India itself is much as expected so far - not dissimilar to Sierra Leone only not as chaotic, not as noisy, and wealthier. We'd been warned about the traffic but it has a fluidity to it. The honking is incessant but not obnoxious. People honk to be noticed or to get others to move out of the way. Trucks even have "blow horn" written on the back of them.
Down to Shillong the speed limit was mostly a max of 35-40kph (30mph) but the taxi wasn't able to get up that fast despite overtaking everything in its path, usually in oncoming traffic, swerving cows and goats, kids on makeshift skateboards, and men urinating (so not fair). My favorite sign thus far is the ubiquitous "enjoy STD". Yeah okay, everyone loves a good time. There is a plethora of advertising for cement, ironic given the potholes resemble meteorite sites. We passed a "Goat Research Station" - what kind of research does one do on a goat I wonder?
It hasn't been particularly hot, and yesterday I even wore a down jacket at night. I think it's because we are so high up. It's been labeled "the Scotland of India". The rain does no favors to the seeping pink dye in my hair or any white clothing. I'm amazed at how clean the guys look on the back of motorcycles speeding through mud and rain. How do their shirts stay so white? My jeans and shows are already covered in muck.
Food is pretty good. No exciting stories of Delhi belly yet. Don't worry, when it happens I'll be sure to share all the delicious details. Mostly we don't understand anything on the menus so we've been selecting things at random. I believe yesterday's meal could be loosely translated as "possibly chicken head marinated in green slime". We caught a cab to the middle of bloody nowhere to eat at a place marked decent by Trip Advisor, only to be told half way through our meal that we had to leave as they were closing all the roads and if we didn't get out if there we wouldn't be able to get a taxi. On another quest for food I think we wandered into a drug den. The sign said restaurant but when we asked if they served food they seemed a bit confused. In hindsight this happens at every place we eat, so maybe it's us that is being confusing.
