When it rains, it pours

On Sunday night, cassiopia and I got back from our trip to the Starwood festival. I had a simply wonderful time, with daily doses of drumming, bonfires, ritual, dancing, swimming, hot tubing, and concerts. I also got to try some nifty new things like digeridoo playing and stilt walking. If I get my act together, I'll post something more detailed on Starwood, but my journal keeping has been spotty-at-best lately.

Meanwhile, I have not quite finished getting re-adjusted to being required to wear clothing again. However, my transition into the mundane world was mostly harmless. No post-gathering letdown this year, surprisingly enough. On Sunday, I will leave for India, and much of my efforts this week are geared at preparing for the Cosmic Ray Conference there, as well as accomplishing the things that need to be done before I leave town for two weeks.

The 29th International Cosmic Ray Conference will be held in Pune, India. Pune is a short distance away from Mumbai (a.k.a. Bombay), so I have tickets to fly into Mumbai and then, after a day of sightseeing, we plan to drive or take a train to Pune. I've starting taking my anti-malaria medication; I've got my visa from the India embassy; everything seems to be fine, right? Well, not quite...

I just found out from a colleague (who found out from CNN.com) that the heaviest rainfall ever recorded in India has hit Mumbai, effectively shutting the city down. Airports are closed, troops are deployed, and communications lines are down after over thirty-seven inches of rain hit in a single day. The full text of the Associated Press article can be found ( here )

Clearly, this is not at all what I expected right before travelling to India. So, what does this mean for my trip? Not certain yet, but it should be "interesting" to find out...

When it rains, it pours

On Sunday night, cassiopia and I got back from our trip to the Starwood festival. I had a simply wonderful time, with daily doses of drumming, bonfires, ritual, dancing, swimming, hot tubing, and concerts. I also got to try some nifty new things like digeridoo playing and stilt walking. If I get my act together, I'll post something more detailed on Starwood, but my journal keeping has been spotty-at-best lately.

Meanwhile, I have not quite finished getting re-adjusted to being required to wear clothing again. However, my transition into the mundane world was mostly harmless. No post-gathering letdown this year, surprisingly enough. On Sunday, I will leave for India, and much of my efforts this week are geared at preparing for the Cosmic Ray Conference there, as well as accomplishing the things that need to be done before I leave town for two weeks.

The 29th International Cosmic Ray Conference will be held in Pune, India. Pune is a short distance away from Mumbai (a.k.a. Bombay), so I have tickets to fly into Mumbai and then, after a day of sightseeing, we plan to drive or take a train to Pune. I've starting taking my anti-malaria medication; I've got my visa from the India embassy; everything seems to be fine, right? Well, not quite...

I just found out from a colleague (who found out from CNN.com) that the heaviest rainfall ever recorded in India has hit Mumbai, effectively shutting the city down. Airports are closed, troops are deployed, and communications lines are down after over thirty-seven inches of rain hit in a single day. The full text of the Associated Press article can be found ( here )

Clearly, this is not at all what I expected right before travelling to India. So, what does this mean for my trip? Not certain yet, but it should be "interesting" to find out...