Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Lothal and Rajwadu

Lothal
Last weekend we visited Lothal in Saragwala. It is located about 85km away from Ahmedabad. It is one of the most prominent cities of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization. The ruins date back to 2500 B.C. , but was not excavated until 1962. The literal meaning of the word Lothal is “Place of the Dead”, which they believe got the name because of their unique burial rituals.

We were really impressed how well intact this sign remained after 4500 years!


Lothal’s dock (the world’s earliest) connected the city to the Sabarmati River and was vital in bringing business to this thriving city.

Water, dirt, and bricks.

The entire settlement was divided into lower town and upper town. Upper town contained houses that had baths, underground drains, and wells for water.

TOP: Brick foundations of old stuff. BOTTOM: A stove, or a giant toilet.

The lower part of town contained both a residential area and a commercial centre. The city was well known for beads, gems, and copper and bronze objects.

An intimate look at some of history's rocks.

Next to the site was an Archaeological Museum (which cost just 2 rupees, or $0.05, to get in!) which contained some of the items found from the dig. It is a weird feeling when you are stared at more than the objects in the museum!

From the Department of Redundancy Department

Rajwadu
On Saturday night we were treated to dinner at Rajwadu. It is a traditional Gujarati restaurant located here in Ahmedabad. The whole restaurant is located outdoors and offers a wide variety of entertainment!

A puppet show. The guy behind the curtain was rocking the puppets and the kazoo AT THE SAME TIME.


You walk through many passage ways to make your way around their large property. You never knew what would be around the next turn…

The crazy part of the night came when one of the girls dancing came out with a whole bunch of pots on her head. They then proceeded to bring her various things to stand on. First it was two cups, then two knives, then a bed of nails, and finally a pile of broken glass. It was quite impressive.

Hopefully, she keeps up on her tetanus boosters.

The food was very delicious. Some dishes were a little spicy for my taste, but they would just refill what items you liked. We had a handful of waiters come over and over again to keep us busy.

TOP: A Gujarati platter.
BOTTOM: A couple white people looking awkwardly cute with traditional Indian paint on their foreheads at Rajwadu.

2 comments:

Kristen E said...

you guys are AWESOME! i laugh outloud at almost every single post. you guys are hilarious. thanks for the posts; they're great!! we miss you, but your adventures sound exciting.
-kristen emerson

Anonymous said...

Alex is good at looking awkward. Although he could have done better in the last picture.