I ride in the front seat

My “cook”, Priya, says I will tire of riding in the front seat, will move to the back seat and stop watching. I cannot imagine that. There is so very much to absorb on each trip. As we ride daily to school, we travel the same road. I am still trying very hard to locate landmarks and figure out where I am on the road but I’m just simply too distracted by EVERYTHING going on out there… people, people, people… all moving around just doing their thing. And we are simply riding by, doing our thing.
Little village along our “shortcut” home from school! (Tahdah!! are you as surprised as I am with this photo being here - it is from my "real" camera!!!!)
Girls walking to school....

(really , another photo right here, group of girls with bows and "uniforms", can't you see it???? OK, noo - it's not here, I got impatient with the uploads!!)
This month has been described as a month of celebrations for the Hindus of this region. Sunday was Ganesh’s birthday. The villages along the main road have statues of Ganesh and they are decorating them… then they will proceed to the ocean at some point this week and throw the statue into the water. (At this Alina piped up – oh,no!) Yes, I can imagine there is an artificial reef of Ganeshes right off the shore. (Ok quick update before I post: a friend told me these are made of plaster of paris or mud so they fall apart inteh water... good to know, I guess!) I hope we can see the processional ...

Last week there was a day of the melon – my phrase. People had chunked melons in front of their stores and driveways… broken melons everywhere. Kumar says they are not allowed to do that in the city. I laugh… little broken melons everywhere… when I mentioned it to one of the other mom’s at school… she had not seen them. Nor had she seen the “new” center line that had been painted down the road to the school. It is a hoot! Laugh out loud!! It swerves this way and that… NOT down the middle!!! I have yet to take a photo of it… but she didn’t see either of these because she rides in the back seat. What fun is that!?
I also wish I had taken a photo of the cow that actually crossed the road using the cross walk. Another hoot!
Now, I have enjoyed riding in the backseat, talking to the kids about different things. Joey and Jamie are escaping the inundation of the stimuli before school by reading. I’m ok with that. There are many times they do look out the window. Inevitably, Joey makes mention of the stray dogs (there are lots and lots of them) and the trash just thrown EVERYWHERE! Jamie and Joey like comparing the various types of Tuk-tuks (autorickshaws), just as you would compare sports cars in the US. Alina has her moments of sounding surprised when she sees a cow. “(gasp) COW!” Moans and groans from the boys – “yes, Alina, it’s just a plain ole cow”. Anna is still a bit short, even in the booster seat… most often the car lulls her to sleep!

I can’t imagine tiring of the front seat. Kumar grins and bobbles his head when I get in the front seat - I think he thinks it is comical! We play the tamil radio as we drive away from the school … it seems to be appropriate theme music…and I wish I could record it all… because tomorrow it will look a little be like the day before but it will be different! And, ya know, I’d miss something if I rode in the backseat!!