Awoke at 6a and chatted with Michelle via FaceTime after my shower. Met Lynneth for breakfast (Nikola had already headed to the office) and traveled with her to SAS. I got much better pictures of the trip this time!
Everywhere you look there are painted murals and decorations
Auto-rickshaw
Light traffic of bikes and cars
Roadside stand in Pune
Seasons Mall at the entrance to Magarpatta City with store signs all over the exterior
Dawn at the office, amazing trees!
Lynneth in front of the office
Anshul and I had a very productive morning. Around 1p or so he, Nirjhar, and I headed out to eat off-campus. Anshul drove us to a nearby mall (complete with the same security found at the hotel) called Amanora Town Centre. The mall had KFC, Dunkin’ Donuts, etc. but thankfully (I can, and choose not to, eat that stuff at home) we ate at a restaurant called Rajdhani. It was really great. Waiters bring by various sauces, breads to use for dipping and scooping, and other food to the table and place them in a series of pewter bowls on a large silver tray. Also interesting is that a platter and bronze pitcher was brought to the table for us to wash our hands. It was amazingly tasty, particularly the curry and also this fried crispy noodle with a juicy sweetness to it. I also had an interesting fruity custard-based drink.
Amanora Town Centre promenade near the office
No, I did not leave hungry! Amazing food
Lunch with Anshul and Nirjhar at Rajdhani
After lunch we headed to a small stand beside the road that sells single cigarettes (lit via a lighter on a dangling string) and these wonderful cappuccino candies called Kopiko. Two men smoking beside their scooters looked at where my camera was pointing thinking there was something interesting going on over there — nope, just a dumb tourist taking pictures of a stand of palm trees!
Banyan tree
Roadside stand with wonderful coffee candies!
Stand of palms, love the red and white corrugated metal fence
Headed back to the office and worked hard until dinner time at 5:30p. Ravindra, Anshul, and I (briefly accompanied by Anshul’s wife as she needed a ride home) headed to a really tasty restaurant called Malaka Spice, passing by some cows being herded through the streets. We dined outside where there were lovely Diwali lanterns hanging from the trees and a fountain. We happened to sit next to Lynneth and Nikola as well, and got pictures of all of us together.
Pune street scene
Courtyard at Malaka Spice
Dinner with Anshul and Ravindra
Diwali lanterns at Malaka Spice
We started with appetizers — lamb chops that were to die for, fried chicken dumplings, and chicken fried on a sugar cane stalk. I had noodles, rice, and chicken curry that was amazing. I drank water and a local beer called Kingfisher. We chatted about family, TV shows and movies, and a little office talk as well.
Ravindra caught a cab home and Anshul snapped a photo of me on a trike. He dropped me off at the Westin, along the way seeing a lady riding side-saddle on a bike behind a man with perfect balance. Turned in after a bit of work at 1a.
Bicycle, bicycle, I want to ride my bicycle…
Now THAT’s balance!