Blog 2 is about my trip to visit Freny in Gujarat.
Freny was my Gap Rep when I worked in Manali during my first gap year. She was friend, mentor and sort of like my Indian mum. For family reasons, she moved home to Gujarat shortly before the end of my term, and that worked perfectly for me to be able to arrange a visit; while I haven't got time to get up to Manali, Gujarat is a neighbouring state and so in Indian terms is comparatively nearby.
Having established that Freny had a week off from her Masters studies, I asked Jen to give me an extra half day off so that I'd have time to fly to Vadodara (Baroda), spend a day with Freny, and then return home. This granted, I booked flights which cost me about £80, and arranged for a car to take me to Mumbai airport. Pune does have a domestic airport, but the connection times were rubbish and I wouldn't have been able to fit the trip into the time I had.
So I left Sangam at 11am on the Wednesday, and after a 4 hour car journey, some bureaucratic frustration at the airport, and a lot of sitting around waiting, I boarded a flight that lasted about 40minutes. Freny and her beautiful daughter Shifa were at the airport waiting for me, for which I was grateful as I'd been unable to get in touch via phone to confirm that I was on my way!
We got a rickshaw back to their apartment which is very conveniently located, Freny supplied a lovely dinner of pasta and broccoli (it was like she'd read my mind), and then we spent the evening chatting and catching up, with a film on in the background.
After lunch we did some shopping at some handicrafts centres where I bought various items and spent far too much money, but it was all so lovely. In the evening, Shifa stayed at home to finish her project on First Aid, while Freny and I went out to another gallery, and then to a temple that was designed with elements from 5 different faiths. It was in the military compound and we weren't allowed to take photos, but it was very beautiful. We also stopped off to visit Freny's mum who lives nearby; I had a cup of chai, saw photos of Freny's brother's wedding, and chatted about Sangam and about teaching. When we went home, I went out with Shifa to the local church because she had a rehearsal for a Christmas skit with the youth group. It was nice to get to just sit and chat with her while the others practised their dance.
At home, Freny had made Palak Paneer (spinach and cheese curry) which is one of my favourites - again reading my mind. It was also probably one of the tastiest incarnations of this meal that I've ever had. VERY yummy! I helped Shifa out with the passages she'd been writing, and then got a chance to look at all her paintings. I remember even in Manali she loved art, but the last 3 years at her new school have really helped her progress and she is amazing! All her drawings are different, she's not stuck in one style. I'm so impressed. This is the painting that she's done on her bedroom wall:
TTFN
Freny was my Gap Rep when I worked in Manali during my first gap year. She was friend, mentor and sort of like my Indian mum. For family reasons, she moved home to Gujarat shortly before the end of my term, and that worked perfectly for me to be able to arrange a visit; while I haven't got time to get up to Manali, Gujarat is a neighbouring state and so in Indian terms is comparatively nearby.
Having established that Freny had a week off from her Masters studies, I asked Jen to give me an extra half day off so that I'd have time to fly to Vadodara (Baroda), spend a day with Freny, and then return home. This granted, I booked flights which cost me about £80, and arranged for a car to take me to Mumbai airport. Pune does have a domestic airport, but the connection times were rubbish and I wouldn't have been able to fit the trip into the time I had.
So I left Sangam at 11am on the Wednesday, and after a 4 hour car journey, some bureaucratic frustration at the airport, and a lot of sitting around waiting, I boarded a flight that lasted about 40minutes. Freny and her beautiful daughter Shifa were at the airport waiting for me, for which I was grateful as I'd been unable to get in touch via phone to confirm that I was on my way!
We got a rickshaw back to their apartment which is very conveniently located, Freny supplied a lovely dinner of pasta and broccoli (it was like she'd read my mind), and then we spent the evening chatting and catching up, with a film on in the background.
The next day, they took me to Baroda Museum and Picture Gallery. Shifa toured with me, while Freny went to the university to collect a certificate. She came back empty handed because the queue was so long that she'd have missed our whole day! Shifa and I had great fun looking at all the Indian and Asian things, plus there was an Egyptian mummy, and they also had loads of stuffed animals and horrible squishy things in jars. It was like what I imagine the British Museum to have looked like in the time of Darwin etc!
After Freny rejoined us and we'd done the portrait gallery and seen the skeleton of a Blue Whale, we headed back out into the sunshine, and then to find some lunch. We went to a hotel that served traditional Gujarati Thali (a bit of everything on a large plate with watis - small bowls) so that I could decide how different it was from Maharastrian cuisine. There were differences, certainly - not least the size of the plate, but generally it was pretty similar to the Maha dinner we have at Sangam. Yummy though!
After lunch we did some shopping at some handicrafts centres where I bought various items and spent far too much money, but it was all so lovely. In the evening, Shifa stayed at home to finish her project on First Aid, while Freny and I went out to another gallery, and then to a temple that was designed with elements from 5 different faiths. It was in the military compound and we weren't allowed to take photos, but it was very beautiful. We also stopped off to visit Freny's mum who lives nearby; I had a cup of chai, saw photos of Freny's brother's wedding, and chatted about Sangam and about teaching. When we went home, I went out with Shifa to the local church because she had a rehearsal for a Christmas skit with the youth group. It was nice to get to just sit and chat with her while the others practised their dance.
At home, Freny had made Palak Paneer (spinach and cheese curry) which is one of my favourites - again reading my mind. It was also probably one of the tastiest incarnations of this meal that I've ever had. VERY yummy! I helped Shifa out with the passages she'd been writing, and then got a chance to look at all her paintings. I remember even in Manali she loved art, but the last 3 years at her new school have really helped her progress and she is amazing! All her drawings are different, she's not stuck in one style. I'm so impressed. This is the painting that she's done on her bedroom wall:
Shifa left early the next morning for school; when I got up I had breakfast with Freny and then we headed to the airport. It was a really quick trip, but I'm so glad that I went. It renewed and reframed my relationship with Freny - and with Shifa too - and was really good fun. I definitely need to come back to India for a holiday so I can spend some more time there and discover more of Gujarat as well.
One final thing - instead of a car, I took a bus back from Mumbai to Pune. I was expecting to get a local bus, but ended up finding an a/c tourist coach. Lovely in terms of comfort, but really boring! So to amuse myself, I took some photos of all the trucks that have 'horn ok please' painted on the back. Because Em is planning to create a TShirt design of this and wanted some inspiration. I thought you might like to see a couple, so will insert them below.
TTFN
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