Trying to steal my bag.

But don't worry.  I followed them all the way to the taxi and got in with them.  And the fellas try this after every flight!

Three Wise Men?

Saw these men in the airport and of course had to go over and take pictures.  They were barefoot and some bareback walking through the terminal and eventually on the plane.

They told me they belonged to the Ayyappan Temple and they go on a pilgrimage every year.  On top of their heads are gifts to the temple of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  OK I lied.  It's rice and coconut.  After that they pulled out their Blackberries and asked me to email them the pics.  Lets be realistic, they were probably accountants and lawyers. Otherwise balancing stuff on their heads would have been easy peasy.  

Sabarimala is a Hindu pilgrimage center located in southwest India. It is the largest annual pilgrimage in world with an estimated 45–50 million devotees visiting every year. Sabarimala is believed to be the place where the Hindu God Ayyappan meditated after killing the powerful demoness, Mahishi. Ayyappan's temple is situated on a hilltop surrounded by mountains and dense forests.

Women between the ages of 10 and 50 are not allowed to enter the temple, since the story attributed to Ayyappa prohibits the entry of the women in the menstrual age group.  The devotees are expected to follow a vratham (41-day penance) prior to the pilgrimage. This begins with wearing of a special Mala (a garland made of Rudraksha or Tulasi beads). In general from then they are to refrain from non-vegetarian food of any kind (except dairy) alcohol, and tobacco, engaging in sex, using foul language, hair-cuts and shaving.

Did I mention that it gets kinda crowded?  On Friday 14 January 2011, a human stampede occurred just outside the pilgrimage, after a vehicle fell down on the small pathway. Around 100 people were reported dead, with roughly 100 more injured.

But I guess you knew all this stuff already I suppose!

Indian boy ‘killed for sharing higher-caste name’

LUCKNOW: According to the police sources, a 14 year old low caste “untouchable” was strangled in northern India because he shared his first name with a higher caste youth.
Neeraj Kumar, was allegedly kidnapped and strangled by a group of boys led by 23 year old Neeraj Chaudhary, whose family resented the idea of the low caste boy having the same first name.
The victim’s father, Ram Sumer, a vegetable seller, said when his son was admitted to primary school, the alleged killer’s father “called to advise me to change my son’s name because it was the same as his son’s”. Sumer said he told the father, an affluent landlord, it was too late to change the name because it had been entered in school records.

The higher caste family was further incensed when Sumer named another son Dheeraj, the same as Chaudhary’s other boy. Sumer stated that, “So many names are common to so many people but Chaudhary disliked the idea because I belong to the lowest caste.”
The victim was found dead in a forest near Raghupur village, some 200 kilometers (120 miles) from Uttar Pradesh state capital Lucknow.
Brij Lal, police chief of India’s most populous state, said the victim was killed over “caste discrimination” last month but the murder only came to light a few days ago.
Chaudhary has denied his family is responsible for the crime and has accused police of framing his sons.

Crossing the road

Indians I have discovered are the best road crossers in the world.  In the first video we cross a busy road and it a matter of life or death.  But in the second video we are assisted by Smiles.  To him it is one big joke.