This wonderful family, the Iswariahs, became our Chennai family. They helped us in so many ways from picking us up at the airport to letting us turn their front yard into a bike repair shop. From left to right this is Mr. Iswariah, Mrs. Iswariah, Penny, Paul, Peter, Sucheeta, and Tad (Chennai, India) |
These palatial puffballs are pronounced pooris and are perfectly pleasant to
the palette. We are at one of our favorite restaurants in
Chennai, the Doveton
Cafe, near Egmore station |
After taking the train up to Hyderabad and getting Penny's derailleur straightened out we were ready to go. When we rode out of Hyderabad I (Tad) noticed that this fellow was carving cricket bats to sell on the side of the highway. |
This family may have lived under this black tarp on the side of the road or maybe that was only their shop. I was not sure. |
On our second day out of Hyderabad we got a chance to visit the people at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). We were warmly welcomed |
These farmers are farming a test plot inside ICRISAT with the traditional bullock drawn implements used by farmers around India |
First we met Deepak and Eric who both work for ICRISAT's public awareness department |
Deepak and Penny stand in front of a display of some of the crops that ICRISAT staff research. ICRISAT focuses on the crops of sorghum, millet, groundnut, chickpea, and pigeonpea |
Many migratory birds also enjoy ICRISAT as it is a place with little disturbance from humans. Over one hundred species have been spotted on ICRISAT property. These ponds collect and recycle rain water for irrigation |
This tree has grown through and above this old temple on ICRISAT land. A few small villages were relocated in the 1970s to make this space for ICRISAT. ICRISAT funds paid for the relocation expenses and also built schools for the children of the villages to attend |