The fun begins.....

Auto Rickshaw race down MG Rd. w/Aussies & Brits!

Cecilia, Jay, Meera at Spinn

Lounges & Discos

For the first 4 months my night time social life was non existant. Okay, so I went out a few times but I really didn't meet too many interesting people to have conversations with. I met a couple "good" friends to go out with but still even together it was hard to socialize and meet new people. I found that the group of people who go out to pubs & discos to be very exclusive. This relates back their tight, closeknit family ties. It is a very family oriented culture. This sense of family closeness is transferred easily into strong friendship ties. But as a person on the outside, it's difficult and it feels very unwelcoming at times. It seems that the whole nightlife scene here is quite the opposite from the western world. I remember back home in the States it was very easy to meet new people to chat with and even become future friends with. In fact, that's how I pretty much met everyone I know back in Portland. Here it seems, people come in their own groups and pretty much socialize within their own groups only. I've tried to chat a few times but not much success. So after a while this gets very boring and frustrating.

Then something happened! Just last weekend, my friend Meera and I decided to check out iBar, a lounge in a 4 star hotel. I thought it was time to meet some foreigners and heard that they can be seen here often. We get there and what do we see? The whole place is packed with westerners!!! JACKPOT!!!! I was very excited and so happy! We met a couple of Brits, Aussies, and So. Africans and spent whole weekend partying with them. We even raced in an autorickshaw on the way back to the hotel and cut off a vehicle. I will never forget that. It was hilarious! It was definitely the best weekend of my time here in Bangalore. It was fun learning about their culture, poking fun at each other's and they were fairly curious as to what an American was doing in Bangalore alone! I don't think they were expecting to meet an American such as me. My social life felt so revived. Another door has opened in my life. It's exciting to find that the world is still very large. I want to stay overseas now for a few years and see what else is out there.

Life Goes On

Latest picture of me!!!! My hair is long now!!! Okay, so it's been a while since I've written in here. A really long time. What have I been up to? Nothing too exciting really. My life is just moving forward now. I've been to a few clubs, one foam party, and I spend my time getting groomed at the beauty salon and getting massages.

Kylie is getting bigger now. And she is not a pomeranian as I was told here. There is a common misconception about Pomeranians. I don't really think most people here know what a Pomeranian really looks like. What Kylie turned out to be is a German Spitz. The Pom and Spitz both come from the same breed and Spitz puppies look identical to Pom puppies. So I think that's where the confusion comes in. But she is turning out to be a complete sweetheart and I love her dearly.

Brandon will be visiting soon, in about two weeks, then after that I will fly back with him and Kylie back to the States for two months. I look forward to coming home for a while. That's pretty much it. I will write more after B2 and I come back from GOA later this month!!!! :)

Cece & Miss Kylie Kotton