Lonely Planet Sheds Light

I recently purchased Lonely Planet’s India edition. A quick read through yielded some interesting findings. Hopefully the following highlights will be worthy of their own blog post once experienced firsthand. I’ve separated them out into three categories:

Pack up my bags and get me to Bangalore ASAP

• In Bangalore, “Beer starts… at RS 90 (US$2) for a pint… but prices drop during happy hour, which usually runs until 6pm.”
This is good on two levels. A) beer for $2 beats beer for $6 in DC. B) Happy hour running until 6pm must mean that people get off of work by 4 (assuming bars give you at least 2 hours from the end of the work day to be happy).

• “It is the heavenly aroma of cooking spices, the juice of exotic fruits running down your chin and rich, fiery curries that will make your taste buds stand to attention.”
Pasta six nights a week and an occasional slice of Alberto’s are fine enough, but we all know that I love me some spice. I’m thoroughly looking forward to the seismic shift I’m about to experience when it comes to the available cuisine. I’m looking less forward to the seismic shift that it will likely cause on a daily basis in my stomach.

Can this fellowship be done offsite? Say, from Washington, DC?

• “Bars shut at a sadly early 11:30 pm.”
What?!? I guess I’ll have to introduce Bangalore to the after party.

• “Goat is one of the most commonly eaten meats.”
Bahhhh…Bahhhh. Lauren, you thankfully have prepared me well for a life of vegetarianism if goat seems to be the only available animal to eat. By the way, the Bahhh was my attempt to spell out the sound that goats make, in case you weren’t sure.

Not sure which category this fits in

• “Karaga (held in March/April) is a festival that honors the goddess Draupadi, and is held at Dharmaraya Swamy Temple. It’s a colorful procession that is led by a cross-dressed priest and accompanied by half-naked swordsmen. Their visit to the tomb of a Muslim saint has come to signify Hindu-Muslim solidarity.”
In D.C., we have something very similar known as the annual “Drag Race” down 17th street.