So for anyone who was curious, the baby shower went over quite well. And even though I'm not the biggest fan of babies, nor is my co-host Miss Alex, we had an inordinately good time choosing baby items in the clothes shop. Problem? Possibly. So THANKS for the advice from various sources. We had a lot of food and a game of musical chairs that got rather heated but everything ended well. The mother-to-be (who is my age) was really happy and she has since given birth to her son! From stalking her facebook he looks not as wrinkly or slimy as most babies appear and seems to be enjoying a few of his shower gifts already.
It's been a busy few weeks since I blogged last and I never wrote about India so here goes. I traveled with three of the girls from school and we stayed in a small bed and breakfast type place right on the beach. I keep choosing the right traveling companions- much like Turkey, our trip comprised heavily of bouncing from one meal to the next. Except this time it wasn't Arctic weather. Perfection. It was so quiet- we were the only people on the beach except the fishermen and their boats. I get the impression that traveling in Kerala is kind of like India-Lite- as evidenced by the fact that we were the only people on the beach. But it still it took us 3 hours to drive 45 km. The 'highway' through most of Southern India is a semi-paved two lane road that winds through a multitude of towns and tiny catchall shops on every corner. We drove to the very southernmost point of India where three bodies of water meet- the Indian Ocean, the Bay of Bengal, and the Arabian Gulf. One day we went to an elephant rehabilitation center, where elderly elephants rescued from horrible tourist places or poachers are cared for, especially when they can't be rereleased into the wild. There were about seven elephants there and we were so close to them-basically my childhood dream come true! One of them put its trunk on my head which was simultaneously really cool and a touch unpleasant.
We also went for a hike in a nature reserve at the edge of the jungle and saw a waterfall. I've never seen a waterfall before and secretly felt like Pocahontas while I was sitting on a rock observing. And then a gust of wind swirled some leaves down from the trees and it was basically proof that I can sing with all the colors of the wind. Even though I sometimes struggle to sing along in tune with the four year olds to the Alphabet Song. To complete the day we watched the sun set from atop the Western Ghats (we drove- let's not pretend I'm someone I'm not- up the mountain on a road with 22 hairpin turns and no guardrails).
Most of our other days were fairly low-key. Mostly involving the beach and shopping and random things like going to the innkeeper's friend's house. This friend was a florist and had a massive greenhouse/garden full of tropical plants and orchids. It was gorgeous but probably not the average tourist destination. There were so many orchids. And also a random cow (of which we saw many throughout the week) which tried to eat my skirt. We also took a ride on a houseboat that went along the backwaters of Kerala. It was very peaceful and we went past a lot of local homes along the river. Even though we weren't staying in a resort or anything, we didn't really encounter any of the storied poverty associated with Mumbai or Calcutta, owing to Kerala's relative sparseness of population density. Here along the river we saw more sights and homes that made me think about the reality of where we were. The positive thing about traveling in Kerala is that many of the tourist sites are managed by local people and the fees go directly to support the local communites that manage them. Our last day we went shopping for some clothes- saris and churidars (aka the tunic top and skinny pants). We thought we were off to a bazaar area but our hotel owner and her daughter definitely took us to the Indian Macy's. All the better because we got really nice clothes but we were definitely the only non-Indians there. We had some stares, especially since I was traveling with the Blonde Brigade. Leaving was so sad but it was nice to get home. The hotel owner, Matthew, drove us to the airport with his wife and daughters, even though our flight was at 3 am. They were such a nice family and it was really pleasant to stay with real people and not in a fake five star hotel somewhere.
Blaine and I also went to Dubai for Easter weekend which was really nice. While we were there I realized all of the things Doha needs before it becomes a proper city ready to host a World Cup. Examples: public transportation, taxi drivers who know where destinations like the airport are, beaches that cost less than one hundred dollars to use, sidewalks, destinations outside shopping malls, highways, traffic lights, NO ROUNDABOUTS, landscape architecture. In short, urban planning. Here we did go for the fake five star hotel option and I have to say it is a fabulously acceptable option in a place like Dubai, especially when you book it for about one quarter of its normal price. As a result, my tan is coming along quite nicely and I picked up some things that I can't get in Doha. Namely Twizzlers. A girl can maintain her candy standards anywhere these days.
And on a more local note, of all the designer stores available to me here in Doha, I've realized that my favorite place in town is definitely the Home Centre. For being a somewhat undomestic type of girl I certainly spend a lot of time (and paycheck celebrations) perusing its wares. Thursday, with no one to stop me, I spent and hour and a half browsing the store. Sample of my purchases Thursday afternoon: a wooden elephant hanging for the wall, two new mugs, placemats, and a new spice rack. It was totally ok...there's a sale on.
The sale goes until May 14...
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