Can't quite believe today is our last day in India! We're just about all packed, a process that started around 11pm last night when we arrived from Bombay (I suppose this is what you get when two recovering-procrastinators marry). Tyler is out closing bank accounts, cell phone accounts, etc etc, while I rush to finish up the few remaining work documents before we leave.
This past weekend was the perfect end to our almost five years here in India. If we ever live in India again, no doubt it will have to be Bombay. The energy and vibe there rival that of New York, with just enough craziness that you know you're still in India. It was our own Bollywood weekend, complete with an incredible dinner with old friends from Hyderabad (it felt a bit as though our Hyderabad community had upped and re-rooted to Bombay, which, in a sense, it has) and dancing at a club where there were actually more women than men (gasp!!) Friday night...
...Followed by a perfect south Bombay Saturday, with Priya as our fearless guide: our first Bombay train ride to Colaba, a mouth-watering final lunch at Trishna (I dream about the butter garlic crab there... and the Hyderabadi tikka pomfret was delicious as well!), exploring the Institute of Contemporary Indian Art (awesome exhibit on the photographer of British Vogue, who took striking fashion photographs in India in the 1950s), drinks at Leopold's (where you could still see bullet holes from the Mumbai attacks in November 2008), haggling for sandals on the sidewalk, and catching a free Blues concert in Malabar Hill (with songs on Indian expat life like "Honk OK Please!"... and a relaxing dinner in.
Sunday felt like we were back in Banjara Hills in Hyderabad: a relaxing brunch with friends, followed by a chill afternoon at Molly's Colaba apartment, lounging on her couch and watching Downton Abbey.
The Blues band front man from Saturday night summed it up best: "Mera dil Mumbai may hai": "My heart is in Bombay".
Some pics of our weekend adventure:
From top to bottom: (1) circa 1:30am outside The Big Nasty with Manasa, Priya, Adrien, and Molly; (2) at the Norman Parkinson exhibit at the India Contemporary Art Museum (where we learned "pink is the navy blue of India"); (3) with Priya at Leopold's; (4) at Malabar Hill.
This past weekend was the perfect end to our almost five years here in India. If we ever live in India again, no doubt it will have to be Bombay. The energy and vibe there rival that of New York, with just enough craziness that you know you're still in India. It was our own Bollywood weekend, complete with an incredible dinner with old friends from Hyderabad (it felt a bit as though our Hyderabad community had upped and re-rooted to Bombay, which, in a sense, it has) and dancing at a club where there were actually more women than men (gasp!!) Friday night...
...Followed by a perfect south Bombay Saturday, with Priya as our fearless guide: our first Bombay train ride to Colaba, a mouth-watering final lunch at Trishna (I dream about the butter garlic crab there... and the Hyderabadi tikka pomfret was delicious as well!), exploring the Institute of Contemporary Indian Art (awesome exhibit on the photographer of British Vogue, who took striking fashion photographs in India in the 1950s), drinks at Leopold's (where you could still see bullet holes from the Mumbai attacks in November 2008), haggling for sandals on the sidewalk, and catching a free Blues concert in Malabar Hill (with songs on Indian expat life like "Honk OK Please!"... and a relaxing dinner in.
Sunday felt like we were back in Banjara Hills in Hyderabad: a relaxing brunch with friends, followed by a chill afternoon at Molly's Colaba apartment, lounging on her couch and watching Downton Abbey.
The Blues band front man from Saturday night summed it up best: "Mera dil Mumbai may hai": "My heart is in Bombay".
Some pics of our weekend adventure:
From top to bottom: (1) circa 1:30am outside The Big Nasty with Manasa, Priya, Adrien, and Molly; (2) at the Norman Parkinson exhibit at the India Contemporary Art Museum (where we learned "pink is the navy blue of India"); (3) with Priya at Leopold's; (4) at Malabar Hill.
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