Mysore

schoolgirls in Mysore

typical street scene


at the Maharaja's Palace

getting catty in the Maharaja's garden

man hand-rolling beedis

lady rolling incense sticks (the black stuff is honey-based)

Being in Mysore got me to start thinking, “Whatever you say about India, at least it’s never boring!” Mysore was the home of a dynasty of maharajas, and the architecture of the city gives it an air of faded grandeur. As we’re starting to discover about almost everywhere in India, Mysore is a small town with a big city feel. I guess that’s just how it goes in a country with a population of over a billion people. Whether it’s a big tourist destination or someplace seemingly in the middle of nowhere, the towns here are all chaotic places that never stop moving, and seem to constantly be on the verge of bursting at the seams with people, traffic, animals, sounds and colors. But just when you’re on the verge of overload and need to get out of the crowded streets, you notice something really intriguing (or something that just smells delicious) and you have to move in closer to the thick of it to have a better look.