The religious side in me urged me to find and visit a temple in Minneapolis. So, the other day i went to a Balaji Temple here. It seemed basically like a two floor office space which was converted into a temple.

The temple fulfilled all the criteria of being a holy place namely, the beautifully decorated idols, camphor smell, striking aarti plate, prasad, chants, priest, etc but still i missed the 'feel' of a holy place. This absence of emotion was due to the shape of the building and an office type entry and exit .
I realised, how even the shape of a building contributes to the holy 'feel' which we are so used to in India. Generally speaking, the temple buildings in India are tall with either a large or a small mount or a stupa at the top with a big entrance.

As i was going to the temple, i wanted to carry some flowers or sweets. Since the only flowers accessible here are in the form of bouquets or single roses and the sweets are frozen, tinned and insipid, i decided to just carry some cash. To my surprise, i was amazed to see others offering bouquets, frozen sweets and also some stale looking-fresh sweets.
Later, this wasn't overwhelming but maybe i thought practical and convenient.
My idea was not to compare temples in U.S. with India, as i understand it cannot be the same. Rather on the other side, its good to know that some Indians are still initiating to keep their culture alive but sometimes certain feelings overpower your logical side.

This whole experience was definitely different which doesn't imply it was unlikable but just plain "different".