I've had a rather large day, filled with adventure and stories. It's left me with a meager energy supply. So, for todays post, I've decided to honor a request to see pictures of my real-deal Mumbai digs. and leave the real writing till tomorrow.
Let's start with my bedroom. Ranjiv explained when I checked in that the colorful spreads you see on the beds are to be slept on, not under. There is a thin cotton blanket you can see on the foot of the bed on the right, it's under my dark scarf and white shawl, for sleeping under.
My favorite things might be the orange bolsters that move around for easy lounging. Very practical.
My Guardian.
Now the all important all-in-one bathroom. Notable features include the shower head in the middle of the room. The sprayer for cleaning oneself up after using the loo. The giant bucket which I have used to soak my feet at the end of the day and also as a basin for shaving my legs.
I adore the kitchen especially. So does Rajiv, I think he likes what it says about Indian practicality and color. Or maybe that's what I like about it.
I know it's dorky, but I just love that the micro-wave settings are country specific. Of course they would be. So, ethnocentric to imagine otherwise.
And one fullllll course Indian Breakfast. Ranjiv expected me to eat it all. I think he was distracted by Payel being at the hospital so he just threw everything he could at me.
I ate as much as I could, put some in a little baggie for later and still had to apologize for not being able to finish it.
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| I can't figure out how to turn this....oh well. |
Finally, Payel and I in the living room, which I believe doubles as a bedroom for the family when there are guests. I'm not sure. But, as you can see we are wearing our Punjabi suits. When I look at this I see how beautiful Payel is and how exhausted I am. That's not me fishing for compliments, just an observation on what it felt like to be me yesterday.
That's the tour. Pay your nickel on the way out. Be sure to tune in tomorrow when I fill you in on the harrowing adventure to the other sides of Mumbai.
3 comments:
Great photos!
The all-in-one loo is very similar to the head on my sailboat - I'm guessing the bulbous white object at the top is a small hot water heater? And probably, like my head, it's rather difficult to keep from soaking every object in there whilst showering.
WALL OF SPICES!!! Makes my collection seem paltry in comparison! And I love that they're all what we would probably consider Costco-sized containers - and that most are clearly well-used! I'll bet it smells wonderful!
What's in the breakfast? I recognize the chutneys and the samosas of course, and I'm guessing those are dates on the right side of the bowl. Is that biryani in the middle? And what are the small round doughy things? Also, it that some sort of corn cake at the top, or something else?
Excuse me, but that picture is making me hungry; I think it's time for some breakfast myself!
Thanks for the photo tour! This looks like the perfect oasis from the stress and strife of life outside!
Chris~
You are right...that's a water heater up there. Though it only heats once in a while. I'm fairly used to rinsing off with cold water, but as it is so hot here, its not really a problem.
The wall is of spices and everything else. They store everything in tupperware. And it doesn't actually have a smell...or maybe it does and I've just gotten used to it.
As for what's on the plate...I feel like a schmuck, but I haven't developed any capacity yet for retaining hindi words. My usually proficient ear cannot make heads nor tails of the sounds. So, Rajiv and Payel diligently tell me name of everything on the plate and what it is and where it comes from and I just smile.
I do know three things, all the things on the plate are meant to be dipped in the dahl, those things on the right were not dates, but some kind of sweet potatoey thing, and "the small round doughy things" were my favorite!
Yep, definitely just like the head on my boat: my lil' water heater is good for about two minutes at maybe body temp!
The food storage arrangement makes sense, since everything non-spicey on the shelves appears to be drygoods: beans, legumes, rice, flour, et al, so there's no refrigeration issue with any of that. And Tupperware works just as well as anything else to store it all in.
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