We toured the many Hindu temples of Bhubaneswar. They are famous for their distinctive medieval Orissan architecture: tall, ornately carved oblong towers topped by wheel-like hats.

Mukteswar Temple

Curvy temple carving

Red Ganesh at Siddheswar Temple

Unusual arched entry torana at Mukteswar Temple

Photo shy

Early erotic carvings at Vaital Temple

From Bhubaneswar, we went to the nearby beach-side town of Puri. We drove through lush countryside and small villages. We would see quick vignettes of daily life as we sped by and enjoyed imagining the rest of the stories.

For Hindus, Puri is one of the holiest pilgrimage places in India because of the Jagannath Temple, which houses Jagannath, the Lord of the Universe and an incarnation of Vishnu, and his brother and sister. Non-Hindus are not allowed in, so we were only able to walk around the walls and to peer over them from an adjacent building.

Guard at one of the gates to the Jagannath temple

Jagannath temple complex

Statues of Jagannath and his brother and sister for sale


	Large statues of saucer-eyed god Jagannath (the origin of the term juggernaut), along with his brother and sister, are brought out once a year in mid-summer. Each god is placed in a massive 42-foot high, 16-wheeled wagon. In a noisy and colorful procession, four thousand temple workers pull the gods in their wagons two kilometers to another temple for a week-long "holiday," after which they are returned to the Jagannath Temple. New wagons are constructed each year for this procession, as the old ones are broken up and used for fuel in the communal kitchen of the temple.

Kitty takes a break

Ted rides a rickshaw

Honey cakes on display

Smiling fruit seller

Colorful sweets for sale

Street scene in front of Jagannath temple complex

Puri is also a beach town. Anne’s family once vacationed here when they were assigned to Calcutta. What once had been pristine stretches of beach with the fishing fleet coming and going, with men hauling in their nets and with very few tourists was now like Coney Island: hawkers, holiday makers, honeymooners, camels and ponies - a lively scene. However, we did manage to find some fishermen and some of the unique Puri “conehead” lifeguards from years past, and the beach is still magnificent.

Fishing village woman and children

Fisherman bringing in his net

Fishermen heading out

Lifeguards with signature Puri cone hats

Tourist wares for sale on the beach

Sweethearts in the surf

Beach side camel rides

Cotton candy vendors

Indian women don’t wear bathing suits or actually swim at the beach. They wade in the surf wearing full saris or salwar kameez. The men, on the other hand, are a little more daring.

Showing off in front of the girls

Bathing beauty

A group of local tourist photographers wanted to put Anne into the photos with their customers - the blonde hair, sunglasses and big grin must have added a touch of Hollywood to the honeymoon pictures!