Hospitality of Indians

Discussion in 'Travel' started by nandi, Jan 4, 2009.

  1. nandi

    nandi Senior IL'ite

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    Dear Friends
    I recently visited Tanjavur and Trichy in tamilnadu and had the oppurtunity to enjoy the magnificient temples and the warmth and welcoming attitude of the people.
    I was asked to visit tanjavur some years back by a friend who was married into a family settled in tanjavur.Just before Xmas was able to manage a few days off from my work and asked my friend to get me hotel booking and arrange a taxi from trichy to tanjavur.My friend and her brother in law assured me that everything was arranged.Itook off with another friend from cochin to tanjavur (first time i was doing this without seeing to all arrangements myself )The taxi was at the station and after a long drive we reached the hotel.My friends brother Murali was at the hotel and checked us into the hotel.He had arranged for sight seeing soon after breakfast and we had a guide.This guide was too good. The periakovil was magnificient.we just filled our eyes and our heads seeing the art and history of each stone there.we also visited the palace museum and could see some artisans working on tanjavur paintings.oneday was really too short to take in all the visuals of tanjavur.
    we were escorted by train to trichy and handed over to acca a family friend of Mr Murali .Acca took us straight to srerangam temple.This was also a huge temple and with so much to see .but i was not impressed with the pujaris pushing devoteesto take blessing and asking for dashinas ...it was too commercialised.our train that day back to cochin was at 8.30pm we really was not sure what we should do after the temple visit.Acca asked us to go to her house ,we did not know her personally and she was very friendly so we took up her invitation.she had by the time called her daughter and prepared lunch for us .we were really suprised .we went to her house she and her daughter assured us that we were not intruding and arranged everything for freshning up .we were given such a tasty and simple lunch.after which we were given their room to rest.I was really without words the way they looked after us .later we went to a nearby temple and then we decided that we would like to get to know them rather than another temple.Their daughter nalini is getting married in march .she was so welcoming.we could not understand tamil and none of them understood our language and only nalini understood some english.but we managed to become great friends.the whole family took us back to the railway station and i think they were reluctant to let us go as we were also sad to say goodbye.
    we were really touched by their hospitality,total strangers and they just took us into their care just after a phone call from an old neighbour.
    we decided immediatly to keep in touch with this family and dont want to loose their friendship at all.i also decided that i will also show the same warmth to all my guest even if i dont know them or if i am tired after work ,no excuses for hospitality . To someone who comes into my small world my guest, all should be treated like the gods.In Trichy i saw the temple and the gods at my accas house.
    i wanted world to know there are still many people like accas family in India
    thankyou
    nanda
     
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  2. Sriniketan

    Sriniketan IL Hall of Fame

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    Nanda,
    Very nice to read your travelogue which in turn explains the hospitality of our country...true. there are many people in this world...we come across them only occasionally,... that is the irony..
    It is very nice of you to keep in touch with that family...and I liked your attitude of treating guests like Gods...there is similar wordings..in our scriptures...claiming that Guests should be treated as Gods...

    sriniketan
     

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