Little India

I needed three doses of Little India to really get a good handle on it. The first time, I got myself hopelessly lost among the little alleyways and ended up getting caught in a heavy machinery work zone with no resemblance to India at all (as far as I am aware). Even checking the map I had with me was no help, because the street signs were nowhere to be seen and the angles of the roads didn't match my map. I had to use the skyline to get my bearing and the angles of the shadows to determine compass directions. Given Little India is only a dozen blocks or so, I felt a little silly and vowed that I needed to reconsider a GPS for the rest of my trip.

The second and third time, a lovely local Indian-Malay woman offered to show me the sights with dinner. Rain had started to fall in the afternoon, so we met at the Chinatown Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station and caught the train to Little India station. On exiting, I found myself very near where I had lost myself last time. Plunging through the rain and people, we moved through a food court smelling of Indian spices and where I had a brilliant mango lassi previously, while searching through the map.Through the bustle, we made our way to a vegetarian restaurant across the road.

Komala Vilas Vegetarian Restaurant

It took a bit of effort to eat with my hands, but my South Indian meal, rice on a leaf (which sounds more exotic in Tamil), was glorious. It was composed of a bowl of rice and small serves of different dishes and cups of various curries and tastes arranged on what looked like a banana leaf. Using my fingers to mix different amounts of the food with rice, I made a mess (encouraged by my host), but the food was wonderful - the best Indian I have ever had. At the end of the meal was a bitter yet tasty broth that I could taste in the back of my nose more than my mouth and then rounded it off with a sweet white yoghurt, cashew nut and raisin drink that tasted faintly of ginger but without any ginger (my host asked, to my chagrin).

South Indian meal (Rice on a Leaf) ... sans leaf

From there, moving through crowded streets smelling of flower wreathes being made, I was shown exotic textile and jewellery shops with incredible fabrics and detailed necklaces. I bought a pale Jippa with some gold and silver floral embroidery and cotton pants. I was struck by the similarities of the sari, a single strip of fabric that is woven around the body to form a dress, and the Scottish kilt. We stopped to look at the Mustafa market that had everything and, to my joy, an extensive toy and electronics section.

Roadside florist stalls for all occasions

Taking our shoes off at the Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, we washed our feet before entering the Hindu temple to see incredible statues of various deities and heroes. The place was in full swing with families praying while walking around statues, red and white blessings being placed on foreheads, and men in robes rocking while reciting prayers at dozens of spots. There was even a long line for a blessed meal. The feeling of peace and comfort ran through the place constantly under the watchful eyes of the deities. I paid respect and donated to the costs of cleaning and maintaining the temple, but could not bring myself to pull out my camera and start taking photographs inside - it just seemed too insensitive.

Sri Veeramakaliamman Hindu Temple

I drove through the location in an attempt to get better photos of some of these landmarks, but I had to watch out for the traffic and people that I couldn't take any good shots with the helmet-mounted camera. I loved the environment, though, and although I got some strange looks, I thought the bustle perfect for me to train in for some of the future locations I will be driving through.