Arrival

  At 1:20 am May 16th I landed in Bangalore, India.  Customs was pretty fast and easy so I had no issues.  I went right to the taxi stand outside of the baggage claim and set up my ride to Mysore. Talked him down from 5500R to 4200R.  I could probably gotten the ride for under 4000R but you have to give up sooner or later.  I can't complain because that's only $76 for 4 hours to Mysore.  By 2:20 am I was in a compact little Indian made taxi with my driver Guru (his name,LOL) breathing in those familiar smells of burned garbage and dusty streets.  Guru was blasting some Punjabi R&B and honking at all the dogs, cows and pigs that got in our way.  I fell asleep for about twenty minutes off and on waking up to Guru clapping his hands and dancing in the front seat when he thought I was out. Man's got some moves.  I forgot how beautiful the country side of India is once you get out of Bangalore.  It's pretty awesome.

Toilet with spray gun.

Single bedroom. Very tidy.

I arrived in Mysore around 6am and you could see all the chai shops opening up on the side of the street getting ready for the rush.  Chai is going for about 10R for a big some places up to 15R.  It's really sweet.  They scald the milk at over 200F and mix in cane sugar, ghee(clarified butter), strong tea and strain.  Very tasty.  I got to my Hotel Krishnaprem Home Stay in Mysore around 6:15am.  It's 800R a night for a single room with private bathroom, wifi, and fan.  The family that runs the place is so kind and willing to do anything you need to make you comfortable.  

Big Chai

I napped for 3 hours and walked 2K to Gokul Chat for by usual Indian breakfast of upma and idly with sambar and coconut chutney and a big chai.  I will say prices have gone up a little.  My 30R price has almost doubled to 59R but I did order a large everything.  It's still only a little more than a $1 for a big breakfast.  I was very happy. 

Idly and upma w/ sambar & coconut chutney