- We did not "fall back". No daylight savings here.
- We did not shake hands with President Obama, but many of our colleagues did. On Sunday afternoon, there was a Meet and Greet event at the Embassy. Tickets (for US passport holders only) had to be procured in advance, and fair warning was given about intense security checks and long waits. Those who went were greatly rewarded and it turned out that the potential hassles were way overestimated. Click HERE to see terrific photos taken by an AES teacher.
- We went on our first train excursion, successfully navigating both a pre-dawn departure and a late-night arrival at the New Delhi station.
It was a 5.5 hour trip from New Delhi to Dehradun, followed by an hour car ride up mountain switchbacks to Mussoorie, a small city in the foothills of the Himalayas. We arrived at The Claridges Hotel mid-afternoon to find that we were the only guests for the weekend; most Indians were with their families for Diwali and the ex-pats must have chosen a different place to stay. So, we had the place to ourselves and it was delightful; the brilliant blue sky, the warm temps in the sunshine, cool air in the shade were reminiscent of glorious September days in Maine.
2. We attended a pooja (a what?!?)
The center of Diwali is the pooja (a Hindu prayer service) which honors the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. We sort of knew this going into the weekend and when we checked into the hotel, the general manager said there would be a Diwali ceremony in the lobby at 6:30pm, followed by some "no sound" firecrackers (seriously??), and dinner at 8:30. That all sounded okay with us and so later that evening, we found ourselves sitting on the floor of the main lobby with seemingly every member of the staff (the front desk guys, the chef, the security guard...) listening to prayers recited in Sanskrit while each rite of the ceremony was performed with various offerings: marigolds, puffed rice, burning incense, coconut sweets, candles, and saffron paste. It was a wonderfully authentic experience that we had not anticipated.
Afterward, we took part in the firecrackers. Our boys were indoctrinated into this Indian tradition with sparklers which later escalated to some spinning things, bottle rockets and a few other goodies. For our kids, this was a big step up from toasting marshmallows and unfortunately, they liked it all.
3. We went for our longest unobstructed walk in India to date.
On Saturday morning, we set out on the search for some mountain views. And while Camel's Back Road cannot be considered a hike (it's both flat and paved), it felt nice to be walking for a stretch longer than ten minutes.
Taking a break to open Halloween Pez, courtesy of a fellow newbie:
Asa got the view, missed the top of Jonah's head:
This is one of things you do because it's there. The views were not much better from the top of Gun Hill, but this little adventure was fun for all.
5. Lastly, we got a good laugh at my George Costanza moment (remember the fire scene?).
On Sunday morning, Asa was not feeling well (just a cold, nothing serious) so while Liam and Jonah headed into town for one last tour around, Asa and I relaxed in the hotel garden, reading and coloring. When a monkey hopped into a chair at our table, I bolted for the porch, leaving Asa frozen in his seat. Though he was only about two seconds behind me, and the monkey just innocently checked under the newspaper and looked for food in the bag of magic markers, someone clearly needs to review the evacuation protocol.
All in all, it was a lovely weekend. We escaped the madness of Diwali in Delhi and got a thoroughly genuine and much more low-key holiday experience up in Mussoorie. We found traveling by train far more relaxing than being on Indian roads, and the dose of fresh air, the heaps of great Indian food (no, we're not tired of it yet!), and the blue sky were totally rejuvenating. A perfect three-day weekend.
You can click HERE to see a few more photos.
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