Brusha Brusha Brusha

Luis at the Big Table

Ashley's Last Bombay Haircut

Ashley got her first-ever haircut right before we came to Bombay. It had just never really occurred to me before. But now, I've gotten used to her short-haired look. Ashley went yesterday for her last clip. They always put something in her hair at her ears. Yesterdays was the worst - pink roses surrounded by pink tulle. I'll miss the cost ($25 for a wash and haircut), but not the bad adornments.

Liz's Bombay Photos

Liz downloaded her pictures onto my computer (thanks Liz!). I haven't taken my camera out with us this last week, but wanted to be able to post some about what we've been up to. Here's a sampling of what we've seen out & about in Bombay:

We went to McDonalds one day for lunch. This was my idea, not theirs. I love it because it's the only place in town I've found with fountain soda! Also, the four times I've been, my group has been the only white people there. Not so much a tourist spot.

Goats are EVERYWHERE

Where to buy spices (masalas)

Clothes drying on the rocks along the Promenade

Sights from the car

Prawn Drying Fields

Imported Diet Coke

The Gateway to India from the top of the Taj Hotel across the street

Successful Shopping!

Shirley & Liz go Sari Shopping

While downtown on Thursday, Liz & Shirley tried on sari's. In the end, Liz bought the one she tried on.

Liz & Shirley Are Here

Liz & Shirley arrived last Friday from Costa Rica. Even though I had told our staff that Diego had two sisters that were twins, everyone was a bit confused when they saw Liz. Shabina asked me, "Where is Diego's sister?" I told her in the living room. She asked, "No, that one same sister as February." I said, no this is the OTHER sister. Shabina said, "Ohhhhhh. Same same."

We haven't seen Liz & Shirley in a bit more than a year. They came to Falls Church last April to meet their nephew. Looking back at pictures from their last visit shows how much Luis has changed.

Liz & Shirley have settled right into our little world. Luis loves having more people to play with and flirt with and show off with. He is down right smitten with Shirley. He gives her googly eyes all the time and will stop playing & walk across the apartment just to give her a hug and a kiss. When I was telling JuanFe about this, he said, "Who isn't smitten with Shirley?" True, true.

We've done a lot of shopping here. The girls were very interested in getting clothing here as well as other textiles (table clothes, bed linens, etc.). In this picture, Shirley was looking at some pants at a stall on Linking Rd. (big shopping road). We asked the guy how much and he told us Rs 150 (about $4). The general rule of thumb is that you should pay no more than 50% of the initial price. The guy wouldn't budge below Rs. 100, so we walked. We saw the same pants three stalls down. THAT seller told us the pants were Rs. 225. Maybe the Rs. 100 price wasn't so bad... After hitting most of the good Bandra stores (my neighborhood), we went down to South Mumbai on Thursday to see some sights and pick up some stuff. It was a nice trip. It would be dishonest of me to imply that it is only Liz & Shirley who are buying things. Suddenly faced with the idea that I probably won't ever see these shops again, I have picked up some more stuff, too.

We had a quick stop at the Gateway to India - just long enough to take a few pictures. There is a lot of construction going on there, which makes it not so nice to walk around. Also, you can barely take 3 steps without 10 guys trying to sell you postcards, a map, some sort of magic beads, a giant balloon or some other thing. The hawkers are persistent and will follow you back to your car and continue to tap the windows until the car actually pulls away. Not so much fun.

We've done quite a bit of relaxing, too. Jules set some sort of world record in the number of books she read in her 3 week visit in February. I guessed at least 15, but never got an exact count. Liz and Shirley are also enjoying some quiet reading (and knitting) time. Before they arrived, I read about 1500 pages (two books) in three weeks. With packing and moving looming large over me, I can't quite focus enough to get into a book (nor do I allow myself to sit down long enough to really try).

On Wednesday, Erika invited us to join her at her club, Waterstones. It is a BEAUTIFUL oasis very near the airport. We enjoyed lunch, a dip in the (huge infinity) pool, and some time relaxing in the lounge chairs. It was great. To me, it feels like being at a fancy hotel on vacation, except you go back home at the end of the day. I've been twice with Luis, who loves, loves, loves the enormous baby pool. It's a treat to go.

Last night, Liz & Shirley headed out on their own Indian Adventure. They spent last night in Delhi and then (I hope) took the early train to Agra and will spend the day there. (After my experience driving from Delhi to Agra, I heavily encouraged those guys to take the train.) They'll spend tonight in Delhi and then tomorrow, fly to Bagdogra (the closest airport to Darjeeling). They've booked three nights in Darjeeling and then will fly back to Mumbai on Wednesday.

Taking Pen to Paper

May Ball

Last night, we went to the May Ball sponsored by the American Women's Club (run, it seems, entirely by Brits & Aussies - not Americans) with all proceeds going to Atma Mumbai (follow link to read about Atma). The affair was Black Tie, so Diego and I donned our best and headed to South Mumbai. We shared a table with four of our closest couple-friends here: Erika & Dave, Mary Beth & Sam, Frans & Surbhi (whose wedding we went to in Goa) and Sikander & Bhavna. Mary Beth summed it up best on her blog, saying it felt a lot like PROM. I didn't take my camera to the event. But once I get Diego's pics downloaded, I will try to remember to post them. In the mean time, here are some pics of Diego and me, with Luis, before we went.

Things Luis Likes

Climbing on EVERYTHING (here, a dining room chair)


Throwing his toys out of the crib after he wakes up

Pauline's Daughters (who came over with Pauline on Wednesday)

Bath Time (AND pouring water)

My Ipod

Luis Learns More Signs

Luis is signing like a champ these days. Almost every question asked of him gives the answer (in sign) of PLEASE HELP or HELP PLEASE. And generally, help is what he needs. We're working on MUSIC now, as he's always asking to have the stereo turned on. THANK YOU is really sticking with Luis, as once he gets the thing that he asked for (saying, of course, PLEASE), he is too distracted to do the THANK YOU. I figure, all things in good time. But definitely now, the sweetest sign is this version of LOVE YOU that Luis does often, unprompted.

On the word front, today he got a version of "cracker" that was almost intelligible. And this morning, he banged on the bedroom, door looked at me, and said, "Da Da". I was pretty excited. I intend to keep up the sign, as long as Luis will let me.

Kala Raksha

At one of the coffee mornings, before Christmas, several groups came to sell their wares to us westerners who were dropping a lot of money on "Indian" christmas presents for our friends and loved ones back home. One group that particularly caught my attention was Kala Raksha. They had beautiful handmade games. One in particular, Chopad (the original Parchizi), really caught my attention and I bought two. (I later ended up ordering several more from them which were then delivered by courier, as they are located up in Gujerat.) When Jules was here in February, we stumbled upon an exhibit they were having in South Mumbai. There, I bought a quilt for Luis, a purse for me (and one for a gift), a change purse, and a skirt (for Sarah). All were hand made and in the traditional style of Kutch (a western region of India).

With the notion that once we leave India we are most likely not coming back, I am suddenly feeling sad that I will not be able to email my friend Nilesh at kala Raksha to order another Snakes & Ladders to give as a birthday or christmas present - or any of their other fine products. So, I made one last big order. It arrived today and I was again so pleased by how lovely their things are. I tried to capture this in some photos. I'm not sure I've done them justice. I am posting small pictures, but you should be able to click on them to see a larger version.

Chopad (Parchizi):

Checkers:

Snakes & Ladders:

I also ordered two quilts (Mom ordered one, too). Below is one of mine and one of hers draped over the sofa:

I will miss these kinds of items when I leave India. I will miss being able to buy things like this from a show where the actual artisan is present and can talk to me about the piece. Sigh.

[If any of you blog readers are interested in anything you see here, there is still time to order before I leave - email me]