Kolkata day 2

Checked out of my "expensive" hotel today and moved to cheap one. Part of the reason I moved to the latter was to meet other travelers. It would be nice to have a travel companion here in India.

So I checked into the Paragon Guest House. I found the cheapest room to be nicer than the slightly more expensive rooms. Yay. Anyway, w/in 5 minutes of sitting down at a table in the courtyard, someone walked by me then said, "Sean?" Bangladesh all over again! Except it wasn't a local this time. No, it was Marie, who I had met back in Bangkok. Last time I saw her it was April. Small world.

Anyway, after updating my journal (i hadn't written in it since June 7th, yikes), I headed out. You know I really do not have anything planned here, just like Bangladesh. I have some vague ideas but nothing concrete. I just end up doing things that are related to those vague ideas.

Today is a perfect example. I broke my glasses for a 2nd time on my last day in Dhaka. I thought, "oh, i will just get them fixed in India and maybe buy some new frames and/or lenses since they'll be much cheaper than back in the usa." Well I was walking down Park St and I came across a optical store. I walked in, asked them to fix my glasses. "You can see through these things?" the lady asked. Eh well, somewhat. I asked how much lenses cost. "1200 rupees [30 dollars] for the best ones" she said. Well hell, I might as well buy them. So I did. I then thought, "why not frames too?" I ended up getting an eye exam (free) plus one pair of frames and two sets of lenses, one for my old pair, one for my new pair. Cost? About $120. Not cheap, but at least 1/5 of what I'd pay in the USA.

Consequently, I might be here in Kolkata until Tuesday evening. They are trying to get the lenses today but they are not certain they can. If they do not, I'll have to wait a bit since tomorrow is sunday (and they are closed). Oh well... I only have 4 other places I plan on going and I have a little more than 3 weeks, so it isn't so bad. I'll get to know Kolkata well, that's for sure.

Oh, first meal in India: McDonald's... Yes, I'm sad I know. My excuse is I went over a month eating JUST bengali food (and fried chicken 3 times in local restaurants) so I deserve some kind of break from indian food. It wasn't very filling, so I "redeemed" myself a little by buying a paneer wrap further down the street afterwards.

McDonald's in India is a little different from back home (not to rip off Pulp Fiction or anything). Obviously there are no hamburgers for cultural reasons. There is a veggie burger available, as well as a tika chicken burger. They play music LOUDLY. When a Backstreet boys remix came on, I knew that was my time to leave.

Anyway, that's all for now. Just praying my glasses will be ready by the end of today.