After our late start this morning, probably because we went into KFC comas last night (Thanks Satyam!), we drove about a half an hour out of the town and round and round and up a mountain to the same small Hindu temple we visited last time. Technically, the driver drove because when you rent a car here it comes with a driver but one thing it doesn't come with are seatbelts! Just a free for all in that suv. No road rules other than constant horn honking and no way to restrain our chicken-filled bodies in the event of an accident. I must say I disapprove of this set up. Now Mondays are the most popular day for this god so it was very busy at this temple. The weather was glorious as always and we got to see some really interesting stuff on our drive but it's always too late to get a picture. Unless we ask the driver to stop and go back a bit which we (I) only did three times. I don't remember seeing any monkeys last time but maybe they know that Mondays is good eatin' so they pencil in a weekly date.
I want those flowers to grow in my front yard.
Water buffalo taking a bath. Lucky ducks!
Typically monkey behaviour.
Raja and the kids drinking pop but apparently the glass bottles were for give-backsies, not keepsies.
Maya posing.
A statue.
Maya
My baby, Vera, swinging like she was born for this moment.
Finally, a swing for my little girl!
The other children needed pushes because they've not been training for this moment their whole lives.
Teja on a..... I'm going to say whirly-bird.
Indeed! But I prefer dull and colourless after all the monkey crap I had to step over today.
What this playground lacks in safety, it more than makes up for in bright coloured paint!
Ammon wanted his picture taken up there but was too smart to ride down the rusty metal in the blazing sun.
Promise not to fall, girls!
These guys ran around the park the whole time too. A small one ran off with an empty water bottle. To do what with it, I'll never know.
Me
Raja and Vera
That chair is for the zip line that is still out of order four years later. Fine by me!
"I'll just show myself out. "
Lots of beggars outside the temple.
Ammon is giving each of them a 10 Rs bill.
I think a couple came back for seconds. ;)
He just kept passing then out.
The monkeys were so naughty. I saw one try to grab food out of a little boy's hand so he pity put it behind his back and a different monkey snatched it.
This massive jerk stole that from a grown man by grabbing his pants and ripping into the guy's bag of food. He ran off to eat it but then stuck it in his mouth and tried to go steal from that guy again.
They tormented anyone who had food.
I didn't get the forehead powder because my sunglasses would've smeared it all over. Thomas Jay can't see without his glasses.
Muslims also come to the Hindu temple.
New couples kiss a piece of fabric and your it to this tree and pray for their marriage and future children.
Ammon with a god statue. The praying people didn't seem to mind the touristy vibe we brought. A family asked Raja to tell me to pose with their kids for a picture. I'm famous!
Me again
Raja hydrating. This is how everyone drinks here. When I first met Raja I thought he was just doing it for fun and then we came here and I noticed this quirk is actually quite common- about a billion times over. My kids say "Watch me drink like an Indian! " and proceed to cough and splutter and spill.
Maya and Teja
Vera drinking "like a Canadian".
Little rock piles. So many religious practices that I have zero interest in learning about. Sorry.
The "good" monkeys are kept here to scare off the bad ones. Except they were chained and dozing while the bad ones rampaged.
Colourful
Little buggers.
Ready to pounce on whomever they please. The trick is to not carry food in the telltale blue bags that the monkeys have come to know and love and target.
Raja
Raja, Maya , Teja
This guy stopped to show us his bullock and when Raja tried to offer him money, he said he wanted five times more them what was offered. So Raja gave him a steaming cup of jack squat because homie don't play that.
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