The ganja is legal in Bhubaneshwar - but the quality is crap! I wonder what the Mayor of Amsterdam would have thought of this City - the capital of the only state in India where one can smoke the Noble Herb without inviting police attention. That indeed, is the meaning of Freedom - freedom from the police. I feel Free here - but there is still a lot of Freedom to be fought for in Orissa.
For example, the Freedom to sell toddy - and mahua, and chhung (yes, there is a sizeable Tibetan camp in Orissa). Lots and lots of toddy palms in the countryside - and no Freedom of the City.
You cannot find a bar within 500 yards from my hotel. This ain't no Palolem Beach lined with "shacks" selling the choicest cocktails. But the fried prawns are better.
At 'round midnight, I bought a quarter of rum from the "black market." What a wonderful institution, the black market. I felt proud to uphold this great institution, that too, in Bhubaneshwar, where The State sells ganja of poor quality.
Yes, I was indeed wondering what the Mayor of Amsterdam would have thought of this place. The photo accompanying this post is of a "Menu Card" in an Amsterdam Hash Cafe.
And in Amsterdam, the Late Night Bar was open till 4 am - when I staggered back to my hotel, nearby.
Today, I am off to the beaches of Puri.
Stay tuned.
Crap ganja? Ha ha. Reality bites. Imagine travelling right across the subcontinent naively believing that the govt-run shops will have choice ganja when you usually don't get that even for love of money.Why not continue travelling to Manipur - maybe you'll get lucky there. Then again, maybe not. But being the die-hard optimist you are, you will probably spend your life chasing the rainbow, searching for the elusive pot of gold at the end. Wise up.
ReplyDeleteSauvik ji seems to be having a really, really great time. it is his travel articles that I like to read most.
ReplyDeleteI wish I had the means or the daring to travel to all those "exotic places" in India and enjoy drinks, local culture, etc. This is great life of complete freedom.
Being stuck in dull, hot and predictably STUPID New Delhi (Nude Elly) is the worst nightmare that many people are forced to live for their entire lives....
With rampant price rise, hunger strikes round every corner, a corrupt and indifferent government at the centre, life is hell in Nude Elly.