The Shanghai of India

I wonder if Gandhi loaded up and knocked people out of the way while he walked the streets and then turned and glared at them, brushing imaginary dirt off his shoulders. Maybe not. But then again, he had his own little ashram, he didn't have to walk the congested sidewalks of Kolkata. I bet Mother Teresa was shoving people left and right.

Speaking of which, I saw her house today. I walked away with a nice feeling, but it wasn't the spiritual pilgrimage that it probably was for other foreigners and Indians. Maybe that's because the word Jesus was everywhere and so was the cross. I saw the room where she lived for 44 years. It was like a college dorm. There was a bed, a desk, and a picture of the man of her dreams on the wall (that being Jesus). Yes, her room was basic, but I must say, I've had hotel rooms smaller than that. The hotel rooms didn't have fancy desks either. My biggest issue at the house was whether or not to take off my shoes. I walked in and someone (not a nun) asked me to. Then I went back ready to do so and saw a sign that said, "We have no objection if don't take off your shoes." What's with the double negative? Very confusing.

A chicken roll from a stall I could handle, but Domino's gave me a little diarrhea. I tried to get change for 500 rupees at the Hotel VIP Continental and they laughed at me and were very rude, which caused me to start screaming. I went to another store and they politely said they didn't have the change. Then another store gladly gave me the money. 500 rupees is around $11, but it's practically worthless in most places because they won't have enough change to give you back if you buy something.

When I went to sleep last night, I realized that I wrote about the grittier side of Kolkata last time. That's the side that most Westerners associate with Kolkata because of Mother Teresa. But this is a very urbane place. Many people are well-to-do. There are more cars than motorcycles. Shanghai is to China what Kolkata is to India. In Shanghai, I dared to order a plain cheeseburger and Sprite with no ice at McDonald's. I would have never dreamed of doing that anywhere else in China, even Beijing (in 2005). Shanghai is China for sure, but it's not as foreign as the rest of China. There is no one symbolic representation as apt in India as language is in China, but Kolkata (and Mumbai too) are more familiar than other places in India that I've been to.