A rare thing......

I have always liked the cheery friendliness of the Americans...

Immigration officers...
Once they've seen your confirmed return tickets..
Beam at you...
Wish you a good trip!!!

Customs officials....
Join in....

Strangers greet you with...
Hi...
Have a nice day!!!

Smiles are exchanged all the time...

And as a friend from these parts once explained:
A smile and a How are ya? means that the stranger is not going to harm you...

So..
It is a signal of sorts in this culture!

I almost thought I was back in the Land of Smiles...
Until I ran into the Indians here...
They do not smile at all!!
At least not the ones in Michigan!
Yeah..they smile at other Americans...
But not at strangers who are Indian too!!!

At the Indian temple...
One heard bits of Tamil, Kannada, Telugu...
Fill the air...
But no one ...not even the usually gregarious Malayalees...looked at us..
Leave alone smiled....

They looked past us...
And through us....
As if to say:
Why have you come here? To add to the competition??
Very territorial!!!

Or maybe they were being snooty as in:
We are OLD settlers...
As if that is akin to OLD money or something!!
Or do they think Indians mean trouble???

At the local pharmacy...
The sales woman says:
We have a pharmacist..
His name is Vee-lash Meh-tta...
And she drags us to him...

She seems a trifle disappointed that Vee-lash does not look us in the eye..
Or bond with us in any way...
Despite being Indian!!
He merely mutters to her:
You will find that in the second row....
No smile at all!!!

I almost gave up on getting a smile out of an Indian..
Until...
Another woman....a newcomer???.... like me???...
Saw me waiting for Winner at Walmart...

She met my eye..
And then...
She beamed at me!!!
Made me feel good that!!!
Wish more Indians would smile at other Indians...
Would make us seem a less surly tribe!!

Cheerio then!!!

So not like Madras!

In Madras..
Or Chennai if you will...
Spouse when badgered to ask for directions while driving...
Would miss the auto drivers and the other local know-it-alls
To hone in on the wrong guys!!!!

Typical responses we get:
I don't know saar..
I am new to the area..
Turn left, then right, then left...no no..right and then left again and then ask someone there!!!
Interesting!!!

Here...
Winner and I are looking for the Indian temple...
In a scene that looks like it came out of the sets of Fargo!!
Snow..snow...and then..some more snow!!

Me: Can't we ask someone??? Some friendly person??? They LOOK so friendly!!!
Winner: What??? Are you kidding me???

At best...
We can whip out the GPS or whatever and get those directions!!!
From a gadget!!!
Not from a flesh and blood human being!!!
No sir!!!

That's not all....
Driving across the bridge on the Des Plaines river...
I wish we could stop and take a photograph...
No can do!!!
Not like at home...
Where we never did have to miss such photo ops!!
For such reasons!!!

So different from Madras that is now Chennai!!!
Such a change...
From home...

Adios then!!!

Leaving Madras....

Leaving is always a wrench...
Leaving home..
And leaving Madras..
More so!

I have been anchored here for too long...
Family...
Friends...
The comfort of routine...
And the security it brings..
Creature comforts...
Even my spotlessly clean loo....
Hold me down..
Keep me rooted here...

In my college day....
As TamilNadu Express rolled in...
Slowing down near Basin Bridge or its environs...
I would head for a window seat and look out with affection...
At the red and yellow State Transport buses that plied the streets..
Gosh! didn't think I'd miss those!!!

Or gaze at Tamizh women...
Waiting patiently at the bus stops...
To catch the bus to office..
Clutching their shining ever-silver tiffin boxes to their bosoms!!!...
The sight of them brought a lump to my throat!!!!
That was back then...

Now...
I grapple with what the Internet calls travel anxiety!!!
And do battle with endless to-do lists...
Tidy up the home..
Put everything in its place..
Pay every conceivable bill..
Water..drainage...electricity..Corporation taxes..
All in place now!!!
Run out on endless sorties of shopping!!
Phew!!!!!

Calm down now! calm down now!!
I tell myself..
But as the day draws near...
And relatives come by to bid adieu...
My nerves are a knotted mess..

Could it be that
I do hate traveling??..
No..not in theory!!
I hate leaving home???...
That I do!!!...
But also...I guess..
The change that all this brings...
Takes my blood pressure up a few notches!!!

And then there's Time...
Or the lack of it..
The realization that I no longer have any control over my own time!!!
As others take charge....
Airlines, airports and their schedules are set to dominate my life..
In the near term at least!!!

And then...
I am one of the placid ones of the earth!!!
Happy to keep chewing the cud in my own stall..
In this corner of the world!!!
That I know is home!!!

So...
It is with mixed feelings that...
I get set to go away from Madras..
Which geography books in my school days called..
The Detroit of India..
To the real thing!!!...

Adios!!...
Or rather..
Au revoir!!!!
Until next time then!!!