Pune: Its Poo-Nay not Pyune

Rollicking on in our trip, we arise on day 2 in Pune, which is absolutely massive, despite appearing small when you first enter. It is the site of a huge military base, and you see signs for “Artificial Limb Centres” everywhere, which is …creepy. There are willowy, ancient Banyan trees everywhere, painted in faded white and red by the government, implying ownership, so that they cannot be harmed. Pune is enticing, and wondrous, dusty and old, with tall, gnarly, cracked sidewalks, and traffic so hazardous to dart through that it becomes an adrenaline rushing game. But I get ahead of myself. Coffee in the morning happens amongst the morning haze, pre smoggy fog. Everyone splits up for their daytime activities. Three of us decide to tackle jewelry and some fabric stores, while Gibran and another friend decide to casually pop off to the Osho Ashram. Given the events that unfolded, I wish I had strapped a GoPro to his head.

While dropping the fans of Osho off at the Ashram, a MASSIVE ACTUAL BLACK BOAR ran in front of our car. I took it in my stride, (hello, ever heard of boar rights?), while other parties in our vehicle saw their lives flash before their eyes. This is to say, there are many animals off the chain (literally) in Pune. Cows are holy, and as such, cannot be harmed, but on the opposite spectrum, are often left unattended and wandering around the street with no where to go. This also goes for goats, pigs, boars, and the dogs that are literally everywhere you look. It is really very upsetting, and yes I realize there are no photos actually correlating to this block of writing. In a bad segue, darting through traffic and screaming dramatically led to the best lunch in Pune, which was… see above. My last meal, I’m fairly sure, would be paneer masala and garlic naan.

If anyone has noted a pattern, it is that after gorging your face, you must always go look at fabric!! For business purposes obvioussslyyy ;-) See above. See below.

And with the night, comes more gluttonous behaviour. Our hostess is actually a legit culinary figure, and whipped up a lil of what is above + steak. Combine with vino tinto, it was a mighty good time. From what my addled brain can recall, the elder-folk really got into the sauce and did a singalong to the 70’s hit “Una Paloma Blanco.” If you have not heard it, I do recommend.

Cheese was cut, jams spread, toffee was crammed into faces. More wine was poured, tea was spilled, and all the faces were smiling. Except for Riz. Who almost missed his flight home. But that is a story for another day.