SPICE MARKET (VLOG

The final and longest stop of today's tour was to observe how Indian spices are made, from the drying of the chilies (not "peppers"; that designation was given by Western traders who were looking for peppercorns in their explorations, and gave the name to anything spicy so they could market it back home), to the mixing with various herbs and other seasoning elements and searing them in a large wok-like pan, to the grinding of the resulting mixture into a fine powder for use in cooking (once performed by hand, but now done mechanically by a machine that looks like a cross between a mortar-and-pestle, a pile driver and a piston engine).
Along the way, our group deals with traffic of both motorized and human varieties, and how to deal with them…

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Welcome to Mumbai, India. In case you plan on visiting the state of GUJARAT after this, all guide books are outdated, so here are some things to see:
1. Statue of Unity (tallest statue in the world) near Vadodara
2. Gir National Park (The only natural habitat of the Asiatic Lion)
3. Akshardham Temple in Gandhinagar, close to Ahmedabad
4. Modhera Sun Temple close to Ahmedabad
5. Rann of Kutch: Rann Utsav Festival (Oct. to Feb.) is amazing!
6. Sabarmati Ashram of Mahatma Gandhi in Ahmedabad
7. Lakshmi Vilas Palace in Vadodara
8. Somnath
9. Dwarka
10. Diu
11. Rani Ki Vav
12. Surat Diamond Bourse (largest office building in the world)
13. Narendra Modi Stadium (largest stadium in the world)
14. Manekchowk night market in Ahmedabad
15. Law Garden night market in Ahmedabad
16. Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad (possible sight of 2036 Olympics)
17. Kankaria Lake Recreational Area in Ahmedabad
18. Adalaj Stepwell
19. Hathee Singh Jain Temple in Ahmedabad
20. Ambaji Goddess Temple in Banaskantha District
21. Shatrunjaya Hill temple in Palitana
22. Nilkanth Dham Swaminarayan Temple near Vadodara
23. Saputara Lake
24. Polo Forest
25. Dholavira (ancient city ruins from 3500 BCE)
26. Balasinor Dinosaur Excavation and Museum
27. Science City in Ahmedabad
28. GIFT City (new fintech city being built)
And be sure to do the Thali restaurants in Ahmedabad. They are something unique. Here are some of the best:
1. Agashiye
2. Atithi
3. Gordhan Thal
4. Vishala
5. Rajwadu
6. Iscon Thal