The land where grass is legal

I am spending my summer in Orissa this year, Bhubaneswar and its surrounding areas to be precise. I hope I will get some time to traipse around some of the tourist sites in the city. My field trips start next week, and that will provide me with ample opportunity to blog about a lot of things. But before that, here is a simple list of what am I doing right now, where I am etc etc.

1. I am staying at KIIT campus, which is beautiful and well constructed. I don't see any good playgrounds or a good gym though. Big Bazaar and some other good shops are nearby. The XIMB campus is about 60 rupee auto away and that is also the location where you can find a good watering hole, Smokin Joe's , Domino's, an ice cream parlor called The Idiot's, one Mughlai-Chinese Restaurant and a Cafe Coffee Day.
2. I travelled to Puri last week and a week before that, I saw some major temples in the city of Bhubaneswar. I did darshan of Lingaraj and Jagannath. I saw the majestic ratha being built for ratha yatra in Puri. I saw the Sun Temple at Konark and photographed each of its 24 Wheels and some of the carved idols.
3. If you ever get a chance to travel from Konark to Puri via the marine drive road, do not miss some of the beaches. They are long, solitary, beautiful, and the waves are wild.
4. The best temple carvings (by what I have seen till now) are to be found in Konark and the Raja Rani temple in Bhubaneswar. They are so beautiful, that it is impossible to capture it by a camera. Even after one thousand years of battering by the nature, they have retained their beauty. It is impossible to describe the beauty of their form and movement. You have to go there and see it.
5. I am working with a team which consists of 1 Canadian, 1 Colombian and 1 American. We are yet to clash or fight over anything or get upset with each other. They are very professional, experienced, talented, accommodating, forgiving and cooperative. It has been a good experience working with them till now, and I hope this summer will be very productive for me.
6. There is another team which also has Bhubaneswar as its station. It consists of one Greek, one Columbian, one American and One Indian. They are also doing well and have enjoyed their stay in India till now.
7. The area is fertile, green, populous. Capital city is clean, has clean air, is well developed and designed. You do not see enough traffic on the streets though and there are very few traffic jams. And team traffic of the city is AWESOME. They are like the best dressed traffic staff in the country complete with shades, cowboy hats, gloves and boots.
8. I also saw the shanti stupa and Ashoka's rock inscriptions near the battlefield of the Kalinga War. The inscriptions were in Brahmi with Pali language.
9. Monsoon has started here, and the first few showers have been crazy. It is usually very hot and sunny in the mornings. But by evening we have heavy clouds, winds and heavy downpours. The back up systems at the university have however made sure that we do not face long power cuts.
10. The grass is sold legally outside temples, especially the Shiva ones. The going rate is about 400 rupees for one joint and it is negotiable. I have not had any myself though.