Sun, Sand, and Seashells

Alright, I am paying 100 rupees for 30 mins of internet so this is gonna be just a quick run down with lots of pictures ;)

Saturday was absolutely fabulous! We spent the day in Mamalapuram, which is on the coast of India in the Bay of Bengal. We took a 1.5 hour bus ride to an area on the border of Mamalapuram, and then were dropped off at some sweet ruins. There were several temples carved out of pure stone, as well as some intricate wall carvings.

Arujuna's Penance. The natural cleft in the wall represents the Ganges River. In ancient times, priests would poor water down it during ceremonies into the pool below.  Almost all the carvings are representative of gods. There is one mortal (dude doing the yoga pose with his ribs jutting out) on the wall. He is supposed to be the king of something or other.

The view from inside the temple carved out of stone

Becca Pickup and I chilling in a cool little man made cave thing.

I love the detail on this temple.

At Krishna's Butterball the first thing Emmalee and I took a picture of was us with a goat.

Krishna's butterball

Temple of the three main Hindu Gods

Emmalee, Becca, and I. I love these girls!

We were closely followed by sales dudes the entire time we toured the ruins. They were relentless. The hardest people to turn down though were the cute little girls whose families put them out on the streets to sell jewelry. Seriously, how do you say no to that face??

We did some shopping around Mamallapuram, and went out to eat at a resturaunt called Moonrakers. It was delicious, and I ordered Vegetable Fried Noodles in honor of my Panda Express craving.  Oddly enough, they tasted eerily similar to Panda Express chow mein.  While shopping I had some shoes made for me (six bucks baby). It was really cool to see them made! This guys just hunker down and pound out leather with a rock....k it was a hammer which is still equally awesome.

Austin and I waiting for our food.

Kaylee, Kiran, Aubrey, and Emmalee 

Caylee and Alyssa. Aged 15 and 17. I love these two! I don't know that I could have done something like this in high school

This young whippersnapper sold me some stuff. Pretty sure I could marry him for his smile. He was  pretty honest too! I left his shop feeling only a little suspicious that I'd gotten ripped off.....which is unusual for India.  Prices change dramatically as soon as they see pale skin and blonde hair. Always try to at least half the price that the shopkeeper told you. Today I haggled a souvenir down from 1300 rupees (22ish dollars) down to 400 rupees (8 dollars) and I am still not entirely sure that I got a good deal.

We took another rickshaw ride from Mamalapuram to the beach and it was absolutely amazing! We spent several hours swimming in the Bay of Bengal.  I couldn't get over how warm it was.  It was my third time at an ocean, and I loved it. Some of my group went to find the resort swimming pool but I opted to stay at the bay with Emmalee and Austin.  I can swim in a pool anytime, but how often do you get to take a plunge in the Indian Ocean?

It was a great day and I left feeling sun burnt, salty, and exhausted. Haha although I must say that since coming to India I have yet to not feel exhausted. We have been constantly busy, and I love it.


Sunday

I cannot get over how much I love Sundays. I never want to leave the church building once I get inside, and I am sad that I only got to enjoy 3 sabbath days in Chennai. The members are amazing, and there are so many things about it that I will miss. This branch has baptisms and confirmations on a weekly basis. They have two sisters preparing to serve missions (that made me want to cry. It's hard to watch many women be oppressed in India. To see girls close to my age prepare to serve missions is truly a miracle. They have to get permission from their parents, many of whom aren't members. Either that or face estrangement from their families.  Instead of an arranged marriage, they get to serve a mission. One of the girls just received her call to Temple Square).
Also, I can't get over how fantastic the Branch President's mustache is. Truly it is the coolest stache I have ever seen. It's almost a handlebar, but not quite.

Emmalee, Trisha, and I in front of the church on Sunday

Raj (on the left) is a Rising Star student. He is 15 years old and comes to church every Sunday. The boy on his right is his older brother.  Raj is planning on going to BYU for school with the help of his sponsor. He's a great kid, and I am glad I got to know him.


Well, I only have two minutes of internet left so I really must go. I love you all so much and I am excited to tell you about my last couple of days.

I love you!!!!

Peace----Becca :)