a really nice bar but they also had a disco club called Pasha.  We got there kind of early (since everything closes at midnight and you need to get a cab back by 11:45) so we were the only people there for a while.  None of us minded though since they had the most comfortable couches I’d ever sat on.  I understand it is a club and a lounge, but these couches literally made you want to fall asleep.  Luckily some of our other friends came so we were able to pull ourselves away from the mounds of pillows and get in a few dances before heading back to the ship.