Anna Hazare's fast has ended!

Anna Hazare has ended his fast!  I want to run out into the street and shout for joy!  He, Arvind Kejriwal, and many others (actually all the people of India!) have achieved a historic victory for India by getting the Jan Lockpal bill passed unanimously through parliament.  Wow!  The whole country rose up in disgust and frustration against the rampant corruption literally running India.  It was wonderful to watch.  Anna Hazare fasted in order to get the government ministers to hear the people.  It kept the pressure on.  He has fasted twice; this time for 13 days.  It was such a relief to watch him end his fast.  The work will now begin on ending corruption here.  

3-19 August 2011

Monkey invasion

Many babies

Sara

Bison 6-8-11 on our walk through the Singara tea estate near our new house

View from the Tantea guest house 9-8-11 where we had dinner with Govindharajan and his sister Rukumani who was visiting from their home village

Govindharajan, Carolyn, Rukumani

Gopal, growing a beard

Govindharajan, Kanakaraj, and Rajendra at the guest house

View of our house from the street

From the front

The apartment downstairs

Sunrise at Singara (5:55am)

Widening our street

Malati, Vanya, Carolyn
On 12 August Malati invited us for her husband Ashok's birthday.  Malati and Ashok now live across the street from us.  Vanya founded Earth Trust in the Nilgiris

The wonderful spread

Ashok, Netha
Netha is a wonderful cook and professional food counselor who cooked wonderful treats for us.  

Carolyn and Sachi, Netha's daughter, who is heading for film school in Paris

We spontaneously decided to sit around the buffet table so we could eat and gab there.
Maji (Ashok's mother), Carolyn, Ashok, Malati, Netha, Vanya

Netha, Vanya, Sachi, _______

More bison at Singara 15-8-11

Found this guy in the geranium in the garden (about 3" long)

Eveniing at Singara 19-8-11

July 2011 - Our new house and a visit from Sushil

Our friend Govindharajan showed us this house, which we decided to rent.  Big decision.  14 July was an auspicious day astrologically for moving in, so we traditionally boiled over milk in the kitchen and did a special puja for our new home.

Our new kitchen weeks before all our stuff arrived  (Besides milk to boil over, we brought makings for a cup of milk tea.)

Our little puja table by the front door

Our friend Sushil from Delhi came to visit on 15 July (just in time to help with the moving).  Here we are on a tour boat on the 24th at Ooty Lake, which I love.  That's Sushil in the black shirt.

From the boat you can see the kiddie train that runs along the lake

We decided to try the little train

That's my faky camera smile

Cutie

A couple days later we took Sushil to Dolphin's Nose, a viewpoint nearby.  Here's a waterfall we could see from the viewpoint.

Here are a couple horses available for riding.  Everyone there is scrounging for a meager living.

The next day, Aishwarya generously came to Coonoor to see  her friends here, including us.  We had dinner with her at the Tantea guest house, guests of her father.  Aishu is studying in London, so it was a particular treat to be able to see her like this.

On 31 July, the day before the move, we brought the plants over.  What a terrible mistake.  The monkeys trashed them, spreading dirt and parts of plants all over the balcony.  Some of the plants were salvageable, but not the gorgeous hanging geranium.

These two pictures are the view from the balcony at the new house.