I visited Auroville in 2008, stayed two weeks, and found it an odd place indeed. Tourists could read about the huge expansion plans for the site which were set

I visited Auroville in 2008, stayed two weeks, and found it an odd place indeed. Tourists could read about the huge expansion plans for the site which were set down back in the 1960s and 1970s, but all that growth seems to have stalled many years ago already. There was definitely a feeling of decay around the place, like an old socialist-era concrete monument that was supposed to represent the future but is now a sad cracked and stained relic. Many of the younger people I met were only living in Auroville because they were born there, and they had little to no interest in spirituality, the Mother, Sri Aurobindo, etc.