V Day, 7 Cities, & Mehndi

Many of you know that Valentine's Day is one of my favorite holidays.  Naturally, I was curious what form this day would take in India.  When I asked at our bakery in the Defence Colony if he was going to make Valentine's cookies, he said the day "was trending low."  But, from what I saw on the street, there was some evidence of Valentine's Day in India and here's what India Ink reported.  

The flower vendors spray a water solution on the flowers that always looks like glitter dew to me.  See it?

Teddy bear anyone?

Here's what V day at our house looked like.  

V Day play group at our house.  All the floor blankets are intended to pad the marble floor!  There were still a few head bonks.

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One new thing Samantha and I have been doing every week is the 7 cities tour group.  It's a group of 40 people (mostly expats, but some Indians who've recently returned to India after living abroad for some time) who are divided into groups of 4.  Each week, one of the smaller groups leads the tour in Delhi, exploring one of the 7 historical cities that were founded here.  Often, these tours are to the lesser known monuments, dating back to the 13th and 14th centuries and we are the only tourists at the site.  Some of these places I probably wouldn't venture by myself with Samantha as they are difficult to get to, are overrun with monkeys, and lack basic facilities like toilets.  Below are a few photos from our last few tours.

Tughlaqabad Fort

Baoli, Tughlaqabad Fort.

My two fellow moms that tour with babes!

Underground tunnel, Tughlaqabad Fort.

Family who lives inside the fort.

Samantha enjoying the picnic at the end of the tour.

Nizamuddin Dargah, Sufi Shrine in Nizamuddin West, a short 10 minute rickshaw ride from our house.

How we looked entering the shrine.  Her swaddle blanket served as a versatile head covering.

Vendors in the narrow lanes of Nizamuddin village.

Nizamuddin

A brief video in Nizamuddin.

Begumpur Mosque, South Delhi.

7 Cities group.

Bijay Mandal

View from the top of the Bijay Mandal.

Walking in the streets on the way to the monuments.

Interior view of  Khirki Mosque.  This mosque is believed to be the the only mosque in North India that is 80% covered. 

Another interior view of the Khirki Mosque.  I appreciated how cool it was inside, but it wreaked of urine.

Life directly outside of the mosque.

Us on top of the mosque.

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A friend invited us to crash her landlord's son's wedding festivities.  It was the day before the actual wedding, and people sat around singing, getting mehndi done and eating.  

Guests at the wedding.  Notice all of the marigold garlands?  They adorn all three stories of the house in addition to lights in the evening.

Samantha visited with these and many other sweet aunties and uncles.

Once Samantha fell asleep (there she is under the blanket!) I had mehndi done for the first time ever.  I thought it would take a long time, but these artists completed both hand in less than ten minutes.  It dries in about an hour and then flakes off, leaving the hands a dyed dark orange for about a week.

My hand, my friend's, and the mother of the groom getting hers done.  

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One day this week, Samantha and I met Andy in a secluded park behind an office building where he was conducting research interviews.  The park was an oasis in the bustling neighborhood of Greenpark.  

Only in India.

Can you see the heat?

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Here's a ten second video of Samantha trying out her first swing at a friend's house.

Samantha and friends.  She was very excited about their toys, can you tell?

Til next time!

Future Model or Flash Mob Miscreant?

 Just take a guess at who the favored person in our family is from the following pictures:

Samantha waiting for her first casting call.  She was chosen as one of the baby models for a large children's clothing and toy store in Delhi.  We are excited about the professional photos we get to keep!  To be shared on the blog soon...

Looking across the street from the casting call office. Areas like this, housing and vendors, follow the construction zones of a rapidly expanding Dehli.  On the other side of the road are glass and steel office buildings.

Buildings like this.  That's Ranjit, our casting agent, who graciously drove us to the appointment.

She was pretty relaxed throughout the entire process.
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Samantha inspecting a new friend (and vice versa) that she met at a neighborhood festival last weekend.  The women is a well known Defence Colony figure who swept Samantha out of my arms saying, "You eat."  Without another word, she walked away with Samantha.  The interesting thing is that this type of communal baby raising has started to feel so normal that I wasn't shocked at all.  The colors for the event were red and purple.

A little video of the scene with music; the video doesn't convey how LOUD it was!

My great yoga friend Seema looking very cool in her purple top and white jeans.  Her high heels didn't make it into the photo!

Festival food.

I invited the Norwegians and Emily the American!  Their partners didn't make this photos though!
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Samantha has been loving her play area.  Andy in the background trying to get some work done.  We don't make it very easy!

New toy from a playgroup friend.  She loves this for about 10 minutes everyday.  We love that time too.

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So, Samantha completed another "first" this week, and this is one that few people will be able to top, her first flash mob! And in India nonetheless!  If you don't know what a flash mob is, check out this one on youtube.

Here's our CanSupport flash mob at the Walk for Life event on February 5, 2012.  Samantha and I are tucked away in the back of the scene, look for her purple hat and blue Baby Bjorn (click on the video again to be taken to a larger version on YouTube).

Early morning walkers heading towards the start.  This walk was 3.2km, runs aren't too popular yet.

School kids walking down Rajpath towards the event.

Andy tried to keep Samantha's ears covered as the music was, classically Indian, loud.

Instead of actually completing the walk, we walked the opposite way down Rajpath to India Gate, one tourist attraction we hadn't seen yet.  

Andy and Samantha at India Gate.

Fellow tourists at India Gate.

See the guy taking the photo while I'm taking the photo?

India Gate, Rajpath, New Delhi.
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One of the many reasons I enjoy working at the American Embassy School.  This week marked my first time working two consecutive day shifts as a substitute nurse there.
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Rooftop playgroup.  Samantha ate her first biscuit.  Well, it wasn't really hers, she picked up her friend's, crushed it in her hands and tasted it before I noticed!  And right after I had told the other moms she wasn't interested in solid food!

Playgroup rooftop view.

Another view.

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Here's a video of Samantha and me chilling in the park at tea time one afternoon.  It ends before one of the aunties starts to tell me to put more clothes on Samantha.  Or at least that's what I assumed she was saying. She wasn't speaking Hindi, but I could tell she was concerned about my parenting!  Don't worry though, Samantha is nice and cozy all the time, trust me.