26 February ChennaiAfter the hotel breakfast I caught up on this journal and other projects. In the afternoon I caught an auto to Mylapore and a late lunch of a pair of idly and a plain dosa at Mylai Shri Karpagambal Mess. The nearby R.K. Swamy Auditorium offered three Bharatanatyam dance recitals this Sunday, each with its own group of musicians comprised of two vocalists, a flute player, and a man on a mridangam. In today’s performances a man did the main singing narration interspersed with short and fast rhythmic sections done by a woman, who also played hand bells. Avani Shandilya, a teenager, danced first and had such poise that she performed part of one dance atop a large inverted pot. Sruthika P. Nair came next with a series of dances that included one dedicated to the adorable and occasionally mischievous infant Krishna. Lastly R. Aparajitha portrayed a variety of dramatic dances, both happy and sad. Restaurants near the temple were super busy tonight, but I finally had success at a branch of Adayar Ananda Bhavan (A2B) where I got a rich paneer butter masala with chapattis.
On to Chennai (India): A Bit of Sightseeing and the Government Museum