I left McLeod Ganj on Tuesday night. I made the mistake of taking the “deluxe” bus, and it ended up being a cold, bumpy, sleepless night. Then I discovered that the key to my friend Mark’s house (where I was to stay) had gone AWOL. Eventually I tracked it down, and had a good night’s rest. Thursday night I took the night train (which was four hours late) to Ahmadabad.

My friend Babu has been talking to me about Ahmadabad for several years, so I decided it would be a good stopping point on my way South. Babu gave me the name and number of his cousin, Mr. Mahesh Patel. When we spoke on the phone, Mr. Patel said that I should come to his house upon arrival.
I arrived close to five hours late, and the Patels were wondering what had happened to me. Mr. Patel organized a car through his friends to pick me up at the train station and bring me back to their wonderful house. They live in the winding streets in the heart of old Ahmadabad. Immediately I felt at home.
Mrs. Patel, Krisna, studied philosophy, and we had some discussions of Plato and Aristotle. She also plays sitar. Both nights that I was there, I perched myself on a stool in the kitchen to watch her cook. She is an excellent cook, and I wanted to learn her recipes. I also want to say that Gujurati chai is the best I’ve had anywhere.
Their daughter, Mansi, is a fiesty tenth grader who wants to be a fashion designer. We bonded on Hindi films…though we disagreed on who the best actors are.
Among other things I was taken to the Gandhi Ashram, where Gandhi settled after returning from South Africa. On Sunday morning, Mr. Patel and I went on a heritage walk through old Ahmadabad, which showed us some amazing architecture (pictures later), and beautiful temples.
The hightlight, however, came on Sunday evening, when he took me up to the roof of their house. Everywhere on rooftops were people flying kites, and the sky was filled with their bright colors. i stood slowly turning to watch them, then stopped to watch the sunset. There is a Kite Festival on January 14th every year, and in the month or so leading up to it, more and more people climb up to their roof and take part. It was a beautiful sight, which I can’t quite capture here.