Day 313: Kanchipuram

28 September, 2010

Today we made our way to Kanchipuram, a town 75 kms away from Chennai for some consumer work and it was a very lovely experience! A few small things really made me smile throughout the day.

a) There were about 15 of us in the bus with 12 non-Indians. I presented some stuff Indian culture to them and also played the Bollywood video I had prepared for them, which they loved. So I was happy! I also thoroughly enjoyed being the "Indian" expert answering their never-ending questions about India.

b) We visited a village near Kanchipuram to meet the consumers there as well. It was a fascinating tiny settlement with about 25 houses, a couple of temples and lots of farms around. There were a group of boys playing cricket in one open space, a few ladies catching up for afternoon chat in one of the houses and that was about all the action the village had! It was quiet, peaceful and pure. Loved it!

c) The people in Kanchipuram as well as the village were super cute. Especially the ones in the village. They were very simple, warm and friendly. They fussed over us (especially over the foreigners, but they were very nice to me too) - offering us tea and coffee (I had a cup of fantastic home-made filter coffee), posing for pictures, waving to us as we walked past their houses and giving a 1000-watt smile all the time. Most importantly, when you talk to them, you realize that they are the most content people in the world with no complaints whatsoever, absolutely satisfied with what they have. Felt good!

d) It was quite a sight to see the foreigners get "blessings" from the elephants at the Kanchi Kamakshi temple in Kanchipuram. When given a coin, the elephant accepts it and touches the top of the donor with its trunk. Needless to say, foreigners were fascinated.

e) I loved the BIG smiles the construction workers had, with whome we shared all our untouched packed lunch boxes from Chennai. Am not sure how much they like all those sandwiches and Aloo parathas, but they definitely seemed pleased to be the chosen ones for the food.

So yes, it was a very nice day! Really enjoyed it!

687 more to go.