Merry Belated Christmas

Merry Greetings people. I have been busy. I was knitting my way accross India for 16 days. Then upon coming home I had a week to finish shopping and bake all my cookies AND cook Christmad day dinner. Now onto New Years which is going to be on the quiet front. I do want to see my friend Dan's band check out his website and listen to his groovy tune @ www.danfordsworld.com
Anyhow, back to India I have some pics to post,so here goes... This first one is my initial shopping excursion in New Dehli. Now, when you shop here they pull out a bajillion things for you to look at(note all the clothing in front of my mil and me. Spent the equivilant of $100 us dollars and bought quite a bit of clothing plus a soft pashima. next pic...

This is mendhi, a henna paste that is artistically drwan onto you. It dries an you leave it on overnight then scrape it off in the morning and it leaves a temporary tattoo that gets darker for about 5 days, then begins to fade.

I had this done before my wedding also. They also do your feet. This took about 3-4 hours , and was done by my husband's cousin ketki. As you can see she is EXTREMLEY talented. She is in college in India. We had a lovely chat, and I really like her. Hopefully someday she can come to visit us. All the women have hobbies/crafts/singing,etc... I had a lovely show and tell with my husbands grandmother. She is a VERY talented knitter. She does not speak much english, yet we shared so much. I was knitting my herringbone poncho, which I had to frog 3 times ,dropped a stitch, did not ktbl, which caused the pattern to go in all the same direction,then I dropped another stitch. Nightmarish I tell you. So it should be done by now, BUT a 19 hour plane ride home in which I was told on the phone by airfrance that I could not bring my knitting needles on the plane so I did not. However, I noted a woman in the row accross from me crocheting away for 10++ hours. Hmph are they prejudice against knitters???? Food for thought.

This pic is moi and Ketki, then mendhi artist. So, you ask how was India for whitebread like myself? Definetly a life experience. I see alot of things differently now. I think the next trip we be much better, because I know what to expect. I will also pac some Kraft Mac and cheese for days when the tummy can't handle the spice. Otherwise, My husbands family is so nice. Everyone was so generous, and the Chai tea, was delicious!!!! I did look disheveled most of the trip, but trust me, this is hard to avoid. You don't take showers, you take baths. Which are quite refreshing, think buckets of hot water that you pour over yourself. However it's not the best for the frizzy hair. I will leave you with one last photo of the Taj Mahal. Do you know the story? Long story short: It was built by a king for his deceased wife as a tomb. He loved her so much he built this for her. I believe it took 30 some years to complete. It is symmetrical, and it was so beautiful words and pictures do not do it justice. At sunset it turns a goldish color and during a full moon it turns blue? I think it's blue.