Socialite Activities

I haven't been to school in three days! Well, there was the weekend which consisted of learning how to tie a saree, attempting to understand speeches given in Tamil at a Lions Club meeting, stuffing my face at a church retreat in the mountains, seeing my first herd of wild monkeys (is is called a herd? A group of...?), and giving my stomach even more trouble at yet another pre-wedding reception. And that was just the weekend!

Here is how it all went down:
Friday: A post-funeral service at the neighbors house: sitting, listening (not comprehending), counting down the minutes until I thought we would eat, more counting, and finally eating...only sweet and savory pastries and biscuits (cookies), followed by a coconut dosa at home.

Saturday: Lazy morning, casual walk to the internet cafe and ready-made shop to pick up pre-purchased sarees/ the custom stitched blouses that go underneath, lunch of idlees and curry (probably too much) at home, reading (new book I started: The Time Traveler's Wife), getting ready to go out, Lions Club meeting at nearby banquest hall. The meeting was actually a seminar on all sorts of things about the club. Dr. James spoke (thank goodness it was in English) about being a leader. He was the only one to actually speak into the microphone. This put major emphasis on what he was saying. This was a seminar for all members of the Nagercoil Lions Club with speakers they brought in from different clubs in the area. Now, looking from the outside you probably wouldn't have known there was any sort of speech-giving going on at all! During the whole thing, cell phones were going off left and right, people were having conversation and kids were running around! It was too humorous! Then, during the last speech- this may have had something to do with the fact that it was a woman speaking- one prominent man sitting on the stage with the 5 other speakers took out his cell phone and called someone! He dialed then spoke with his hand covering his mouth and other hand holding the phone. Then, he played show and tell with the two guys sitting next to him and handed it off to another guy who made a call and did the exact same hand cover! This was all going on while this poor woman was trying to talk to the group about women development in the club. I guess it is obvious what the male feelings about this are. Then, we ate dinner in the upstairs cafeteria where some catering company was serving up vermicilli pancakes, sambhar, and fried chicken (we're not talking KFC here). They were dishing out the food on plates at one end of the room and placing them on a bech in front of their assembly line. It was typical India here when there was MASS chaos in getting food. People pushing and shoving and grabbing at the plates when there was far more food than all the guests could eat. *sigh*
Sunday: Church retreat where Dr. James was a featured speaker in some mountainous place that starts with an "M." We were picked up in a safari jeep, one that could really rough it. After an hour of driving through parts of Nagercoil I have yet to see, including a bustling fruit market, banana farms, and the wetlands, we got to the base of the mountain. From there is was a twisty-turny, super-windy, incredibly steep, but totally worth it ride to the top. We actually stalled out going up the steepest hill- a wee bit scary, I will admit. We drove over one stream and one river that both flow right over the one-lane road. People were bathing in the river, monkeys were having a snack in the trees, and for the first time in a few months, I actually felt cold. Well, cool. It was probably 20 degrees cooler on top of the mountain and with the window of the car open and the wind blowing, it was a pleasant change. Anyway, at the top is a stone house (see pic) owned by the Salvation Army. A small group of people rented it for the night to have a church retreat complete with sing-song prayers to beating drums, guest speakers, and religion jokes. Sounds like a blast. I stayed for the prayers and the snack break (where I tried my first red banana- it is a copper-colored sweeter banana that is twice as fat, a meal in itself!), then got to walk around and soak up the scenery while Dr. James spoke. I wouldn't have understood it anyway. Tamil is harder to pick up than I predicted. The hill country of India is stunningly beautiful. The pictures do it no justice. There is wildlife everywhere, curvy rivers, flat valleys, and gorgeous views! I didn't want to leave. We had to get back because that night we had another pre-wedding reception to attend- Same thing as before but with chicken masala instead of lamb biryani. I wasn't paying attention to what the servers were putting on my plate at dinner and when I looked down, I got sick. It is pretty insulting to not finish everything served to you, so there I was, still with a belly full of rice and veggies from lunch and 2 potato flour pancakes, chicken masala, rice pudding, and chai to consume. I was uncomfortable afterwards, lets say. Lunch was delicious/hilarious when the cook came out and asked me for my autograph on his little note pad. Even with short hair, I am a celeb.
Monday: I am wearing a saree for the first time and I now realize why I was advised against it by the college student I met at last week's family dinner. In learning how to tie it, I kept asking, "does it have to be this tight?" The answer was always yes. Well, here I am, a belly full of all sorts of goodies from the wedding lunch feast. The wedding was a christian one, so there wasn't anything too out of the ordinary going on. I did laugh at the part during the post-ceremony when the flower girls stand with large bowls of petals and pelt the bride and groom with handfuls of them. I don't think the bride or groom made one look of being at all happy during the entire ceremony...is that possible? I think so. They should have been seeing as they are the only ones who get to eat the cake! The wedding cake has three separate tiers. The bottom 2 are fake. The newlyweds slice the top one and feed each other a bite then leave the rest for later. When I heard about the "cutting of the cake," I was filled with magical dreams of fluffy white icing and soft cake eaten with a fork novel concept) on a plate. Sadly no, this was not the case, which means I am going to have to stop at the bakery on the way home to satisfy my current sweet tooth. Let's hope they have something so covered with icing, that it is tooth-cringingly delicious! Reports on this to come. Enjoy the Fall! Eat a caramel apple for me, I miss those.