A Welcome Wild Weekend

     Last weekend John returned home after a week-long trip to the Maldives, and for his homecoming we arranged our first experience at an ayurvedic spa.  Ayurveda is a system of traditional Indian medicine that basically involves many herbs and a lot of oil.  (Obviously there is much more to it than that, but it is beyond me- I was only interested in my massage!)  So, without a clue of what to expect from an ayurvedic massage, we set off to a part of town called Merhauli and a tiny spa that reminded me a lot of a Turkish hamam, set in a wooden bungalow-style house on private grounds, surrounded by a small garden.  I must stress that we had no idea what to expect.  John and I were led into our different and private changing rooms by our masseurs (there are no cross-gender massages).  There it was immediately indicated that I was to fully undress in front of this large, older, Indian women.  After a moment of initial shock and accepting the fact that she wasn't budging from her position directly in front of me, I did so, and she hastily wrapped a sheet around me and led me into the massage room.  There I was instructed to sit down (all of this done with gesture since the women- there are 2 of them now- don't speak English) and I received a vigorous head massage with, what at the time seemed to be, a large amount of oil.  After that I hopped up on a large wooden table.  For the next hour I was doused in hot oil and man-handled by these 2 women.  I must chastise anyone whose thoughts have strayed to the inappropriate due to this last sentence.  I'm perfectly aware of how it sounds and must insist that any sexual implication, shock, or giggles be chased from the mind.  That being said- it was glorious!  From fingertips to toes, eyelids, butt, and heels, I got the royal treatment.  Of course I kept laughing to myself at the thought of John experiencing the same thing but at the hands of 2 large men, but honestly, it was one of the best massages I have ever had!  At the end of it all my face was coated with a mask of gunk and my eyes cooled as I lie in the hot, dark, aromatic room.  Afterward, we were led back to our dressing rooms where we could shower (we could have slip-n-slided all the way home, otherwise).  The whole experience is incredible, and I highly recommend it- so long as you can just get naked!

     Saturday we had something equally, if not more, exciting planned- we were going on a food tour of Old Delhi.  A young man named Prahbat started giving these tours in earnest less than a year ago, and in that short amount of time, the tour has become so popular that gives one 3-4 times a week with 4-8 people in each group.  Old Delhi can be very difficult to manage for a non-local (including Indian folks who aren't familiar with the area), and it's very easy to become intimidated by its chaos and stimuli overload.  John and I had been up to Old Delhi by ourselves twice before, feeling quite harried after all of the madness, jostling, and yelling, so it was a huge comfort to be up there with a guide who knew his way around and ushered us (not unlike nervous sheep) from one place to the next.  In 4 hours we covered 7 different eateries and a good portion of the old city.  At every stop Prahbat would remind us, "You don't have to finish it," (which of course is near sacrilege to my ears) because there was always more to come and falling in to a serious food-coma was a grave concern.  We ate golgappas- thin fried shells filled with chickpea, potato, spices, and tamarind-mint water; samosa and dosas; every different type of parantha- doughy flat bread often filled with paneer, vegetables, spices, or garlic, covered in pumpkin chutney, mango pickle, and spicy green chilies; mutton shikh kabobs and mutton masala; tandoori chicken and spiced kofta- meat patties; jalebis- deep fried batter soaked in syrup; and an array of other norms and delicacies each with it's own set of yogurts, sauces, chutneys, and spices.  For anyone who loves food as much as I do- even for those who aren't nearly as fanatical- this was bliss.  It was hot and crowded and the aromas rose from every surface while throngs of people jostled for a spot in each hole-in-the-wall eatery we squeezed.  Needless to say, by 10 pm we were contentedly stuffed. 
     Being Saturday night, we decided to check another thing off our must-do list- have a drink at the Imperial Hotel.  The Imperial was built in the 1930's, designed to be one of the finest monuments in the colonial capital Delhi- a grandiose blend of Victorian and Old colonial architecture.  It is simply gorgeous with several tea rooms, restaurants, and bars, all of which still feel as though they are in a distinctly different and past era.  The bars are all heavy, dark wood, with "pegs" being poured for drinks into proper snifters.  Of course its prices match its beauty so our plan was to indulge in one drink, pretend we were quite fancy, and then retire home.  When we arrived, however, we heard loud music coming from the grounds, and as we peaked our heads in, we saw, to our utter delight, that there was a wedding reception!  Once again, we put on our best we-belong-here confidence and strolled right in to the party where there was a stage and band, massive buffet (too bad we were stuffed), a couple of bars, and several hundred glamorous people in the finest Indian dress.  How were we so lucky to stumble upon such an event!  Clearly, based on the look of the guests, the location of the reception, and the clear indication that no expense had been spared, this was the wedding of someone beyond just well-to-do, if not well known.  We talked to few people (one gentleman intimated that he was in the film business- a bollywood wedding perhaps?) and soaked up our surroundings.  We stayed all night, practically closing down the place, lying on large cushioned bolsters as the bride and groom were carried out on a palanquin in a huge procession.  So not only did we get our drink (or several drinks as it were) at the Imperial, but we also crashed our first wedding- check and check!
     An amazing weekend of indulgence preceding this coming week, when I head to the ashram for 8 days of austerity and outer-world disconnection!

Samode Palace

     I have some glorious things to catch up on!  Though I’ve been neglectful the past two weeks, I am now happy to fill in those gaps with some truly spectacular experiences…

     The week before last, John’s company, DevInfo, had their annual, week-long, conference/retreat.  Participants from all over the world attended, including DevInfo employees and UN partners.  The conference was held at the Samode Palace- a majestic and fantastical place!  (Yes- those adjectives are not only both necessary but entirely appropriate.)  The palace is 475 years old, but the most amazing additions were made in the early 19^th century, and it is now the epitome of grandeur and a perfect combination of colonial Raj and ancient Mughal architecture.  It's a palace!  The palace is located in the tiny village of Samode, outside of Jaipur in Rajasthan.  It sits just below the ancient fortress walls and is surrounded by lush hills filled with goats belonging to the local village herdsmen, monkeys, and not a few peacocks.  

     Initially, I was wildly jealous and very sad that John was getting to go to this amazing and beautiful place for a week without me.  However- due to a small, mid-week shuffle of attendants, I was invited to take a van the 5 hours Wednesday morning to spend the latter part of the week at the palace!  The group was all heading back to Delhi Friday afternoon, so I had 2 full days of bliss.  

     The grounds abound with gardens, terraces, balconies, exquisitely ornate sitting rooms, and 2 pools, one of which, I will add, is an infinity pool complete with a hot tub in a gazebo.  Amazing.  Everything was taken care of, and while John and the others were in conferences all day, I had nothing to do but enjoy my spectacular surroundings.  I would have felt ridiculously spoiled, staying in a giant suite with a private terrace in a palace, if I wasn't quite so aware of how lucky I was to be there.  

     I did not spend all of my time lazing about the pool.  One morning I ventured into the village of Samode and met some very interesting people.  The first thing I came across outside of the palace grounds, was the oldest temple in Samode, dedicated to lord Krishna.  A very small, middle-aged gentleman named Makhan offered to show me the temple and explain the old and decrepit shrine and offerings.  As we left the temple, he escorted me into the town, pointing out different buildings and aspects of his village while giving me a brief history.  I certainly did not mind having this impromptu guide- I fully expected that he would ask for payment or that I buy something at the end of his walk, which I was happy to do, as he seemed a kind and knowledgable man.  To have someone show me around and introduce me to local villagers was well a few rupee.  He did not ask for anything, however, only to be able to show me his paintings (without pressure to buy)- he practiced the Rajasthani artisan craft of miniature painting. 

     Before this, though, he introduced me to a lacquer bangle artisan.  The artisan invited me to have chai and watch a demonstration of how the lacquer bangles are made.  It's a fascinating process, which I never would have guessed, whereby the man melted one end of a giant stick of the lac, or gum, while coating it with wax color.  He pulled the now-colored gum like taffy before breaking it off and pounding it out in a mold.  The result was a shiny, beautiful red bangle perfectly fitted on a rod to the size of my wrist, given to me as a gift.  

     After this we walked through the entire village before arriving at Makhan's home, where I met his entire family, including father, brother, and nieces.  It also happened to be his son's fourth birthday!  I was courteously invited to attend the birthday party later that evening, but could not because plans had already been made back at the palace.  Makhan showed me his huge portfolio of wonderfully detailed gouache paintings depicting ancient Mughal life and fantastical stories and myths.  Of course I wanted to support this traditional artisan craft that had been passed down through generations, so I did buy from Makhan.  In fact, John liked my paintings so much, that we both went back to Makhan's house the next day so that he could purchase some too!

     Our last night at the palace, an incredible evening was planned for us.  It began with all of us having our heads wrapped with giant, red turbans.  Then, the entire group was led down a trail around to the front of the palace where guards and camels stood all ornately dressed and decorated in traditional garb, and then the fireworks started.  At the end of the fireworks the entire front of the palace suddenly lit up with tiny lights.  We were escorted to a huge rooftop terrace where drinks and dinner were waiting.  That wasn't all that was waiting though- we were met with a succession of unbelievable traditional performances, including music and various kinds of dancing- several women danced with lit oil lamps on there heads, while another danced with a stack of 8 ceramic bowls upon her head.  There was a man blowing fire and a whirlwind of dancing with bells and large wooden sticks.  Everything was absolutely stunning, and eventually we all joined in with the dancing as well.  

     After a long and glorious night, we tearfully said goodbye to Samode Palace.  I cannot believe I was able to experience such a place and will definitely remember it always!  Hopefully I will be able to share some pictures soon- at the moment I am unable to upload any of the pics I took onto my computer, but as soon as I sort this out, I will post them.  Thank you DevInfo and the wonderful people of Samode!