MAY 24, 13 .. PONDICHERRY AND HONG KONG SUPER MARKET

On this trip I found two (2) really quality U.S. caliber Super Markets.  One in Pondicherry and one in Kowloon.

I will start with the one in Pondicherry .. then I will move to the one in Hong Kong.

Do you all kind-of-sort-of vaguely remember the phenomenal (for India) Super Market in Pondicherry .. Tamil Nadu .. Southern India .. called Nilgiris .. pronounced .. Nil - Gree?

Below are four photos of Nilgiris Super Market in 'Pondi' to assist your memories. Sigh!  It seems like I was 'just-here'!

By-the-way .. Nilgiris' Super Market's name is associated with the Nilgiri Hills (Mountains) in the Western part of Tamil Nadu state in Southern India.  

Ring any bells?  OOTY and COONOOR are both located in the Nilgiri mountain region.  Food and produce and dairy products from Bangalore were carried to OOTY and COONOOR to eventually (in the year 1905 I believe) open a Nilgiris Super Market in those cities.

Now moving forward to HONG KONG and specifically to Kowloon across Victoria Harbor from Hong Kong and my visit from May 13th to May 20th.

Below are photos of .. The MARKET PLACE Super Market in Kowloon.  And .. you will see .. it is very comparable to our super markets.

Below you walk under the above sign into the super market .. and the below lady 'scolds' you for 'even-thinking' of snapping a photo!  You shyly apologize .. and 'make-like' you are putting your camera 'away'.  She smiles and turns away and you shoot a photo!  I 'know' her and I can also read minds!  She is thinking .. "I did my job and now I'll look away and you can shoot your photo!" .. "When you get upstairs WATCH OUT and be careful of your photo taking." 

Gullible!  YOU are so naughty teaching me these tricks!

IT REALLY IS up to our U.S. standards!  Much larger than the above Nilgiris Super Market in Pondicherry.

On the very lower bottom right of the below photo you can see the five (5) litre quantity bottles of drinking water. In Hong Kong the five (5) litre bottles of water are the-only-way to purchase your drinking water IF you want to save money. They sell the FIVE (5) litre bottles of water for $18 HK ($2.32 US).  Some stores sell one-and-one-half (1.5 litre) bottles of water for $21 HK ($2.71 US)!  Outrageous huh!

Walk straight ahead in the above photo and see a close-up of that area in the photo below.

It really is a SUPER MARKET !

Joy .. Cap   

MAR 27, 13 .. A LAST WALK IN BHARATI PARK ? IT COULD BE !

Today is TRAVEL DAY for me!  I am scheduled to leave Pondicherry at 11PM this evening on a night-bus for Kodaikanal.  

My usual practice for a TRAVEL DAY is to SCHEDULE NOTHING except getting-ready-to-leave! There always seem to be many items to be finished on any of my Travel Days in order for me to go anyplace!  I am aiming to be at the Parveen Travel Office about 9:30PM a full hour-and-one-half early! The bus to Kodaikanal will depart from the Parveen Travel Office.

I do NOT have-a-clue IF and when I will ever return to 'Pondi'.  At age 76 I can NOT take-for-granted the luxury health-wise of leaving the country for months-on-end as I do.

The below photos could be a last walk through Bharati Park that I share with you.  

I don't plan too much commentary!

The 'Aayi Mandapam' defines Bharati Park!

Any great park has facilities for children!

 On a Wednesday many children are in school.

The children you see are probably with parents who are on vacation!

Whew Huh!  Time for me to get-on-with-the-getting-on and be ready to go this evening!

See you all in Kodaikanal tomorrow! .. Cap ..

Another Post follows this Post so keep 'scrolling down' ..  
  

MAR 27, 13 .. PARANOIA RUNS DEEP !

With this being a TRAVEL DAY .. I don't think this Post will be too long!

One of the MOST STRESSFUL things that I MUST DEAL WITH here in India are the ATM Banking Machines.

Sports Fans .. ALL OF US MUST HAVE MONEY!  No argument on this fact-of-life!

At home it is far less critical because .. for one thing .. I think our banking system and its hardware (the ATMs) are very good.

SO LAST MONDAY .. 

OH NO! YOU DO NOT EVER WAIT TO DO THIS ON A TRAVEL DAY unless you want to risk heart failure! .. I set out to get some cash for my trip tonight.  I had two full days plus .. worst case scenario .. today a third day to get money.

Trust me on this: I know the banks and I know their ATMs here and in every place I stay.  So off I trot to MY first choice local bank. A major bank that I have been using.  I KNOW my card works there.  

The ATM accepted my card and whirled and sputtered and did NOT dispense me any money.  At least the receipt showed Zero funds given.

This has happened quite often .. so undisturbed ..

Off to MY bank number two I 'strolled'.  At this point I was 'strolling' about my ATM business.  

Same scenario!  Bottom line no money.

Well at this point I begin to 'fret' a little. Has something happened to my ATM Card?  

Off to MY bank number three I trot.  'Strolling' just went-by-the-wayside!  

Same exact precise identical scenario!  NO MONEY!

By now the palms-of-my-hands are getting a little 'sweaty'!  I have gone to THREE known-to-me banks that have accepted my ATM card and dispensed money during the past month.

I am always very careful to use several banks to establish my ATM card in any location.

MY PARANOIA is rising!  Has the All-India ATM Banking System GONE DOWN!  Has my ATM card been rendered null-and-void.

'Zilla I have four (4) count-them different ATM cards with me on the trip!

So now I am standing at a fourth ATM machine.  It is only Monday .. and too early to get really upset BUT I am kind-of-sort-of-upset!  I do NOT like this 'drama'.

Strike Four Captain!  No money. And I have tried the four banks that are in-the-vicinity of my Guest House.  All banks that I have done ATM transactions with!  And frankly I do NOT know of another bank in my area.

I have now put about thirty minutes into this adventure and it is hot and I am hot. And I start walking .. looking for another ATM. After about ten minutes of wandering-in-search-of-another ATM .. I spot an elderly and very respectable-professional-looking gentleman! 

"Sir could you direct me to an ATM?" 

He smiles and says .. "Go up to M.G. (Mahatma Gandi) Road .. turn right .. go two blocks .. on the left side of M.G. Road will be two ATMs side-by-side on a street corner."

I do!  'MY MAN' was SPOT-ON!

There they both are!  Two major banks on-the-corner!  

Good.  HDFC looks good with an armed guard attendant sitting inside of a very well air conditioned ATM lobby.  Out comes 10,000 Rs Indian money!

GO HDFC BANK!

I immediately went 'next door' to the Karnataka bank.  No guard but very good air conditioning! 

Out comes 5,000 Rs Indian money!  I am so happy that I go right-back-to-the-well for an additional 2,000 Rs Indian money!

For now .. for last Monday .. end-of-crisis .. Oh Yes!  The next crisis awaits me somewhere up the road.

'Zilla I try to ALWAYS keep a reserve-on-hand of 5,000 Rs Indian cash.

Last February of 2012 .. an ATM dispensed to me 10,000 Rs Indian money and INSTANTLY WITHDREW MY MONEY BACK INSIDE THE ATM MACHINE.  That ATM machine was adjacent to / and owned by a bank with a full-office beside its ATM.

So I went into their office and was told ..

"We don't service the ATM!  You must telephone your own bank!"

"My bank is in the United States!"

"You must telephone your own bank!"

I telephoned Patti .. Patti telephoned Charles Schwab Bank ..

WITHIN TWELVE-COUNT-THEM-MINUTES I was called in India on my cell phone by a Charles Schwab Bank representative and told that .. "This happens all the time!  Don' worry!  We will take care of it!"

THEY DID!

Many ATM machines (below is a photo of one of them) are free-standing with NO bank branch attached.   I tend to shy-away from these free-standing ATMs!

With my respects to the little fellow above .. would YOU use him!

Sports Fans .. forgive me .. I am getting more-than-a-little paranoid about India's ATMs!

WHEW!  WHEW AGAIN!  So much for a 'short Post'!

Well you all got to see some photographs of Banks!

Time to get serious about packing. Smiles .. Cap ..

Enough Banking!  Scroll Down for your Daily Salad!

MAR 26, 13 .. SACRED HEART OF JESUS BASILICA .. HOLY WEEK ..

Last February 28th I posted three photos of this colorful Basilica! 

During this 'Holy Week' I wanted to re-visit it!

In the below photo .. immediately on either side of the main entrance .. you will see two tall rectangular information plaques.

Two photos down I have posted close-up photos of each of them. 

What nice sentiments are expressed below! 

For some reason .. maybe because the church is so very colorful and bursting-with-life! .. I mistakenly thought it was a 'new' church. 

NOT THE CASE AT ALL! 

Read below all of its credentials!  1st Basilica in Pondicherry!  I was astounded!

Off to the right side of the Basilica are the below buildings.

Its towers reach-to-the-heavens-above against a pleasant blue sky!

If I should return to 'Pondi', I will plan to attend a service in this most attractive and inviting Basilica!

MAR 25, 13 .. PONDICHERRY'S RAILWAY STATION ..

Pondicherry does indeed have a railway station.  It is a small station but quite comfortable with all of the necessary facilities.

Will you all just look at how clean and pleasant it appears.  Even the colors blend nicely!

Catch the 'Oreo Cookie' advertising all over the grounds!

Time to step inside to the small but functional waiting room and reservation / ticket counter!

Notice how clean it is!  Spotless! 

And what would the railway station be without a railway train?

Many of the 'schedules' are one-day-a-week!  The train from 'Pondi' to Mysore leaves at 11PM on Thursdays only.  

To get to Mysore and then to Ooty .. I opted to go North to Chennai and then West to Mysore because trains will run from Chennai to Mysore daily or more-often .. two or perhaps three trains a day. If problems were to arise .. I have a lot more options out of Chennai!  

MAR 25, 13 .. PONDICHERRY'S MAIN BUS STAND ..

Here are some photos of 'Pondi's' main bus stand.

If these photos were a 'video' you would see constant movement!  Below I see nine buses moving!

In the below photo six buses are moving and jockeying for exit position!

And the photo below looks to the far right of the above photo.  

Somehow they all get out and on-their-way!

'Zilla wants to know .. "Cap .. How did you get-up-in-the-air to shoot the above photos?"

What a great question 'Zilla!

In front of the main bus stand is a major boulevard separated by a median barrier of concrete sections.  To cross this boulevard is an elevated walk-over.  So I got up onto the walk-over and from it .. shot down the above photos of the main bus stand!

  
The main bus stand is to the left of the above photo. Study the left side of the walk-over and you will see two ramps down to street level.  I shot my photos from these two ramps.

"Lastly 'Zilla?" .. "No .. few people use the walk-over!  They jay-walk this incredibly busy road stepping over and between the concrete median barrier sections!"

"One more 'Zilla?" .. "Me?  To take the above photos was the first time ever that I have gotten onto the elevated walk-over!"