India - day 1

After n hours of flights, I arrive at Hyderabad where Tom (Thomas Holloway, 80ish british gentelman and ex-hippie) is there to greet me, as promised. We take a taxi back to his apartment during which I find out he is an liberal leftist and that the caste system is still strongly in place in india, among other things.. Through the windows of the taxi I get my first glimpses of Hyderabad - which has something of a soviet feel to it, to be honest. After I toss my bags, we go to change money - on his scooter, which he drives through the traffic in a SCARY kind of way... but in a good kind of scary way, something I get used to after the first trip already. Money changer is on the second floor of some building in a small allyway.. but Tom ensures me that in india, you cannot judge the success of a company by its looks.

We get back to the apartment and I unpack my bass and start practicing. Pretty soon, however, I am interrupted by what Tom calls the "gang" or his 4 assistants - two of whom study IT and the two others study psychology. I also meet David, who is spending his Gap Year (british tradition) in India doing charity. It turns out he learned to play the drums but has also learned guitar and piano when younger.. and is going to study Law after the gap. We spend the evening before the meal, Tom reading a book, David playing with the computer and me practicing bass. For the meal, the gang again shows up.

We eat rice and dahl with eggs and very greasy but good pancakes. However, the eating habits here suggest one eat with his right hand (without any utensils). This takes some time getting used to (especially considering the food is hot) and is not as easy as it might first seem :)

After the meal, I go to one of the neighbours to lend a book for evening reading. I decide for "The Thief of Time" from the discworld series, although the lady also has a sizeable collection of science fiction. David, Alex (his friend) and I then bring in the bed we lent from one of the neighbours earlier. I then sit on the sofa that got displaced to the balcony, enjoying the warm summery air.

I have a good feeling about all this. Although Tom will probably have me working fixing the computers (and growing onions and potatoes:P), it seems quite likely I will be able to rest and relax here:)