Mt Abu

Did a cooking course here at my hotel last night. 100 rupees (2 dollars), I got to cook 4-5 dishes (fenugreek leaves + potato, mung beans, cauliflower and tomato, fried rice and peas, and chapati) - and then eat them with the family. It was lots of fun, and I'm pretty sure i'll do it again tonight.

I went wandering around town - which, alas, is bit of a tourist trap for Indians (you can rent a boat and paddle around the lake, eat an ice-cream on any street corner, etc). I wandered up to a temple on the hill to read a book and take a nap - Eventually, a group of little street kids showed up - torn clothes and all. One of them, surprisingly enough, went to an english-speaking school - and had a great command of English.

I asked her about the day before - a huge kite festival, and she said that she didn't get to fly one, because she couldn't afford it... This was too much for me, and so I walked her down to the market to buy a kite. By the time we arrived, a few of her friends had latched on, and I ended up buying 4 kites (one for me too)... I never could get mine into the air - but the look in their eyes was great.

Later in the evening, I met 10 americans (the most i've seen on this trip) on a one month trip to India. 1800 bucks so that they could get very drunk (as they were under 21), flirt with each other, and get college credit the whole time.

Oh, how glad I am I never did something like this. What a waste of good money. Plus, most of them hated indian food, and were constantly fretting over Indian toilets (or the lack, thereof).

Silly Americans.