On our way to the temple . . . we couldn't take photos when we got inside
Sadly, we left Auroville, heading for Madurai, still in the province Tamil Nadu. It was a big city - this time my parents warned me before hand - and, really, the only reason we were going to it was to see this really awesome temple, made up of four towers - North, South, East, West. The bus ride was long. Sure, it's a good way of transportation, but if you're not ready for the worst, figure out a different way. Buses aren't too bad, but local buses + long distances = no fun. Anyway, we got to Madurai and arranged a decent hotel - not one I would go to again, but all the other places were full. In the morning we walked to the temple. The temple is called Sri Meenakshi Amman - one of the greatest temples in India - named after a Hindu Goddess. It was quite amazing, with tiny details hidden amongst the carvings decorating the walls, inside and out. There are . . .
a thousand pillars holding the temple's maze up, each of them carved into a God or Goddess! It took the many sculptors 40 years to build it! You'd have to be REALLY dedicated to stick to one project that long. Anyhow, we had to go through a major security system which probably means they've had problems with that kinda thing in the past. We also had to take off our shoes to go inside, which wasn't so much of a surprise. Inside the first hall (remember that these 'halls' are as big as ballrooms) was filled with vendors and shops. That was surprising, since usually temples are very sacred places. We discovered later that there was a certain 'hall' where 'foreigners' couldn't go into. The people who come for religious reasons go to that 'hall', so pretty much they don't want tourists hanging around. My favourite thing was the lotus flowers on the ceiling - each were different shapes and colours. We walked around a little, but yet again, my sickness showed up. We went back to the hotel and I was very relieved.
In front of the Ganhi Museum
The same day as the Sri Meenakshi Amman temple, we went to the Gandhi Museum, only when I felt better. Gandhi is a very respected person who brought realization to Indian people that the British people weren't treating them well, and taking over their country. I guess they knew that before he came, but they had no power to fight against the British and he lead them to a peaceful way of showing the British that this was their country and they had to be treated like people, not aliens. Me and Mom took a long time reading the big boards that made up the reading part of the museum. I didn't understand anything when I read it to myself but Mom read them out loud. A lot of adults stopped by to listen, and my guess is that they couldn't read it. I didn't understand why they would come if they couldn't read, but later on found out that today was a celebration of Gandhi. Anyhow, the beginning of all the boards were about how much the Indians suffered, and how they were treated. Then Birch and Dad came to make us hurry up, just when we'd gotten to the part where Gandhi arrives in India. We rushed through the rest, but the most interesting thing I learned was called the Salt Walk. Gandhi started off with 40 people following him, and ended with 10 thousand! They walked 200 miles to a salt plantation and each picked up a handful of salt (I don't know if that's possible - it just showed them doing that in a picture). Apparently they hadn't been able to eat salt with anything.
That night we went to a roof-top restaurant. Back in Canada we have roof-top restaurants, but they all have a roof over them. This one was totally open-air. The stars would've been shining brightly overhead if it hadn't been for the smog. They had Christmas lights hung all over, giving it a happy and relaxed atmosphere. Not to mention the butter chicken! Talk about heavenly! It was actually BUTTERY, not just spicy, but both! It was so good, especially with butter naan. The view from the roof was amazing too, and lots of fireworks went off.
-Allie
That night we went to a roof-top restaurant. Back in Canada we have roof-top restaurants, but they all have a roof over them. This one was totally open-air. The stars would've been shining brightly overhead if it hadn't been for the smog. They had Christmas lights hung all over, giving it a happy and relaxed atmosphere. Not to mention the butter chicken! Talk about heavenly! It was actually BUTTERY, not just spicy, but both! It was so good, especially with butter naan. The view from the roof was amazing too, and lots of fireworks went off.
-Allie
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