Big Red's Saddle Bags

We tried to have something different for breakfast this morning but what we asked for (podo dosai) was only available in the evenings. So masala dosai again it was. This time it was the round, crispy crepe like ones similar to those we'd had in Australia and it was just as tasty as yesterday. The variety of food we have seen already far surpasses that of Sri Lanka. Where the snacks in Sri Lanka were very much roti-based, the Indian snacks come in an array of sizes, shapes, colours and textures that are both sweet and savoury. Our three months here is fast becoming a food tour as we try our hardest to sample a vast range of what's available and not get stuck eating one delicious meal over and over. Gosh it's hard to drag yourself away from the dosais and biriyanai though. I have never experienced such flavourful meals.

Next we went to visit Boss Man again, this time to sort out luggage racks for Big Red. We sat for a while, as per usual, before beginning to discuss the work that needed to be done. Boss Man had come up with a plan overnight that only vaguely resembled what we had in mind but it would apparently work out cheaper and quicker so we weren't abe to argue too hard. After some discussion we decided on an extra carrier on the right of the bike and a big lockable box that would be fitted to the back of the bike. We handed over 4500 INR for the job. With a few hours to kill we dropped our bags and helmets back at the guesthouse, up the four flights of stairs again, used to wifi to sort our my uni stuff and set off on our final run of errands for Chennai.

Bus stop cow

We managed to find the pharmacy the guy at the last pharmacy we spoke to yesterday had recommended. And..not only did they stock malaria tablets, they had enough there to almost cover our entire three months in India. Finally! After three weeks, two countries and more chemists than ever expected we got Mefloquine!

Next job was a charger for our portable hard drive. As we walked the dusty streets the breeze dropped and the sun reached its peak in the sky, beaming down on us as visited shop after shop after shop. Even the cows were taking shelter from the heat, laying in the shade of a bus stop while people were forced to stand in the sun. With no luck on the charger front we figured a light lunch was what we needed to get us through the remainder of the day. We grabbed some grapes and an ice cream each and enjoyed the sights as we sat and ate. Giving up on the hard drive we decided to head home. As we passed the electronics shop that was closed on our way to lunch we noticed it had opened. We figured we'd give this last shop a try. Success! An extremely helpful salesman even plugged the hard drive in and tested it for us so we could head home happy. By this time though it was time to go back to see Boss Man. We went back out into the heat and arrived at the bike shop only to find Boss Man was nowhere to be seen and neither was Big Red. As per usual, nobody was forthcoming with information so after half an hour or sitting and hoping we went back to the guesthouse wondering what was going on.

A-Boss Bike Zone

After a nap and a shower I was feeling refreshed and we headed back to see Boss Man about 5:15pm with high hopes. We arrived to find a pidly little box screwed in the place of where we had asked a large box to be. We explained to Boss Man that this was why we had continued to insist on seeing the box before the work was done and why his deciding not to let us do that was a bad idea. Worried he wouldn't be able to return the tiny bos, Boss Man went with one of his johnnies to see what he could do, reassuring us he'd be back soon. Almost two hours passed as we sat and watched rats run between the motorbikes in front of us. We have spent way to much time in this shell of a shop over the past few days. Boss Man arrived, smiling, with no box on the bike. Needless to say, we were not happy. Things move at a snail's pace here and when they move at such a pace you expect to at least have things done considering the time it takes. Nope. We would have to wait until tomorrow. Yeah right Boss Man! We told him we'd worry about it later...we needed to hit the road and start heading South.

Figuring that because we had come out of today without a box of any kind, which was meant to be the most expensive part of the deal, and the only work that had been done was fixing two metal carriers to the bike, we thought we'd get a fair amount of change from our 4500 INR. We were wrong. Including the price of a combination bike lock and two occy straps we were charged 4300 INR. Too exhausted and frustrated too argue we were happy to be rid of Boss Man. And when we reminded us to give him a call from Calacutta so he could buy Big Red back from us, we smiled on the inside knowing we would try our very hardest to never ever give him that option.

After-dinner mints/sweets

We consoled ourselves over dinner, trying hard to convince ourselves that we hadn't done too badly. We got what we needed (minus the box) in three days for less than $2000 AUD, which is what we left Australia hoping to pay. Fingers crossed Big Red was worth the investment and that we can on sell him to a wealthy buyer come time to say goodbye in Calcutta.

Tandoori Nights Restaurant provided us with fried rice, vegetable butter masala and two delicious naans. The food just keeps getting better! They even put our little after-dinner sweet mint things that everywhere provides in little baggies. To finish the night we bought some random Indian sweet treats to continue our journey of sampling as many foods as possible. Good choice! They were delicious.

Indian sweet treats

Thanks to the dramas of being given the wrong size box and Boss Man taking two hours to come back and tell us we couldn't get another one until at least tomorrow, we missed the wedding that we had been invited to. On the up side, we got an offer to star in an Indian commercial. They would need Chris to shave his beard though so we unfortunately had to turn them down even though acting as American Cosulate Officers for a day sounded like a blast. Maybe next time.

Chennai, you have given us what we need, but we need to get out.