The Adventures of the Little Indian Girl

We are back in the US. All numb, exhausted and sick. Yes, still sick. The last leg of the virus is still roaming around us. I haven't wished anyone happy new year except the doctor we took D to in Bangalore on Jan. 1! 

The journey was super long and the worst ever. We boarded the plane fine. D was ultra excited! She got tired of waiting to leave for the airport, at 9pm. We dropped off sis and she happily said bye and wondered where the airport was. We reached the airport at 11pm and she showered N with kisses for finally bringing her there! She so patiently went through the lines for everything without a little fuss even! At check-in, we were asked to check-in the stroller. I argued that I needed it in Paris and every flight I have been on has allowed me to gate check it. Well, they let us go saying we need to check with ground crew, the flight was a full flight. 

D and I board the plane as there's one lady dealing with parents and their strollers. She tells us they are going to be delivered at the final destination. Angry parents respond. She clearly didn't know how to handle the situation. She was also asking people to check in their big (although the right carry-on size) carry-ons. "It's a full flight tonight!" Parents with kids past their bedtime don't want to be messed with. D & I boarded while N took care of the situation. 

We settled in and D couldn't wait to take off. The whole flight boarded and N was nowhere to be seen. Every spot on the overhead compartment was getting filled up and he had the luggage. I almost asked our flight attendant to check on him. He had our passports too. And there he appeared with a sling bag with items and no luggage. He was sharing how one other dad was very mad about this whole fiasco that the supervisors came in to handle the situation, only the general manager was able to explain that this particular airbus didn't allow the space needed for strollers and other light cargo that other newer planes do. He tried to talk to the Air France staff too and got that confirmation. That's all we were looking for. Some explanation instead of just a brush off and treating us as if it's some policy that we made up! 

Of course, no Air France experience is complete without them blaming Delta airlines for something. I think they are very upset to be working with them or something. 

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D was very upset today. Since yesterday evening. She wouldn't eat. She threw a fit so much more often. The last three days she has been surrounded with people, especially her aunt (my sis) - her best pal! She went home yesterday as this is a working week. D woke up to an empty house and she was just soooo upset!

This evening we went out for a walk. Just before we did she threw a big tantrum. She bawled and she cried inconsolably. She professed she was having tooth pain, which she has been saying whenever she throws a tantrum and wants to "save face"! This time I ignored the peace offering and let her cry while I held her.

And then she changed to crying for her dad. She wanted to go home to see dad (N). That broke me and went to comforting her. We made it out of the house and she asked me in Telugu, "we go see new friends?" with such hope and desire!

She is such a people person. She is shy around them but she needs people around her all the time. She is so very happy to be with people. She is always ready to meet new "friends"! I feel for her as only in the evenings do we get to meet the neighbourhood's kids.

Yesterday, two of my uncles and aunts had come over. One cousin and her 6 year old daughter also joined. D spent the whole morning with her and happily fought her nap time (1.5 hours) to be with her. When I went to just watch them play she physically pushed me out of the area and screamed at me to go away. She didn't need my supervision apparently.

I didn't think this form of rejection came so early! I thought I had till teenage years for that to happen. sigh.

Planning to go see some friends over the week in the evenings and that should keep her engaged enough! Weekends are filling up with family and friends!

And countdown has begun to N's arrival!

We have another week or so here in Mumbai. The trip to Hyderabad was great!! Will share once we are back home and I get time!!

We are back with in-laws in Mumbai and are enjoying the last week here! Yesterday evening we all went to a nice cultural program that was celebrating National Anthem's 100 years, etc. D was running down the aisles happily most of the time. And being in India noone minded. after some time she sat on the seat next to us, quietly. One of the speakers was an Army Colonel. His was projected loudly through the auditorium and then D decided she wanted to talk, just like the Colonel. She babbled and copied his tone of voice and volume!! It was hilarious until those sitting next to us started turning around. Some laughed, some looked. So, out she went!

This week we will be busy making lots of social visits since we didn't get the chance during the last visit! Our last week of the year should be fun-filled and then it's back to freezing America. brrrrr.... 

Hope everyone is doing well! I really hope to catch up with all soon! 

oh hubby and I are exhausted. Moreso I than him, when it comes to D. She has turned into a terror as evening comes! She shouts, gets mad, kicks and bites if she doesn't get her way. I keep thinking it's teething, sleep disturbance, etc. But really... is it really that? I hope so, because it means it will pass.

i have to say though this past week I haven't spent this much one-on-one time with her since she was a few months old!! She wakes up at 3am and I have to keep her company so she won't go waking up other people in the room next door! As FIL is in the hospital, MIL & N running about, MIL's mom tries to help but she is nearing 90 years old. So, the day time is also spent with D and her.

I can't wait for FIL to come home on Monday! And I can't wait for hubby to get some teething medicine - homeopathic. We found that Caimilia (spelling?) is mostly to calm a crying baby when you don't know what's wrong (this is what's recommended in the US). There's another combination that's more teething specific. Apparently there's also a medicine that's supposed to help make the teeth come up faster. But I am not going there. I just want something for her to cope with the pain as her hand is permanently sitting in her mouth and the canines are yet to make an appearance!!

I wish the rains stop long enough so we can go out a bit. But then again Mumbai is not really a baby friendly place and I will have to carry her everywhere and keep shouting "no" when she will want to crawl everywhere and touch everything! sigh... maybe this is why Indians are in such a rush to see their babies walking! That's the first question we get here! :S

And this is just the beginning. phew...,.

(but she is so darned cute!!!)

31st January - 3rd February 2009



I reached Mumbai mid afternoon with FIL waiting at the airport to pick me up. That evening we headed out after dinner to catch the train to Aurangabad. I left like 10pm (I think) and reached at 4am! The train ride was normal. Or so I thought. Oh one thing I forgot to mention in the trains post. I was petrified of sleeping on the upper (middle & topmost births). The first time we went I held on to the side railing the whole night!! The second ride, it was a bit better and by the third trip I could sleep through the whole night. So it was on this trip; I took the topmost birth to sleep on. At maybe 2:30 or 3:00am I heard some passengers get on the train and get settled in. It didn't really wake me up but yeah. Just overheard. When the alarm went off at 3:45am, I was up. I just peeped down to see if my in-laws who were in the bottom and middle birth were up and then I got a shock of my life. Every square inch of the train floor was covered by people sleeping! This was completely new experience for me and also a rare occurrence that my in-laws have seen only a few times. We were after all in a reserved compartment (meaning a compartment that required reservations to be in). And then we noticed that every square inch even down the corridor was covered! So we quickly packed up, MIL woke the people up. and we struggled to get down to the exit of the compartment. We were so politely informed by young men crowding the exit that the train was behind schedule by nearly 45 minutes and so we needn't wake them up!

And as the station came up, it seemed like the whole train got off! Strange...

The uncle who we were staying with came by to pick us up and we saw the city before the town was up and about. We took a quick nap and then got going on our trip to Ajanta caves. oh yeah, FIL was quite sick with severe sore throat and lot of phlegm. We nearly canceled but he insisted we go. He got his medicines and so we carried on.

For Ajanta Caves we took the Tourism Board organised tour. The tour was a whopping Rs. 300 per person and came with a guide! Of course, the entrance fee was extra. But this was a far better deal than renting a car, etc. And so we were off...



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24 December - 25 December 2008



My in-laws joined us in Bangalore on Christmas day traveling by train from Mumbai. MIL's aunt who lives in Puttaparthi found out about it and insisted that they drop by at her place before heading down to Bangalore. The train stops at Puttaparthi on the way. N and I decided that we also join them there to spend some time with grand-aunt, whom I had met at my wedding and was so in love with! So the plan was for the two of us to head there on the 24th and spend the night with her. Parents-in-law would get off the train at 5am and spend time with grand-aunt till about 8ish when we would get a rental car to take us back to Bangalore.

So, N thought since we will have the day on the road, if we could take the chance to see something on the way. We thought of Nandi Hill, etc. and finally dad gave the idea of seeing an uncle and family in dad's hometown of Madanapalle. Uncle has always made the effort to come and see us wherever we or any family member is. No one takes the effort to go see him and his family (most of his siblings are now in once city. so mentality is that it's easier for them to come!). So, we decided to go see them in Madanapalle and then reach Puttaparthi in the late afternoon/evening.

We rented a car. The driver, Appaji, came nearly an hour late in the morning claiming a flat tire!! Oh how recklessly he drove!! We had so many near misses! We even saw at least three serious accidents in a span of three hour journey and he would comment how sad it was, etc. But didn't seem to learn much from that whole experience. sigh.

On the way we stopped at a truck stop with a tire shop to get the flat tire fixed.



That hole in front is the "oven" to set the rubber. Very creative!

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7 December 2008



After our trip to Pune, MIL headed back to Mumbai and the two of us headed north to another town called Nasik by train. Nasik is another town in Maharashtra. It's the town where Indian money is printed, where they say Lord Rama his wife Sita and brother Laxman spent their 14 years of exile in the epic Ramayana. It's also where N's good friend from college resides. Another college friend also joined us for the night from Mumbai with family and all. We really had a fabulous time. We went to a park close to their home which was really awesome! It had a huge playground with slides, swings, monkey bars, for at least a hundred kids to play at one time! A huge open-air theater with synchronized water fountains and what not and a huge garden. After that we headed to taste Maharashtra's favorite food - vada pav, pani puri, bhel puri, sev puri, etc. yum.



The following morning we headed out to Trimbukeshwar. We went on a Monday, which is the big day to worship the Lord Shiva. So, the lines were long, and people's behavior would only drive away any God that resides in the temple. No, I didn't like it one bit. All the pushing and the shoving didn't do anything for the spiritual experience one hopes for when going to a temple. But on the way we had some fresh cut pineapple, which helped bear with the heat!

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The President of India has been following me around India... really. She came to Mumbai after the attacks. She came to Pune as well, the weekend we were there. She followed us to Hyderabad just the day after we left. She followed us to Chennai when we were there and she will be here in Bangalore this weekend just down the road from us. In fact, I even have invitation to go see her inaugurate a hospital. But alas, I will be a tourist at the Ajantha/Ellora Caves. too bad... Guess it wasn't meant for our paths to actually run into each other; just following each other! 

My stay in Bangalore of this trip has come to an end. I bid farewell to sis yesterday and couldn't stop crying. I have begun counting down time till I am back with my husband. But it also is so bittersweet that I need to say bye to family! sigh.

This morning I spent it going through the albums. I wanted to scan a few but there were so many that I got overwhelmed! I did scan a few to take. But am sure once I am back in DC, I will wish I scanned that other photo!

6 December 2008

Every night the performance went on till late night. First night we left at 10.30pm. The second and third night we just couldn't get up off our seats. We were fully taken in and were there till 11pm at least!



The first row is the bharatnatyam performance with Karnatic music. The second row is Nritya Ganga performed with Hindustani music. Spot the difference (in the band)! :)