The Case of the Missing Monsoon

Poha for breakfast

Happy Shopper

Monsoon Sale 

Outdoor Tailor

Waiting at the Tailor

Manchurian Cauliflower - I love it!

Rice, Dal and Garlic Naan

Today was a day of shopping. We knew the stores we wanted to go to and actually found some new ones that we liked. There are lots of women clothing stores, both contemporary and those that are more traditional Indian. My guess is that in Delhi most younger women wear western contemporary. The poorer women wear more traditional sari’s.

We had a driver for the day. The air-conditioned SUV kept us cool and he drove us wherever we wanted to go. The cost of a driver and car for the full day was 1500 rupees, about $ 30.00. You could easily spend that on 1 cab ride in New York or Los Angeles.

I bought a pair of pants that needed to be shortened. We walked down the street from the store and observed an open air tailor shop. I expected the tailor to ask me to put on the new pants and measure the length. That is not how he did it. He quickly measured my inseam of the jeans I was wearing then measured the new pants and cut off the legs at the appropriate length. He then went to the back and sewed the cuffs. Finally he handed the pants to another man who ironed the pants on the floor! Total cost 150 rupees about $ 3.00.

We have never before been in Delhi in the summer. I knew it would be hot and humid, but I forgot the effect the monsoon would have on the air. In the winter Delhi has terrible air. It is right up there with Bejing as being damn near unbreathable. You can’t see very far because of the haze and dust in the air it seems everyone is coughing and has respiratory problems. We both have been affected by it in the past. In the summer we found that the monsoon has washed the air clean. It also makes the entire city green and the air is sparking. Delhi is a city of parks and is beautiful. Score one for the monsoon! By the way the monsoon is missing in action the two days we have been here. No rain at all. We do have umbrellas that we leave in the car, just in case. We take Malarone pills daily to ward off Malaria. About 3pm we started to see mosquitoes and applied insect repellent. Another upside to the missing monsoon: Monsoon sales at the store. Who knew?

Hindu’s have over 30 million gods, memo to self: I need to ask someone if there is a Hindu God of Monsoons.

What am I thinking of, I don’t need to ask anyone, I have the ultimate God: Google available. Here is what Google says from the Times of India in article from 3 years ago about the monsoons in Mumbai:

“With disaster striking Mumbai in the form of rains, media reports constantly refer to rain gods. But who are the rain gods? Indra? Yes, but when was the last time you saw a temple dedicated to him. Monsoon, in fact, is the time when Hindu gods go to sleep.”

Obviously the monsoon gods don’t suffer from jet lag, I am writing this at 4am, and can’t sleep but the Gods can. Oh to be a God!

On the eating front, the hotel offers a huge and delicious breakfast buffet in the morning which we love. We sit outside in a glass-enclosed area overlooking the verdant grounds. Although it wasn’t on the menu, I asked the staff if they would make Poha for me (a breakfast dish that is made from shaved rice and spices that I love). We skipped lunch. For dinner we started with wine in our room then went to my favorite Indian restaurant Veda: I had my Manchurian Cauliflower fix, Chicken Tikka, Dal, Rice, and garlic naan and a bottle of Indian wine. We took an air-conditioned cab from the hotel to the restaurant; the driver waited for us for over 2 hours then drove us back to the hotel. Total cost for the cab for the trip and wait time: 500 rupees less than $ 10.00.

Tomorrow (later today as I write this) massage for me, facial for Cathy, lounge around the pool, dinner at the Taj and then we pack. Monday in the morning we fly to Rishikesh in the Himalayas.