Some quirky things about India

It was my first time in India. I was on a business trip in Hyderabad, and didn't have a lot of time to travel around, but I have been able to notice some funny differences:

1. Cars play music (sounds kinda like a midi file) when they go in reverse. Apparently, people pay a lot of money for this feature.
   
2. People really do carry cargo on their heads (bundles of wood, jugs of water, bags of stuff).
   
3. Even the fanciest buildings have piles of rubble in front of them. Imagine an upscale mall or restaurant where the sidewalk in front is completely torn up.
   
4. The bus doesn't come to a complete stop when picking up and dropping off passengers. It sort of slows to a roll while people jump on and off. Sometimes you have to get a running start to hop on.
   
5. A 4-person rickshaw can really fit 9 people.
   
6. A moped can really seat a family of 4.
7. Cows really can do whatever they want (like hang out in the middle of the road, and everyone has to go around them).
   

In an unrelated picture, people sell delicious-looking fruit everywhere, but us weenie white people can't eat it because we'll get sick because we're not accustomed to the different bacteria in India. So hard to resist all the awesome-looking (and super cheap) fruits!


Seriously, India was awesome, the food was delicious, and the people were really friendly. I would highly recommend it (but definitely bring a stash of Cipro, just in case - I needed it).

Sao Paulo is the San Jose of Brazil

Last month, I spent 2 weeks in Sao Paulo for work. While the trip was all work and no play, I did learn a few things about Brazil:

1. No, people do not run around everywhere in bikinis and thongs. Stop asking me for hot pics.
   
2. Cheese can be barbequed.
   
3. It's apparently safer to run a red light at night than to stop at the intersection and wait for it to turn green.
   

To help you understand why I did not return with a tan, this is what I saw most days:



Also, I finally went to the beach on my last day in Brazil, but it started pouring rain right after I got there. Apparently I have special powers that bring epic rains to any coastal region that I visit. There's gotta be a way to make a career out of that. I'm still working out the details.

Resisting temptation

I know it's bad to complain about too much of a good thing, but look at what I have to deal with at work! After lunch, they put out all the left-over desserts in the kitchen in my area. Check out today's very large array:


How am I supposed to protect my waistline from this onslaught of deliciousness?

Dieter? Hans?

So, I went to Germany last week to visit a certain someone. Unfortunately, I was too busy being lazy to really take any pictures, although I did snap a couple in Amsterdam while we were there. Click on the "My Photos" link to the right if you're interested.

What can I say - it rains a lot in Germany, the cars are small, and the land is generally pretty flat. There may have been some romance going on. I would tell you more, but really it's none of your damn beeswax, is it?

The tomatoes are attacking

This is what I came home to after only being gone for one week! I've never seen a tomato plant this large in my life. And believe me, I've seen a lot of tomato plants in my day.

They're taller than me! What the hell kind of crazy radioactive soil do I have in my backyard that is making this happen?!

(Oh, and apologies for the outfit - I was in my workout clothes...)

Tomatoes of unusual size

Is this normal? I planted these two tomato plants about a month ago and they are now freakishly large. I went outside to water them yesterday and was shocked and awed by how large they have become. I had to take a picture for posterity, with myself as a height comparison. These babies come up to my waist!


Our neighbor planted the same tomato seedlings in her front yard, and hers barely come up to my knee. Perhaps the soil in my backyard is extra nutritious from all the bamboo roots that are left over from the bamboo debacle? Perhaps it is my mad watering skills? In any case, I will probably be having tomato parties later in the summer to get rid of the bounty that these plants are sure to put forth. That is, if they don't take over our whole house, jumanji style, first.

Land o lakes

My last two weekends have been devoted to lake funtime. Two weekends ago (the one that was so hot that I thought the Rapture had come), I escaped the heat by heading up to an alpine lake about 7000 feet high up in the mountains. I'm not going to tell you where this lake is because it was already crowded enough there, and I don't want any more people "discovering" it. Dammit people, stay out of my unspoiled wilderness! Here, you can see why:



Anyway, even up at 7000 feet, it was still a toasty 87 degrees, but the water was mighty fine. I went with a friend whose name will also not be revealed because I don't want to share him with all y'all either. That's just the greedy kind of girl I am. Anyway, what is it about swimming in a lake that is so freakin nice? I absolutely love it. I get that dumbass dreamy look on my face and don't have a care in the world and all that crap.

Turned out that the next weekend was the big houseboating weekend that some friends had been planning for a while. So I drove up to Shasta Lake on Friday afternoon with Shantal and another girl. This lake experience was a bit different, as it involved 12 people on a houseboat with a hot tub, a water slide, ridiculous amounts of food and drink, an enormous stereo system, and a full-fledged flip cup competition on the second night. Which of course my team (me and two other girls) won. Let me tell you, the guys on that boat were put to shame. Here's the deck where the magic happened:



I think we're going to make this an annual event. And hopefully an annual flip cup ass-whupping. So let me know if you want to come along. On the Shasta trip only - you don't get to come to the other lake.