India, Day 2

I'm writing after our second day in India. I was on a full-day tour of Kancheepuram and Mamallapuram cities. I'm going to be lazy and copy/paste the trip description, just for historical background:

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“Kancheepuram or “Golden City”is one of the seven most sacred places of pilgrimage for Hindus. Once known as
the "City of a Thousand Temples,"there are still over 100 shrines in the environs of Kancheepuram. The most
important are the "living"temples where the practice of worship continues today. See the 7th and 8th century
paintings on the walls of the 1200-year-old Kailasanatha Temple. View the ten-storied, intricately sculptured tower
of the 16th-century Ekambareswara Temple. Visit the Hall of 96 Pillars and see the handsome pavilions at
Vaikuntanatha Temple. Kancheepuram is also famous for its traditional art of silk weaving. 

Mamallapuram (Mahabalipuram) is an ancient port city of the Pallava kings. Apart from being a popular beach
resort, it is famous for three major sights of great architectural and artistic merit. See the 1200-year-old Shore
Temple standing in solitary splendor on the sand of the shoreline. Visit the Five Rathas, named after the Pandava
brothers, heroes of the Mahabharata. These large stone edifices are sculptured and shaped into temple prototypes. 
Then view the biggest bas-relief in the world, Arjuna's Penance, which portrays the descent of the Ganges from
Siva's locks and other fables from the Panchatantra. “
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It was fascinating. The temples themselves are exquisite...carved with a level of detail so deep that they've withstood centuries. We heard a lot of the religious histories of the different shrines. It impressed me that each holy place has such a complex story behind its creation. It makes you immediately treat a place with reverence when you know the intricate tradition behind it.

In one of the bas-relief edifices in Mamallapuram, we got swarmed with school kids who were there on a field trip. They rushed at everyone in our group, demanded to know our names, and posed for picture after picture. Each time we took a photo, they'd crowd around the camera's screen and erupt with laughter when the picture came up on display. These kids were enthusiastic and friendly to a degree that was almost frightening.

I got exposed to some of the darker stuff today. We saw some homeless folks that were in pretty bad shape. The beggars and merchants I saw today approached us with a kind of desperation that I haven't seen in any of the other countries so far. I think I understand the word “beggar”in a new context...as in begging and pleading. So right now I'm going through what every person feels the first time they visit India and get exposed to that. Just, trying to reconcile it is difficult. I think I'll be able to write more clearly about it when I've reflected a little more.

I still feel like I haven't been immersed fully yet. Tomorrow I'll be traveling independently of any organized trips, and I think that will be when I actually get connected to the country in an even deeper sense. The last two days have been baby steps.
Namaste.