Bus Accident

Bus Accident

Sunday, Nov. 12, 2000--Mysore (Cont.)

I tried again to go back to the good, cheap vegetarian restaurant after leaving the cyber cafe, and it was still full with a waiting line. Then I tried going to the fancy restaurant only to find it is not open until 7:00 p.m. I went back to the room and ate some snack mix.

I left the hotel about 6:50 to go to the City Palace for the Sunday lighting ceremoney. The palace, its gates, its temples, etc., are outlined in 50,000 light bulbs. They are lighted for 30 minutes starting at 7 p.m. on Sundays and holidays, and it draws a huge crowd. It's one of the great bargains of India, since there is no admission fee for the lighting. Also, there is a band that plays in the courtyard in front of the palace. Everyone mills around looking at the lights and taking photos of them. I arrived at the front gate just as the lights flickered on at 7. Even though I had seen it before, it was a wonderful sight. I seem to recall that some of the bulbs were missing last time I was here. Tonight, it looked perfect.

I didn't spend long looking at the lights, because I was hungry. I also knew that it is necessary to get to the nice restaurant early if one wants a table without waiting. (And I would be miserable taking up a table by myself with others waiting.) So, I took my photos and appreciated the lights and rushed off for the restaurant.

I asked the waiter to recommend something new for me. I got kalimirchia with butter naan. The dish was a chicken dish (boneless chunks) in a spinach-pea sauce. It was much like the sauce I get when I order palak paneer. I throughly enjoyed it. And I especially enjoyed the slaw salad which was served again. I made a mistake of ordering a beer to go with it, however. I hadn't had any alcohol for 7-8 weeks, and it sounded good. But I couldn't even finish the beer (650 ml), because it affected me too much and because it made me feel bad. (I've always been somewhat allergic to alcohol and feel bad if I drink too much.)

Monday, Nov. 13, 2006--Mysore to Shimoga

I decided not to go all the way to Hospet in one day. It's about a 10-12 hour trip, and that's just too far. Shimoga is a town a little over halfway there, so I bought a ticket to there. Unfortunately, the bus was late arriving in the station, and there was a huge crowd for it. Indians are not people who queue. Instead, they push and shove. And the women are worse about it than the men. (They definitely are not the weaker sex when it comes to commanding the right to get on an Indian bus!) Anyway, I just waiting back, because it is difficult to get on a bus anyway with my suitcase. When I did enter, however, I had a pleasant surprise. A man and his family I had asked earlier for help finding the right bus had saved me a seat on their 3-seat bench. I pushed my suitcase under the seat and sat down while others were already starting to stand in the rear of the bus. By the time we left, it was sardine time in the aisle. And it remained that way for about 4 hours. I'm so glad I had a seat, even though some of the people in the aisle were pushing against me and leaning over me.

It was mid-afternoon before I arrived and found a hotel. It was too late to eat lunch, so I went to an ice cream parlor. I ordered a gud bud. It was a layered concoction in a drinking glass: mango-cherry ice cream with a cherry on top, followed by nuts (cashews and another kind), followed by strawberry ice cream, followed by jello and candied fruits, followed by vanilla ice cream, followed by fruits (grapes, chopped apples, bananas) and marshmallows in a syrup. It was tasty and good. But I still wasn't full. So I ordered a pineapple juice to drink.

My hotel is cheap and nice. It is only about $4.50 per night, but it has cable tv, is clean and bright, has good curtains, has nice sheets and a waffle-weave towel, etc. It even comes with a morning paper under the door. These non-touristy towns are more of a bargain than the ones I have been visiting. I looked at a room in a place that was only $1.75 per night. But it was so depressing. I'm glad I splurged and paid $4.50!!

I noticed that the restaurant in the hotel was busy when I arrived. So I went there for dinner. No one spoke English. There was no English menu. So I ordered a dosa. It was so good. The sauces and chutneys that came with it were much tastier than normal--more of a homemade taste. My dinner cost me 43 cents.

Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2006--Shimoga to Hospet

We had a bus accident today. The drivers here are agressive, and the roads are busy. The highway we were following today was especially bad. It was either old and worn out, or it was under construction. We were entering a section where one lane had been paved and work was progressing on the rest of it. I saw two boys ahead on bicycles obviously enjoying playing on the smooth surface of the new lane. One was in front of the other. The younger boy was behind. Both were in the middle of the lane. They heard the bus honk. The younger boy looked around and saw us. I think he panicked. Anyway, he wobbled. Then as he tried again to take off, I saw that his rear end was too far to the side to be balanced. He started wobbling again just as the bus pulled off to the side to pass. I feared for the worst, and it happened. We heard a crunch. The bus stopped and almost everyone ran off. (I stayed inside.) I saw then lift up the boy and carry him to the front of the bus. He was limp. They moved the bicycle to the side, too, and it didn't look badly bent. I think the boy wobbled and fell into the bus, but the driver may have slightly sideswiped him, too. Anyway, they rushed the boy (still completely limp) to the hospital via an oncoming bus. After about an hour, we drove back into town to the police station. Because I was sitting in the front seat and had seen what was happening, they asked me about it and I told them. There was an angry crowd there. In India, crowds have been known to kill a man for hitting a child while driving. The family were arguing that it was the driver's fault. The policeman pointed to me and told them, I guess, my version of the event. Anyway, the police served me a glass of tea and then stopped the next bus to hospet and put me on it. It was over for me. I hope the boy is okay. He was too small for his bicycle. I guess he was no more than 8 years old.

I had trouble finding a hotel here in Hospet. I went to two of the nicer places, and the rooms were expensive and depressing. I found only one place where I was willing to stay. It is a local lodge with squat-style toilet and no phone in the room. But it is bright and clean and has cable TV. So I should be fine there. Will update you more later.