It felt like a fairly regular week in our Hyderabad: morning monkey yoga, squash, baby cuddling and Jack heading back to school after the Dussehra break. I also found myself digging into some fascinating family history, tried aerial yoga for the first time and discovered a few more of Hyderabad’s quirks along the way.
Last Sunday, Ganesh recommended that we go to Shilparamam for Bathukamma, Telangana’s flower festival, and he was absolutely right. Women gather to sing and dance in circles around beautiful stacked arrangements of flowers, and the colours were incredible. We watched from the sidelines until two young women invited me into the circle and patiently guided me through the steps. The movements followed the rhythm of the music, and once I got going, I was completely caught up in it. I’m not a particularly good dancer, but nobody seemed concerned. It was such a lovely experience to be welcomed in rather than just watching.
On Monday, during a call with Dad, I finally remembered to ask about Aunty Margaret’s time in India. I had meant to do this before we moved but somehow never got around to it. I remember visiting her home, Clannoch, for what I think was her 80th birthday, doing cartwheels outside, collecting eggs from her chickens and discovering an Aga stove for the first time. There were seemingly endless bridge games in the kitchen, although I can’t remember whether she played. I knew she had been a doctor in India, following her sister Helen (Nell), but little more than that. Dad sent me some photographs from her India album and mentioned that my uncle had been contacted for the University of Edinburgh’s 300 Faces project, celebrating 300 years of its medical school. That was enough to send me down a very interesting rabbit hole.
I’ve since been corresponding with an archivist at the university, who kindly sent me catalogues for the first two boxes of letters. Most haven’t been digitised, so I’m reading summaries rather than the letters themselves, but even those are fascinating. Written between 1909 and 1928, they cover everything from her medical work and patients to friendships, travel and the ordinary details of life in India. With no telephone or email, she sometimes wrote home several times a week. One entry mentioned Tonk, the rather obscure town where we stopped during our Rajasthan trip to break up the drive from Bundi to Jaipur airport. Tonk is hardly a tourist destination, so finding it in the letters was an extraordinary coincidence. Another entry mentioned a visit by the Nizam of Hyderabad. Suddenly, places and names from our own travels were appearing in family correspondence more than a century old.
The photographs of the women’s mission hospital in Ajmer are remarkable. It looks as though it was built in the middle of nowhere, which is hard to reconcile with the busy Indian city Ajmer is today. I’ve shown the pictures to people here, who have been fascinated by the female doctors, surgical equipment and hospital setting. The letters also describe the challenges of providing medical care to women, including the social pressures and competing priorities that sometimes prevented them from accepting treatment. Some of those challenges sound surprisingly familiar today. I’m now mapping the places mentioned in the letters and trying to locate the original hospital. I would love to visit some of them while we’re here. For anyone interested, here is Helen McMillan’s University of Edinburgh profile.
Another family connection emerged this week. My maternal grandfather was stationed in India during the Second World War and brought back the ring I’ve always thought of as my grandmother’s engagement ring. I wear it quite often, and apparently the sapphire came from Ceylon, now Sri Lanka. I’ve been carrying a little connection to this part of the world around on my finger for years without really thinking about it.
Monday was also a big adventure for Jack. Vishal decided to take him on a tour of Hyderabad using public transportation, so off they went by tuk-tuk, public bus and metro. They covered more than 15 kilometres and made an entire day of it, even stopping along the way to eat the packed lunches they had brought with them. Jack had a wonderful time, and afterwards we talked about how different the experience was from taking public transit in Toronto. He was particularly fascinated by the seating arrangements on both the buses and metro, with women sitting at the front and men at the back. For Jack, three different forms of transportation and a picnic lunch made for a pretty excellent day. Vishal certainly knows how to plan an adventure for him.
Tuesday was a holiday, so Ganesh and Vishal took Jack to the science centre. It turned out to be several buildings spread across a large campus, with exhibits on British history and currency among other things. Unfortunately, it didn’t open until noon, so they had to go for breakfast first. I suspect this was Jack’s favourite part of the outing. Two idli and four puris later, he was ready for some science. There are definitely Indian foods he has embraced enthusiastically!
Wednesday brought Jack’s return to school after the Dussehra break and Ganesh’s 50th birthday. We celebrated with a little cake and a gift, and Jack presented him with a framed photograph of the two of them getting Burger King. Ganesh seemed genuinely touched, which was very sweet. When it came time for cake, Ganesh offered each of us a bite directly from his fork. I’m still getting used to being fed by other people here! At home, that would generally be something reserved for close friends or family, but perhaps that’s exactly the point. It’s a lovely gesture, even if my instinct is still to reach for the fork myself.
With all the squash I’ve been playing, I decided it was time to replace the orthotics in my running shoes. I found a place advertising custom orthotics, complete with a website showing a computerised foot-measuring system. Promising enough to justify driving halfway across Hyderabad, which took over an hour in stop-and-go traffic. They measured my feet, advised me to lose five kilograms, prescribed three exercises and then produced a pair of orthotics off the shelf. I asked whether they actually made custom orthotics. Yes, absolutely, they assured me, showing me the same pair. When I explained that I wanted something made specifically for my feet, they suggested I cut them down to fit my shoes. Apparently, custom means they manufacture them in their factory, rather than customise them for the person buying them. After an hour in traffic, I had received unsolicited weight-loss advice and an offer to do my own orthotic manufacturing with scissors. The search for a chiropodist continues.
Saturday morning was my first aerial yoga class. It had appeared in my Instagram reels, was only twenty minutes away and advertised itself as suitable for beginners. I’ve been enjoying inversions lately, although an unsupported headstand or handstand still seems a long way off, so hanging upside down in fabric seemed worth trying. I loved it! The photographs show a very red face because all the blood really does rush to your head. I trusted my legs to hold me upside down, but my shoulders were another matter. With my arms wrapped in the fabric and my body leaning forward, I kept wondering whether they might pop out of their sockets. There were only four of us in the class, and I thought I did reasonably well, certainly compared with a couple of the others. So I was a little puzzled when the instructor’s recommendation sheet suggested yoga, meditation and Pilates, but not aerial yoga. I’m choosing to believe aerial yoga was already a given and he was simply recommending additional classes. It is a business, after all.
The studio itself was lovely, once you found it. The rest of the floor was unfinished concrete, surrounded by expensive new buildings in various stages of construction. So much of Hyderabad looks like this at the moment, with beautiful finished spaces appearing in the middle of enormous building sites. I suspect the neighbourhood will be unrecognisable in another year. I would definitely go back to aerial yoga. I’m enjoying trying new things that challenge my strength and balance, even when they leave me wondering whether my shoulders are properly attached.
Saturday evening, with Vishal looking after Jack, Jason and I headed to Rü in Jubilee Hills. The restaurant and cocktail bar is built around enormous natural boulders, making for a beautiful setting. More importantly, we finally found somewhere in India that makes genuinely good cocktails! This has been surprisingly elusive until now. Their signature Gongura cocktail, inspired by the tangy Telugu pickle made from sorrel leaves, includes pickled brine and was delicious. The Indian food was excellent too, although there was rather more coriander than I would have liked. It seemed to be in absolutely everything. Still, we would happily go back, especially for the cocktails.
From there, Ganesh drove us to the Hard Rock Cafe for a Bryan Adams tribute band called The Three of Us and Her. A female singer performing Bryan Adams classics in Hyderabad seemed like something two Canadians really ought to investigate. Tickets were ₹299 each, although apparently only four people had actually bought them, including us. We received official-looking wristbands before discovering that anyone coming in for dinner or drinks could watch for free. So we had essentially paid ₹598 for two wristbands. With perhaps twenty people in the place, Jason promptly christened the evening the Not Quite Sold Out Tour.
The hostess initially resisted giving us a table near the stage because it seated six. Jason pointed out that the sudden arrival of six more Bryan Adams fans seemed unlikely, but promised we would move if necessary. We got the table. He also made a point of introducing us to the band as Canadians who couldn’t possibly miss the performance, which earned us a little acknowledgement when they started playing. And they were actually pretty good! When the singer began taking requests, Jason shouted out “Summer of ’69,” another table requested “Run to You,” and we got up near the stage to bob along enthusiastically.
Then I suggested Jason request “The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You.”
“Excuse me?” the singer asked.
Jason repeated the title, considerably louder.
“Well, thank you for the compliment!” she replied.
She had absolutely no idea he was requesting a Bryan Adams song. I completely lost it. Jason, realising he had apparently just made a very public pass at the lead singer, tried to explain himself by shouting, “But I’m here with my wife!”
That did not help. I was in hysterics. Last weekend he somehow ended up exchanging phone numbers with another woman, and now he was propositioning a singer in front of an audience of twenty people. I may need to start accompanying him everywhere. Oh wait...
Once we recovered, Jason asked me what the band was called again. “The Three of Us and Her,” I replied, looking at the stage. Except there were four male musicians and the female singer. Apparently, counting the band members was no more important than selling tickets. India!
Sunday morning, we went to yoga at Imli Sira with a few others. Jason actually enjoyed himself, or at least announced that he is now neutral about yoga, having actively hated it before we moved to India. This is significant progress. I think the morning monkey yoga has helped his flexibility, while the squash exercises have improved his balance. He certainly seemed more confident and managed to hold some of the balancing poses longer than I did, which I’m sure I’ll hear about again.
Afterwards, we did a little shopping. Jason has been searching for a South Indian coffee set and was waiting for the right one to speak to him. Apparently, pouring coffee back and forth between the two metal cups makes it frothy, almost like a cappuccino. We also bought some artificial flower petals, carved from wood and naturally dyed, for making arrangements during festivals and poojas. I think the seller said they were made from turmeric wood. Leo immediately tried to eat one, so they may have to be displayed somewhere beyond his reach.
My own gardening efforts are considerably less successful. All but two of my herb seedlings have died, leaving two tiny but determined basil plants. The mites, unfortunately, are thriving. We haven’t had rain in weeks, and I’ve been reading worrying reports about low water reserves following a poor monsoon. It has also been very hot and humid, and our bedroom air conditioner is not working properly, which isn't helping anyone's mood.
I did finally buy a fan for the balcony, so at least I can sit outside without melting. The trick here is to take Ganesh to the electrical shop, let him negotiate the price, and then have him ask the staff to open the box and assemble the fan before we leave. Imagine asking for that at Best Buy! Here, it was simply part of the service. I can now sit comfortably on the balcony and watch the remaining plants die one by one.
With Dussehra behind us, Hyderabad is already gearing up for Diwali. Decorations are appearing everywhere, shops are filling up with lights, and Sarath City Mall has even put up a Diwali tree. We're really looking forward to celebrating our first Diwali in India, although judging by the enthusiasm Hyderabad brings to every festival, we're also bracing ourselves. I suspect things are about to get very loud, very colourful and completely out of hand. Can't wait!
Ganesh’s 50th…
Date nite - Ru Cocktail Lounge - Awesome dinner and drinks…