Indian Samurai इंडियन सामुराई

 You were asking for it, IndianSamourai did it! Pedro, the return… 

My mission today was to purchase some kind of LED lamp. I waited a few minutes at the hardware store while the guy made a few phone calls asking around who would have stock. Meanwhile Pedro – who works there – was smiling at me and showing pictures of my cat on his phone to everyone around! Once I had enough, I asked for the material to be sent at home. Yep, in India you can get anything delivered at your door step! 

 

When Pedro arrived he offered to test the LED. I was first tempted to cut the scene short and get back to my movie. After all I trusted him! I supposed he had tried it before coming didn’t he?? But just to be sure I agreed and BAM. The adapter was missing... Note to myself: always test the goods before purchasing them! 

 

I took the opportunity of Pedro’s presence to ask a question regarding the living room fan. Since my brother left and I returned to the living room, for a month it is, I have spent most of my evenings with my eyes riveted to the fan, wondering if it will ever speed up. Though the speed was on maximum, it had not been making much wind. And I had a good reason for not having called Pedro yet: the fan worked. Not very well but it worked. And if I gave it to an Indian, there was a chance it would work better but there was a greater chance it would not work at all. It seems like we have a trust issue here! And yet I speak from experience… 

 

In Mumbai, you can’t live without the fan; you can’t breathe without the fan. It helps for the heat and the mosquitoes. A drug. The fan is your best friend until the day he decides to make itself heard and starts to make some TAC-TAC noise. If he continues after you give him a few BANG, your only option is to turn it off and sweat in silence! It is impossible. This TAC-TAC is some kind of sheer Japanese torture I tell you. 

 

And then sometimes the fan goes TIC-TIC. TIC-TIC is manageable with ear-plugs.  

That’s how I have been managing for weeks, waking up early every morning to the sound of TIC-TIC (which comes when the fan is warm), putting my earplugs on, going back to sleep, and finding it impossible to wake up later on on time for work...  

But well, Pedro was there... So while we were at it, I entrusted his (expert?) hands with two of my fans! My bedroom fan thus ended up in pieces and as one again.

 

Results of the game: my living room fan is now going full speed and the bedroom fan continues with its TIC-TIC. Not so bad!

 

I just read Delirious Delhi by Dave Prager who released this book after the success of his blog (ourdelhistruggle.com) about his adventures for 18 months in Delhi.

 

A urban tale that describes Delhi by combining personal experiences and research: the structure of the city, transportation, weather, tips about food (and man is he a foody!), hospitals, peons in offices, rickshaw and taxi drivers etc.

 

Delicious!

Very funny, very humble, very optimistic, very informative also.

It's very personal, but I could completely relate with my own adventure in Delhi.

 

Some pictures from my flat in Khar, Mumbai (including Janmashtami (Krishna day) and monsoon skies):

Khar, Mumbai - 2013

 

And Bhushi dam in Lonavala, Maharashtra:

 

A funny place to wait for the bus!