after a while

The Christmas time is upon us and all I wanna do is decorate, wrap gifts and bake ginger-breads. Unfortunately, after the wedding madness, I need to focus on more mundane chores. Plus I promised myself I’ll be writing regularly… all I can say at this point: those who do post around their wedding time have super powers! It’s just can’t be done!

Our past weeks were so eventful I could write a book about it and not be finished!

First, we made a trip to Delhi to pick up my cousin. After short stop in capital we backpacked our way through Rajasthan – like in good old days! We managed all the classics. Stayed in fairytale Jaisalmer fort, spent the night on the desert, got lost in narrow blue streets of Jodhpur, took a boat ride in charming Udaipur and finished the trip in pink city – Jaipur. After that, we said goodbye to my cousin, who was heading to Agra, and jump on the train back home. 

It was time to really get the wedding preparation going. Our life revolved around menus, drink choices, music, decorations, room assignment, guest list (that kept changing till the last day!). Meanwhile I was still finishing both of my wedding dresses…

 Shortly after that, second batch of European guests was arriving – this time to Mumbai. Traveling mode was on once again. We’ve managed to see Ajanta and Ellora – breathtaking caves! I’ve seen the pictures earlier but it was more than I’ve ever expected. With some time to spare, we visited family in Nasik, where we balanced sacrum with profanum, spending the morning in ancient temples and evening in local winery. Though India has still much to learn in this department, after wine tasting, I have to say they are surprisingly good, for having only few years of experience.             

                                                            

From Nasik it was straight back to Goa. We’ve shipped the family of to visit Hampi and got ready for Indian invasion for a change.

This whole time was punctuated with cancelled train tickets, tour planning, almost obsessive list checking, menu tasting, wedding shopping etc…

Since we wanted to make the event as personal as possible, we engaged large portion of our guests in some DIY activities. Honestly I felt like the whole thing was impossibly unorganized, but afterwards I got many compliments quite to the contrary. Thinking back, past days are just a haze of comings and goings, hysterical phone calls, last minute changes and expectations… and then the wedding!
I think we actually avoided the wedding curse, we were warned about: you stress so much that you don’t even have fun on your big day. Thought it’s just a blur of colors, faces and lights I had a great time, especially seeing all the friends and family who managed such a trip… But I do wish I ate more. There is sth about weddings, which makes the food never to reach the newlyweds.

After the big hoopla we took closest guests to our favorite beach – Agonda and finally had laid back, relaxed holidays. Nothing but sand, sun, sea and fruity drinks with umbrellas... All the tension was wearing off and we came home quite relaxed and with new member of our family. We adopted tiny beach kitten, whom we are spoiling rotten!

After the last guests have left, we were supposed to turn the dirty cave back into our dream home but another obstacle arose. The VISA! The FRRO! The DRAMA!

Since we’ve moved to Goa, I had to be registered in new place of residence. I also needed that done in order to apply for visa extension. Documents in hand we marched to registration office to find out that it can’t be done without a stamp from Delhi branch. After hours on the phone we knew one thing: we have to pack again! 30 plus hours on the train and we were back in hell. Actually it wasn’t that bad… we got some winter chill, met some friends and reminded ourselves, once again, why moving to Goa was such a brilliant decision. Visit in FRRO (which I call spawn of Satan for short), had amusing aspect this time. Well… there was amusement mixed with annoyance, but still! First off, they kept telling me to fill the form that doesn’t exist, then to fill the form unrelated to my issue, in the end just exclaiming: fill any form and we’ll do what u need! Secondly the person I was dealing with had no idea where (or what) Goa is. It gives certain inside into working of government offices in this country… and it makes me giggle.

FINALLY we are back home, with our ginger cat, sunny weather and all the mess to clean. Task for today: deal with it. Task for tomorrow: enjoy all the xmas preparation I can squeeze into remaining time!

… a real trip…

Past couple of weeks were super intense, to say the least!  I always considered myself expert in packing but this time it was quite overwhelming. Who would have thought we accumulated so much stuff?  Final count: 15 boxes plus suitcases, bags and rucksacks. In the end I felt like a crazy hoarder from some crime serial – discovered buried by her possessions. 

The only piece of furniture we took with us was our beloved red beanbag chair – completely impossible to pack. Since we weren’t particularly keen on carrying it in hand, finally we decided to use thermocol beans to pack and protect more delicate things in the boxes. Idea good in theory, not so much in reality... Nothing came broken but unpacking was a nightmare.  It got into every smallest whole and getting it off our stuff was nothing short of impossible. Plus, it was flying around with the slightest waft of air. Soon the whole floor was covered with very mobile white balls. It looked like endless string of pearls spilled all over. That, or some extremely interactive insects. I swear I was half convinced they came to life - the way they were hiding, running away from the broom and reappearing in unexpected places.

We left Delhi at the crack of dawn just when the sky was turning this breathtaking shade of teal. It was nice, really, to take the last look at the city when it was still dark enough to cover all the dirt and damage, before the daily crowd hit the roads. I could barely recognize it! We drove through embassy district while it started to drizzle. Garden lamps twinkled at us like row of tiny moons hiding behind exotic bushes.

Of course the romantic aspect of dewy first blush was very much gone, when suddenly we had million bags getting wet before 30 hours journey.

We decided to take the train instead of the flight in order to move everything at once. Though our whole luggage was traveling in some other section of the train, we still had a lot of things with us. We booked first class tickets and got lucky getting private compartment. It was something out of old movies or novels… like Orient Express or Marilyn in Some like it hot! 

On the station two kuli – luggage men, constructed suitcase towers on their heads and threaded their way to the platform with unbelievable speed. It was quite impressive to observe as we tried to follow them. Later on it was business as usual: chaiwalas – tea boys – shouting: chai garam garam, chai!; men wearing chains like necklaces and jingling padlocks (for luggage protection); polite waiters taking orders for meals during our journey… we could indulge in all the comforts Indian railways have to offer.

Unpacking proved to be even more time consuming then packing. I’m slightly embarrassed to say that my clothes are still neatly distributed around the guestroom. There are so many fascinating things to do around here that sitting at home just seems like a waste of time. Every day we jump on a scooty and explore neighborhood. There are plenty historical sites around, enormous river with charming islands and ship – casinos and, of course, the beach!

We made few trips to the municipal market and fish market. I just love this idea; wandering between fruit and veggies stalls with the basket on my arm! The fish shopping is an adventure on its own. You have to get up with the sun, drive to the city and then hunt for the sea monster you are planning to fight with in the kitchen. Since, till now, all the sea food I dealt with was cleaned and frozen, canned or nicely packed with ice, I had to do my research before stepping on the arena. I decided to start with medium sized shrimps, calamari and clams. Shrimps were a piece of cake to clean, calamari, though quite disgusting, were easy enough, but the clams remain a mystery to me. 

Apart from seafood, the weather in Goa is a big discovery. I was always told that, when the monsoon hits the land you should run and hide. Well, first of, for quite a white it was lovely, sunny and warm. It started raining couple of days back and, at a risk of sounding rather eccentric, I love it! For nearly 5 years now I haven’t had normal rainy autumn. Sure it poured in Delhi but it was an hour of shower followed by hot steamy day. It’s so nice for a change to have this cold, gray day when all you want to do is cozy up with your blanket, cuppa tea and good book, and just listen to the gentle pitter-patter. Though it also means I should get on with unpacking, since daily trips are no longer an excuse!

Unpacking and packing both, actually. We are just getting ready to leave for Delhi where we are picking my cousin from the airport. I’m about to spend two weeks backpacking around Rajasthan! Quite exciting perspective since I haven’t done that for about 5 years!

The first one... on wedding dresses

Today was the WDD day – the wedding dress disaster!

I decided, long ago, that I really want to make my own dress. Normally, I would take a lot of pleasure in shopping, but I managed to find only two “Christian” dress shops in Delhi and they weren't very appealing. One was in somebody’s basement – closed shut, the other was more of a shady storage/workroom space with a phlegmatic owner. While I didn't expect to find lacy, sparkly bliss, the depressing rows of dirty polyester were way too much to handle. In my fragile bridal state, I decided to run for my life…

Murky shops aside, creating a glimmering cloud of tulle seemed too delicious to pass!

Unfortunately, with our upcoming move (oh, the ticking countdown clock!), guests coming all the way from Europe and, ya, the wedding itself, I wouldn't have the time.

Of course, if I had my draping form it could be a breeze, but drafting the pattern, making the toile and then the actual dress would simply be too much.

Finally, I decided to compromise. I figured I can have the tailor do the base that requires, well, tailoring. With that part done, I could concentrate on the whole shimmering mist aspect of dressmaking – the cherry on the top, so to speak.

Note on dressmaking in India: it’s really amazing when you see the backstage of all these detailed embroidered wonders! You can look at these meticulous works of art for ages and never guess they were created in some 2 by 2 closet with a leaking roof!

And we are back to my dress story. I saw the results today and it’s not looking well... Bodice is pulling up distorting the whole fit, the waist is way too broad and armholes way too tight, not to mention my boobs, pardon my French,  are flattened like two pancakes.

Of course, I panicked… what the hell am I supposed to do with THAT?  We are leaving in 3 days and the dress is a disaster! It was supposed to be a cloud of fairy dust but instead, I look like I stole Halloween costume from some skinny teenager!

Fortunately, the panic didn't last too long and I figured it’s all about the straps. They are way too short, pulling the whole construction up. It shouldn't take too long to adjust them. There is still hope we will leave on time, with my dress looking as perfect as it can (before adding my sartorial cherry!).

Oh, and on top of everything else, our fridge just sold. I was left with 8 eggs so I made ginormous meringue with kind of egg pudding crème, closely followed by family size pizza. Even if master tailor will sort out my dress now, I may have another fitting problem very soon…