Saturday, March 31, 2018, Cruising the Bay of Bengal

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The largest bay in the world, the history rich waters of the Bay of Bengal are considered sacred by many Hindus.  In ancient Hindu lore, the bay is called Mahodadhi, or “great water receptacle.”  Still today, the devout perform a daily aarti, a religious ritual in which they place fire offerings into the surf and let the tides carry them away.  The course of history was changed in these waters in the early 1600s, when galleons of the British East India Company sailed along the coast, settled throughout India, and built a trading company that accounted for half the world’s maritime commerce in goods such as cotton, silk, indigo dye, and tea.

 We will arrive at Chennai early tomorrow morning.


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