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A Tourist Guide Welcomes You to Pondy

There are no yellow brick roads here, Madame.
just yellow schools,
gray houses,
pink car porches for non-polluting toy cars.
walk barefoot and nothing will happen, you can always dip your feet
in the sea at the end of the road..
Are you tired, monsieur??
No worries.. let us sit down on this bench,
M. Dupleix is 'very please to meet you'.
But don't tell him you just met Gandhi...
You hungry, Madame? Indian?
Pizza? Giovanni? or French? Momos?
We eat, Madame, cheap or costly
exotic and local...
For your photography, we come later,
in the noon...
When the sun shines high and yellow is beautiful..
You have social life tonight?
No booze or party?
You come to rock beach alone, Monsieur,
and watch the moon dance in the waters...
Why today is festive? 
It's Republic Day madame..
India became a republic... 
Liberty, Equality, Fraternity.
You see him, Mademoiselle,
He drives rickshaw, but today,
He is happy, he bounces his child in air..
He buys balloons for his girl and 
Ice-cream for his wife...
Today, he is happy.
Tomorrow morning, we see sunrise,
and fishing boats and fishermen and star fish on the sand.
Evening we eat fried fish on the beach, 
Sand on our hair, on our lashes
and then you play in water, sir.
That song and dance sir?? No party,
That's goodbye to a dead body...
Farewell with joy.
Marriage and Death, equally happy. Equally sad.
For me sir? Extra cash for extra affection?
Thank You, monsieur, merci.
Welcome to Pondy again sir,
Bienvenue..

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