The Bear Necessities

Also at the Wildlife Reserve was a Bear Safari. Sarah enjoyed the front seat on this one and almost got up front and personal with a bear. But our driver - Sunil - shown below was quick to shut the window. Thank you Sunil!! The driver of our bus was also quick to shut his window. The children got the most amusement out of watching the bears run in front, along side and behind the safari vehicle.

Safari-rific and Zoo-pendous

We went to the Tiger Safari and Bannarghatta Zoo here in Bangalore. It was great! The have some big tigers!! The white tiger is quite the show off and posed for the cameras while others you could have walked up to and touched.

My Long Lost Ancestors!?!?

From time to time, I wondered where did the "Gillies" name come from. Of course, we know how the Taylor, Smith and Baker families received their names. However, what did a "Gillies" family do 500 years ago? I have searched high and low - okay not really. I just came across for me one of the most hilarious things related to my family's name on the internet - here in India of all places.

So there I was minding my own business on the internet looking for potential things to do while in India when I stumbled across a website.

"JLR’s Bheemeshwari Fishing Camp is a perfect base for anglers in pursuit of the Mighty one. The fishing season here is during the months of November, December, January and February. Guests are provided with a local guide or ‘gillie’ for every two visitors. Gillies help anglers with their knowledge of the waters and are experienced fishermen themselves. They also are adept at using the coracle boats (native, circular boats made out of buffalo hide) and can move guests from place to place in the waters."

So there you have it. The Gillies Family are local fishing guides in India. I was curious to know if this was a local language or an english term. So my journey quickly turned to Webster's Online Dictionary:

Etymology: Scottish Gaelic gille & Irish giolla youth, gillie
1 : a male attendant on a Scottish Highland chief; broadly : ATTENDANT
2 chiefly Scottish & Irish : a fishing and hunting guide
3 : a shoe with a low top and decorative lacing

Nonetheless, before I leave, I must go and meet some of the local "Gillies" in India.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

One of the things you will notice very quickly in Bangalore is that it is a very busy place. People, traffic, shops and cows. As you drive through the city, it becomes too difficult to pickup on everything that is going on around you. Therefore I have quickly learned to keep my camera phone out and ready.

Here are couple of quick snaps for the week.

The small to medium sized business are still king in India. However, there are a couple of large malls. I am still amazed they can fit all of the signs on some of these buildings.

Did I Forget To Mention...

Dear Johanna,

I may have forgot to mention one small detail about India. Please forgive me.

Okay....So on Sunday afternoon, Johanna comes running from the kitchen. I'm not sure what is going on and of course she can't speak because she is in shock. As I go into the kitchen, low and behold, not only did we bring home the "mysterious white hot dog" but there on the wall is a three inch cockroach similar to the one in our other post.

Click below to watch the live action.

On Monday, I showed the maid. She chuckled. Then she looked at my wife and said, "ma'am, you afraid? Every home in India have 30. Kids catch with hands" and she motioned with her hand. She added, "we have spiders too." This just added to Johanna thoughts and she became even more nervious. I have to admit, I am not a bug lover either.

Church in India

As a family, we enjoy going to church on Sunday. There are three small branches. The first week, Eric took us to one that was close to the apartment he stayed in on his short trips. The other weeks, we have been going to the branch that we correspond to geographically. Here is the link if you want to know more about the church in India. http://www.lds.org.in/ The lovely thing is that the church is the same here in India. (No pictures yet.)

Why Do We Eat It?

Thank you, Johanna! For all of you who read my post about "Why Do I Eat There", you would have read my sarcastic comment about the "mysterious white hot dog". Johanna surprised me yesterday by bringing home the one and only "mysterious white hot dogs" for dinner. Just waking up at 6:30pm, dazed and unaware, I stumbled into to kitchen where Johanna was preparing dinner. As she removed the lid from the pan, I gave out a yell - ahhh!!??

For those of you who might feel how lucky we are to be exploring a new culture and new place. There is a price to pay. The diet is the first thing to be sacrificed. Why did we eat, the "mysterious white hot dog" last night? Because there was no other meat in the store. So when you are eating dinner tonight, please remember us.