Bare Foot Conversations

So I said I would post more on my dinner at the Bare Foot restaurant. Well, to begin with, I was luck to stumble into this non-descript building. If it hadn't been for the sign with a picture of feet and the catchy name, I could have easily passed it by. Located on a side street in little India, the restaurant offers traditional Southern Indian dining which consists of removing your shoes and sitting on pillows around a very low table. One important lesson I learned was to never underestimate the power of Southern Indian spices! When asked how spicy I wanted my dish, I chose level 4 out of a possible 6 given my normal penchant for rather spicy food. She hesitated and asked if I really wanted that level of spice, but I felt confident that I could handle it. Boy was I wrong! The first bite kicked me in the mouth like a mule and by bite six I could no longer feel my tongue. When the hostess returned and inquired whether it was too spicy I tried to look composed through my watering eyes and casually stated "nope, its perfect!" Lets just say I suffered later that night for my lie...

The best part of the night was that things were incredibly slow at the restraunt, so the hostess came over to check up on my meal and ended up sitting down to chat for a bit. Before we knew it we were discussing cultures, religion, human goodness, and all kinds-of other fun things! She claimed to have very little formal education in the area, but a Hindu priest had told her she had an "old soul," meaning that through many re-incarnations she had gained much wisdom. While she discarded such notions, by the end of the night I was inclined to believe it! What fun to meet up with such an interesting person in a very random place! In a microcosm this captures my fundamental joy of traveling thus far in my life, meeting people who approach life from very different vantage points, yet finding common ground and shared understanding.

Dinner update - tonight I enjoyed "clay pot frog legs" with friends at a rather well known establishment in an area known for its dining (Geylang). The frogs are live until shortly before your dinner, if they were any fresher they literally would be hopping! If you are a bit morbid, or just curious, you can pass by the side windows where lots of little Kermits wait their turn... If it makes you feel any better, I am told that the frogs had all enjoyed excellent lives and were "ready to go" as it were.