A few appreciations for India...

India surprises. It really does. Take, for instance, the new law aimed at kerbing smoking that I made brief reference too in my 1st blog entry. Basically, the law is the most sweeping of its kind outside of Bhutan, which forbids even the sale of tobacco. No smoking in any workplace, including bars and cafes, and no smoking in public, which makes being a smoker highly annoying. when I heard about this new law, I was curious to see what effect it would have. Well, word on the ground from locals is that the law is not a joke, and it attacks smoking in the most effective way, by creating a stigma around it. There are still easy ways to flaunt the law, such a standing next to the small street stalls that sell ciggies and paan(tabbaco wrapped in betel leaf) but you can tell the there is a big shift in the way smoking is accepted. I'm acutely interested in it, because as a former smoker and nicotine addict, it's nice to see a developing country change for the better in ways that lots of western countries lag behind. Plus, it keeps me from wanting to take up the habit again, as it would be such a pain in the as to find a secret place to smoke by myself. Stigmatizing it works!
I'm in the temple town of Madurai now, located in the southern part of the state of Tamil Nadu. True to form, I've been everywhere but the main site, an enormous temple complex that draws up to 10,000 pilgrims daily. The town itself is not so terribly interesting, after having been through so many other Indian cities, but it is a nice place for me to pass a few days while waiting to start my yoga retreat about 15 km from the city. Madurai itself has a scruffy, worn feel to it, and the hotels here bear that out. The rule of thumb in India is that the larger the city, the drearier the lodgings. I ended up in a halfway clean place the 1st night here, but around 9 PM a foul odor starting rising from the alleyway that was flush with my room, probably from the sewage pipes that were snaking everywhere and could use a dab of sealant or a washer or two. Small missions can take up vast amounts of time here,and the next days mission was to find a better place. Easier said than done. All the places I checked out were in varying states of decrepitude and mildew growth, and I was seriously considering hitting up the luxury hotel circuit and throwing down $20, when i chanced one last spot, the "Hotel International" and found a pleasant airy room on the 4th floor, complete with cable, western toilet, very clean and comfy, all to the tune of $4 (Room #408). Landing a nice bed changed the complexion of my stay here, and I've been puttering around drinking fresh juice, taking pics and going to a couple of yoga classes at night. There are not many non-Indians floating about, and I haven't spoken with one since I left Pondicherry 5 days past. Which suits me fine for now, as I've had a greater chance to get to know a lot of the Indains here in Madurai. Let me say how glad I am to be in a country the favours the UK english to the US english, as was the case in Korea. From my vantage point, the subtle humor and painstaking politeness and nuance of imperial English is much more amusing. In India, you will run into men of a certain age who, though weathered, clad in a dirty dress (dhoti), and missing a few teeth, will spout out phrases you could see a master at Eton saying. A few nights ago, I was catching a city bus back from a dusty suburb of Madurai to the city center, and the man I just described came up to me and asked if I "required any guidance". I told him no, and we struck up small talk, he asking me what "province I hailed from" and in response to something about Bush, said "the less said, the better"! Oh, the propriety of the empire. Some of the people here just seem like relics of the Raj era by the enunciation and word choice. They're better equipped to speak passable isle English better than I, with my funny non-traceable, garbled, high-pitched whinge.
In general, I have to express the friendliness and and good humour of people in India. Really, a head wobble or cracking a smile will almost always be reciprocated and can defuse any potential misunderstanding, and there is always a solution to any problem you encounter here,and always someone who will go to extraordinary lengths to solve it. Once you are able to take the chaos of traffic and grime in stride, as Indians do, there is such a generous soul to this place and its people .
One last thing before I go. The legendary trains of India. For those of you who have not had the pleasure of boarding one, allow me a moment to extol the virtues of India rail. I had my first train journey this trip a few days ago, and getting back on board left me amazed at what a singular joy riding the rails in India is. The trains are a microcosm of India society at large, though with the advent of domestic air the very posh classes are sitting their powdered bottoms down on Jet Air rather than 1st class AC Rajput Express Jaipur to Bombay. The trains are marvels of ingenuity, cheap as chips, and a great way to watch all of India pass before your eyes. I always travel sleeper, non-AC, 2nd class, which gives you a padded cot to call your own, a breezy barred window (to prevent dacoits, or thieves, from reaching in and plucking your goods out at stops) and an Indian family across from you to speak to at intervals. Not to mention the tea sellers, food sellers, chain sellers, beggars, sweepers, dubious policemen, and other assorted folks that brush past you down the train. It is also a great way to see the Indian countryside pass before your eyes as you sit at the doors at the end of each car, legs dangling over the side, watching brightly sari-clad women heave jugs of water around on their hips and turbaned pruney men bicycle amongst coconut groves.
The internet appears to be on its last legs here, so I'm going t sign off for now. Next blog i'll tell you the inside story of life on the inside of a yoga ashram. Jai guruuuuu deja