Thursday, October 07, 2010
Preparing to leave beloved Bangalore April 2010
April 2010 Preparations to leave beloved Bangalore
April 1, 2010
Met Vini on Brigade Road--huge commercial street in Bangalore, festooned with Christmas lights and decorations in December--and for food and clothes shopping.
Did voiceover with Lakshmi and Sherry. Amazing the miles I put on the car in Bangalore, going from downtown to south Bangalore. More than the miles though, it's the time! One hour to go about 12 km!
Picked up Maya at Mt Carmel after basketball.
Good Friday. No school.
Molly went to Iccha's birthday slumber party. She's so excited to wake up with Blob, Iccha's golden retriever.
April 2, 2010
Molly to Monkey Maze for Iccha's birthday party celebration.
Phil and Marion are in town and came over for dosa, then we went to their hotel in Koramangala, the Mercure, for a swim. That's where Kirsty and Andrew stayed when they were leaving town. Marion told her boss at Reuters that it'd be tough to leave her family for a week for business in Bangalore (they moved back to the UK last year or year before), and he suggested she take them with her, so Phil, Benjamin, and Josephine were happy to go.
Molly went to Khushi's birthday party. Two of her best buddies' birthdays in the same week!
Went for Girls night out organized by me and Sagarika at High Note. Joining us were Anusha, Reethika, Sohalia, Vini, Kitty, and a few others. Most moms from Charlie's class, but a few from Maya and Molly's, too. Great group.
Molly had her last Bangalore haircut. 440rs by my favorite stylist at Passion, Lucie, the owner.
April 3, 2010
Molly to gymnastics, which she's completely gaga over. And the coach is fantastic with her.
April 4, 2010
Easter. Kids very happy to hunt for eggs. Before I woke up, in fact:) Molly and Maya went to art at Nilu's.
Went to Vini's swimming and for dinner. Sikh hospitality is legendary, and Vini is right up there with Marylouise (married to Inder) who put out at least six or seven dishes per meal when company comes.
April 5, 2010
Maya had her last soccer session at Hebbal. I won't miss the drive! It's about 45 km (27 miles) from Indiranagar to the airport and that takes about an hour with no traffic. So to Hebbal must be about half that, and at 4pm it takes about one hour.
April 6, 2010
Working Globally training at vmware.
April 7, 2010
Went to school with the kids on the bus. Charlie's class had a big party and I was so happy to attend. What a blast all the moms (I think one dad dropped in, but didn't stay long) and kids had a blast with food, kids playing instruments and singing, and art projects. Rhoda Rodriguez rocks big time and we'll miss her SOOOO much. Along with Jhumki and ??reading specialist who rides bus with kids
April 8, 2010
Maya went to a pool party at Zaki's for his birthday. Went to pick her up and spent some time chatting with his mom Nupur. She's one of the people I wish I'd really had more time to get to know in Bangalore. Big trekker and bicyclist.
Janaki auntie came for a visit here. The kids were more comfortable today. The last time she came over they were shocked at how much weight she'd lost. She and Babu uncle really had a great time being together with the kids.
One of the blood banks came over today to draw blood from Molly and Charlie and check for allergies. 3590rs for testing for allergies and ACTN-3 (the "athlete" test that shows whether kids are good at endurance or sprinting sports).
April 9, 2010
Went for a walk with Divya.
Shyam here for a playdate, and Pragya, too. Molly went to Priti's for a lesson and then to visit Mia. Later, Anushae came for a playdate with Charlie.
Badri returned from Boston. Over the last year he's spent one month in the west, one month in the east. He's seen more movies with Mom than he has with me over that time!
April 10, 2010
Today was Rahul S's bithday, Reethika's son. She's another cool bird (as Brigit would say). Badri went for this one.
Molly went to gymnastics. She loves going twice a week.
April 11, 2010
Maya and Molly went to art at Nilu's. She wouldn't let me pay for Molly. Says she won't until Molly is really learning from her. Right now Molly's pretty much doing her own thing and not taking instruction. Pay 1500rs for Maya's four classes a month--'tis but a pittance.
Had a potluck dinner at Kitty's with the kids.
Today was Charlie last day of YFCC football. He had such an amazing blast with all his buddies. Not a bad player either.
Had a swimming playdate and lunch with Vini and kids.
April 12, 2010
Maya and Charlie started tennis in Jeevan Bhima Nagar with instructor Mukesh. They go 8-10 am MWF for 2500rs. It's about 208rs (apx $4, or $2/hr) a lesson. Badri figured, wisely, if they were at all inclined to play tennis, it'd be cheaper to get them started here in India. (In September 2010, we paid $14 per hour, so about seven times more expensive here).
Dev came for a playdate with Charlie after tennis class.
Had a meeting and lunch with Priti.
Swam at Park Hotel with the kids and Badri stopped by for a visit. 3390rs for swimming fee, plus two beers, two hot chocolates, and one sweet lime soda.
Vini left for the US, so I won't see her again until we meet up in the US at some point. Or if we go visit Bangalore and she's still there. I think Mohanjit has a couple more years on his contract with a venture capital firm based in the bay area.
Molly went to Khushi's for a playdate and Maya to Lakshya's.
Badri had a meeting with Wipro.
Met Badri at Fabindia and we chose curtains, then went to Thar where we picked a cabinet and designed it so they could change it into a bar. Gorgeous dark wood, with tribal artwork on the door from Chattisgarh. 25,800rs. total of 29,800 including conversion. $580
April 14, 2010
Went to Wonder la. Always a favorite with the kids Amazingly not crowded. Had a blast in the wave pool. Molly has no fear and goes to the very front where the waves are about 12 feet high.
April 15, 2010
Molly to Preety's for a lesson.
I met Nupur at Ants four coffee so that she could pass along a gift to Maya from her son Zaki. So sweet--it was a grain of rice on a necklace with Maya's name written on it.
April 17, 2010
Maya and Molly went to art, and Charlie for a playdaet to Gitushka's at Embassy Woods apartment complex. Whenever I go here I think of Marylouise and Inder, because this was their first place in Bangalore.
Speaking of Marylouise, we went to her place in the early evening to get together with her family, and Marion and Brigit's families. While there, Hugh got a call from a friend in New Zealand asking if he was at the Chinnaswamy Cricket stadium. The Twenty20 (a shorter form of cricket) was going on, a match between Mumbai and Bangalore, and a couple bombs went off injuring 20 people. Amazingly, the match went on, only postponed by an hour. That's how crazy Indian fans are about their cricket!
April 18, 2010
Maya went to piano, then the whole family went to the Inox movie theatre to see "How to Train Your Dragon." Strongly reminiscent of "Avatar" with dragons flying through the air.
April 19, 2010
Suhasini and Vedarth came over for lunch. Vedarth is one of Charlie's classmates and soccer buddies. Suhasini is one of my favorite moms from his class.
Did a Ms. Smith phone call for Deepma Jadeja, who was conducting a training.
Summer school has started, and I have the kids signed up for various activities. From 2-5, Charlie went to Pure Play, and Maya and Molly had Bollywood dance.
In the evening, Badri and I went out to dinner with Tiki and Phil at Road Trip. They're leaving Bangalore in the next couple weeks after being here for a few years. They'll spend some time in Japan and then figure out where to next.
April 20, 2010
Badri and I had quite a fun time shopping at Sunri, a place I'd wanted to pick up things since I first ventured in a couple years ago. We spent 38,500rs on a musket box (20k rs), coffee table (17,500rs), foyer table (10,500rs), antique stool, and eight whimsical coat hooks made out of giant colorful flies. Hmmm, that doesn't quiet add up, now does it?
Veronique and Emmanuel, our friends from France, came over for dinner. They lived only about a block from us when we were in our first house (next door to Tutu and Sangeetha), but now they're only a ten minute walk. They'll be leaving Bangalore a few months after us. They have three children, like us, and it's been fascinating to see their oldest two, Matthias and Marie, make the adjustment to India, especially to the language. Matthias had quite a "silent period" which I know was very difficult for him and Veronique. Then he came out with English like a flood. Since Marie was even younger when they came (I think they came about three years ago, when she was almost two), she's not even considered a second language learner by Neev School. It's like she has two first languages! How cool is that?
April 21, 2010
Went for a walk with Divya. Namrata came over afterwards and I parted with all our Thomas the Tank Engine stuff. Her son Vidur will get a lot of use out of it.
Phil, Josephine and Ben came over for a visit before heading back to the UK.
Further furnishing of our Lincoln house from Fabindia: 11,500rs for a bookshelf (later we'd get to Lincoln and kick ourselves for not buying two!).
Molly to Iccha's for a sleepover.
Koyal came over to watch the kids, and Andrew, Alice, Andy, Badri and I had dinner at Medici's, a new Italians restaurant on 100ft rd. not far from our house. Not bad at all. And we had a fantastic time. Terrific senses of humor those Brits and Aussies, if I may massively generalize.
April 22, 2010
Had the girls--Divya, Brinda, Chaitali, and Deepdi--over for dinner and had an outrageously fun time. These women know how to enjoy themselves. They're all moms to Molly's classmates, except for Deepdi, whose son was Maya's classmate at Neev.
April 23, 2010
Janaki auntie, Babu uncle, Rishi and Kajoli came over for dinner. Somehow we all knew that the nine of us would never break chapati again all together. But Janaki auntie was in good spirits.
April 24, 2010
Went over to Sheena and George's for a visit. Maya was great friends with their son Justin at Neev, and Melvin was in Molly's class.
April 25, 2010
Had dinner at Kitty's.
April 26, 2010
Walked with Divya.
Molly started swim classes at the Koramangala Golf Association Club, many thanks to Irfana, who is a member there and is allowed to have a guest. Lessons go until May 16. Molly and Alyna became even closer friends over this time. These lessons are wildly popular because Nisha Millet is the coach. She was the first Indian swimmer to qualify for the 200m in the Olympics.
This evening had Nilu (artist and teacher), Jhumki and Miss Jamal over for dinner. All three have been our favorite teachers in our time here in Bangalore. We'd also asked Rhoda Rodriguez, Charlie's prep (kindergarten) teacher, but she was unable to come. Except for Nilu, they're all at Mallya Aditi International School. Miss Jamal had been a full-time teacher there for years, then was called back to work part-time as a reading specialist. She has a gift for recognizing what's special in each child. All three kids read with her, but Molly I think benefited the most. Jhumki was Maya's third grade teacher and Maya was thrilled to be in her class. She really has a way of turning kids on to learning. Kids playfully call her "the dragon" but she is very calm and commands respect from kids like I've never seen, while being loving at the same time.
Helped Maya pack for her first away camp.
April 27, 2010
Sent our longtime coffee table over to Molly's tutor, Preeti. We'd bought that table in San Diego about 13 years ago from our Hillcrest neighborhood. Unvarnished wood planks with black legs and latticework shelf. Really not a fine piece of furniture, but I was kind of sad to see it go, dog-chewed corner and all.
Went to book club at Alice's with Alice, Alla, Marylouise, Sheena, and Kitty. They gave me an incredibly beautiful wooden box (it had Thar "written all over it"). Inside was a scarf, glasses case, and jeweled notepad. Thoughtfully chosen by Marylouise to keep by my bedside for book, glasses, and notes. Alice, ever the amazing host, put out an amazing spread that very few can keep up with.
April 28, 2010
At the crack of dawn, Badri brought Maya to the train station where she departed for herfirst overnight camp--six days! We were all a bit nervous about it. I had a nice talk with Maya last night, asking her if she was nervous. She has such confidence and throws herself so enthusiastically into projects that sometimes I forget that she's only nine and, sure enough, she felt a little nervous about leaving me and Appa for the first time for so long.
Badri's cousin Ranjan, his wife Jaya, and six year old daughter Meera came over for dinner tonight. We gave her lots of western and Indian clothes that Maya and Molly don't fit into or wouldn't use in the states. Good to know it's going to someone who will appreciate it. Meera's such a little cutie.
April 29, 2010
Badri brought Molly and Charlie to see "How to Train Your Dragon" for the second time, and I met Marylouise for lunch.
April 30, 2010
Badri's eldest brother, Ravi, came for a few days visit with his wife Malani and son Appu. Brought them to Unicorn, a restaurant specializing in Mangalorean seafood that Priya and Kush had introduced us to. It was so adorable to see Charlie dress up for dinner. He wore a pair of black dress pants I thought he'd never wear, as well as a buttondown shirt with a collar. He adores and idolizes Appu and it's so cool to see.
May 1, 2010
Went for breakfast at the Egg Factory--our favorite breakfast joint--then to UB City for a tour of the over-the-top opulent mall. Then dropped by Alla and Chris's to see them and Bruno. Had an interesting conversation about the Indian economy. A few minutes into the conversation, I mentioned to Chris that Ravi was a business editor, and Chris
April 1, 2010
Met Vini on Brigade Road--huge commercial street in Bangalore, festooned with Christmas lights and decorations in December--and for food and clothes shopping.
Did voiceover with Lakshmi and Sherry. Amazing the miles I put on the car in Bangalore, going from downtown to south Bangalore. More than the miles though, it's the time! One hour to go about 12 km!
Picked up Maya at Mt Carmel after basketball.
Good Friday. No school.
Molly went to Iccha's birthday slumber party. She's so excited to wake up with Blob, Iccha's golden retriever.
April 2, 2010
Molly to Monkey Maze for Iccha's birthday party celebration.
Phil and Marion are in town and came over for dosa, then we went to their hotel in Koramangala, the Mercure, for a swim. That's where Kirsty and Andrew stayed when they were leaving town. Marion told her boss at Reuters that it'd be tough to leave her family for a week for business in Bangalore (they moved back to the UK last year or year before), and he suggested she take them with her, so Phil, Benjamin, and Josephine were happy to go.
Molly went to Khushi's birthday party. Two of her best buddies' birthdays in the same week!
Went for Girls night out organized by me and Sagarika at High Note. Joining us were Anusha, Reethika, Sohalia, Vini, Kitty, and a few others. Most moms from Charlie's class, but a few from Maya and Molly's, too. Great group.
Molly had her last Bangalore haircut. 440rs by my favorite stylist at Passion, Lucie, the owner.
April 3, 2010
Molly to gymnastics, which she's completely gaga over. And the coach is fantastic with her.
April 4, 2010
Easter. Kids very happy to hunt for eggs. Before I woke up, in fact:) Molly and Maya went to art at Nilu's.
Went to Vini's swimming and for dinner. Sikh hospitality is legendary, and Vini is right up there with Marylouise (married to Inder) who put out at least six or seven dishes per meal when company comes.
April 5, 2010
Maya had her last soccer session at Hebbal. I won't miss the drive! It's about 45 km (27 miles) from Indiranagar to the airport and that takes about an hour with no traffic. So to Hebbal must be about half that, and at 4pm it takes about one hour.
April 6, 2010
Working Globally training at vmware.
April 7, 2010
Went to school with the kids on the bus. Charlie's class had a big party and I was so happy to attend. What a blast all the moms (I think one dad dropped in, but didn't stay long) and kids had a blast with food, kids playing instruments and singing, and art projects. Rhoda Rodriguez rocks big time and we'll miss her SOOOO much. Along with Jhumki and ??reading specialist who rides bus with kids
April 8, 2010
Maya went to a pool party at Zaki's for his birthday. Went to pick her up and spent some time chatting with his mom Nupur. She's one of the people I wish I'd really had more time to get to know in Bangalore. Big trekker and bicyclist.
Janaki auntie came for a visit here. The kids were more comfortable today. The last time she came over they were shocked at how much weight she'd lost. She and Babu uncle really had a great time being together with the kids.
One of the blood banks came over today to draw blood from Molly and Charlie and check for allergies. 3590rs for testing for allergies and ACTN-3 (the "athlete" test that shows whether kids are good at endurance or sprinting sports).
April 9, 2010
Went for a walk with Divya.
Shyam here for a playdate, and Pragya, too. Molly went to Priti's for a lesson and then to visit Mia. Later, Anushae came for a playdate with Charlie.
Badri returned from Boston. Over the last year he's spent one month in the west, one month in the east. He's seen more movies with Mom than he has with me over that time!
April 10, 2010
Today was Rahul S's bithday, Reethika's son. She's another cool bird (as Brigit would say). Badri went for this one.
Molly went to gymnastics. She loves going twice a week.
April 11, 2010
Maya and Molly went to art at Nilu's. She wouldn't let me pay for Molly. Says she won't until Molly is really learning from her. Right now Molly's pretty much doing her own thing and not taking instruction. Pay 1500rs for Maya's four classes a month--'tis but a pittance.
Had a potluck dinner at Kitty's with the kids.
Today was Charlie last day of YFCC football. He had such an amazing blast with all his buddies. Not a bad player either.
Had a swimming playdate and lunch with Vini and kids.
April 12, 2010
Maya and Charlie started tennis in Jeevan Bhima Nagar with instructor Mukesh. They go 8-10 am MWF for 2500rs. It's about 208rs (apx $4, or $2/hr) a lesson. Badri figured, wisely, if they were at all inclined to play tennis, it'd be cheaper to get them started here in India. (In September 2010, we paid $14 per hour, so about seven times more expensive here).
Dev came for a playdate with Charlie after tennis class.
Had a meeting and lunch with Priti.
Swam at Park Hotel with the kids and Badri stopped by for a visit. 3390rs for swimming fee, plus two beers, two hot chocolates, and one sweet lime soda.
Vini left for the US, so I won't see her again until we meet up in the US at some point. Or if we go visit Bangalore and she's still there. I think Mohanjit has a couple more years on his contract with a venture capital firm based in the bay area.
Molly went to Khushi's for a playdate and Maya to Lakshya's.
Badri had a meeting with Wipro.
Met Badri at Fabindia and we chose curtains, then went to Thar where we picked a cabinet and designed it so they could change it into a bar. Gorgeous dark wood, with tribal artwork on the door from Chattisgarh. 25,800rs. total of 29,800 including conversion. $580
April 14, 2010
Went to Wonder la. Always a favorite with the kids Amazingly not crowded. Had a blast in the wave pool. Molly has no fear and goes to the very front where the waves are about 12 feet high.
April 15, 2010
Molly to Preety's for a lesson.
I met Nupur at Ants four coffee so that she could pass along a gift to Maya from her son Zaki. So sweet--it was a grain of rice on a necklace with Maya's name written on it.
April 17, 2010
Maya and Molly went to art, and Charlie for a playdaet to Gitushka's at Embassy Woods apartment complex. Whenever I go here I think of Marylouise and Inder, because this was their first place in Bangalore.
Speaking of Marylouise, we went to her place in the early evening to get together with her family, and Marion and Brigit's families. While there, Hugh got a call from a friend in New Zealand asking if he was at the Chinnaswamy Cricket stadium. The Twenty20 (a shorter form of cricket) was going on, a match between Mumbai and Bangalore, and a couple bombs went off injuring 20 people. Amazingly, the match went on, only postponed by an hour. That's how crazy Indian fans are about their cricket!
April 18, 2010
Maya went to piano, then the whole family went to the Inox movie theatre to see "How to Train Your Dragon." Strongly reminiscent of "Avatar" with dragons flying through the air.
April 19, 2010
Suhasini and Vedarth came over for lunch. Vedarth is one of Charlie's classmates and soccer buddies. Suhasini is one of my favorite moms from his class.
Did a Ms. Smith phone call for Deepma Jadeja, who was conducting a training.
Summer school has started, and I have the kids signed up for various activities. From 2-5, Charlie went to Pure Play, and Maya and Molly had Bollywood dance.
In the evening, Badri and I went out to dinner with Tiki and Phil at Road Trip. They're leaving Bangalore in the next couple weeks after being here for a few years. They'll spend some time in Japan and then figure out where to next.
April 20, 2010
Badri and I had quite a fun time shopping at Sunri, a place I'd wanted to pick up things since I first ventured in a couple years ago. We spent 38,500rs on a musket box (20k rs), coffee table (17,500rs), foyer table (10,500rs), antique stool, and eight whimsical coat hooks made out of giant colorful flies. Hmmm, that doesn't quiet add up, now does it?
Veronique and Emmanuel, our friends from France, came over for dinner. They lived only about a block from us when we were in our first house (next door to Tutu and Sangeetha), but now they're only a ten minute walk. They'll be leaving Bangalore a few months after us. They have three children, like us, and it's been fascinating to see their oldest two, Matthias and Marie, make the adjustment to India, especially to the language. Matthias had quite a "silent period" which I know was very difficult for him and Veronique. Then he came out with English like a flood. Since Marie was even younger when they came (I think they came about three years ago, when she was almost two), she's not even considered a second language learner by Neev School. It's like she has two first languages! How cool is that?
April 21, 2010
Went for a walk with Divya. Namrata came over afterwards and I parted with all our Thomas the Tank Engine stuff. Her son Vidur will get a lot of use out of it.
Phil, Josephine and Ben came over for a visit before heading back to the UK.
Further furnishing of our Lincoln house from Fabindia: 11,500rs for a bookshelf (later we'd get to Lincoln and kick ourselves for not buying two!).
Molly to Iccha's for a sleepover.
Koyal came over to watch the kids, and Andrew, Alice, Andy, Badri and I had dinner at Medici's, a new Italians restaurant on 100ft rd. not far from our house. Not bad at all. And we had a fantastic time. Terrific senses of humor those Brits and Aussies, if I may massively generalize.
April 22, 2010
Had the girls--Divya, Brinda, Chaitali, and Deepdi--over for dinner and had an outrageously fun time. These women know how to enjoy themselves. They're all moms to Molly's classmates, except for Deepdi, whose son was Maya's classmate at Neev.
April 23, 2010
Janaki auntie, Babu uncle, Rishi and Kajoli came over for dinner. Somehow we all knew that the nine of us would never break chapati again all together. But Janaki auntie was in good spirits.
April 24, 2010
Went over to Sheena and George's for a visit. Maya was great friends with their son Justin at Neev, and Melvin was in Molly's class.
April 25, 2010
Had dinner at Kitty's.
April 26, 2010
Walked with Divya.
Molly started swim classes at the Koramangala Golf Association Club, many thanks to Irfana, who is a member there and is allowed to have a guest. Lessons go until May 16. Molly and Alyna became even closer friends over this time. These lessons are wildly popular because Nisha Millet is the coach. She was the first Indian swimmer to qualify for the 200m in the Olympics.
This evening had Nilu (artist and teacher), Jhumki and Miss Jamal over for dinner. All three have been our favorite teachers in our time here in Bangalore. We'd also asked Rhoda Rodriguez, Charlie's prep (kindergarten) teacher, but she was unable to come. Except for Nilu, they're all at Mallya Aditi International School. Miss Jamal had been a full-time teacher there for years, then was called back to work part-time as a reading specialist. She has a gift for recognizing what's special in each child. All three kids read with her, but Molly I think benefited the most. Jhumki was Maya's third grade teacher and Maya was thrilled to be in her class. She really has a way of turning kids on to learning. Kids playfully call her "the dragon" but she is very calm and commands respect from kids like I've never seen, while being loving at the same time.
Helped Maya pack for her first away camp.
April 27, 2010
Sent our longtime coffee table over to Molly's tutor, Preeti. We'd bought that table in San Diego about 13 years ago from our Hillcrest neighborhood. Unvarnished wood planks with black legs and latticework shelf. Really not a fine piece of furniture, but I was kind of sad to see it go, dog-chewed corner and all.
Went to book club at Alice's with Alice, Alla, Marylouise, Sheena, and Kitty. They gave me an incredibly beautiful wooden box (it had Thar "written all over it"). Inside was a scarf, glasses case, and jeweled notepad. Thoughtfully chosen by Marylouise to keep by my bedside for book, glasses, and notes. Alice, ever the amazing host, put out an amazing spread that very few can keep up with.
April 28, 2010
At the crack of dawn, Badri brought Maya to the train station where she departed for herfirst overnight camp--six days! We were all a bit nervous about it. I had a nice talk with Maya last night, asking her if she was nervous. She has such confidence and throws herself so enthusiastically into projects that sometimes I forget that she's only nine and, sure enough, she felt a little nervous about leaving me and Appa for the first time for so long.
Badri's cousin Ranjan, his wife Jaya, and six year old daughter Meera came over for dinner tonight. We gave her lots of western and Indian clothes that Maya and Molly don't fit into or wouldn't use in the states. Good to know it's going to someone who will appreciate it. Meera's such a little cutie.
April 29, 2010
Badri brought Molly and Charlie to see "How to Train Your Dragon" for the second time, and I met Marylouise for lunch.
April 30, 2010
Badri's eldest brother, Ravi, came for a few days visit with his wife Malani and son Appu. Brought them to Unicorn, a restaurant specializing in Mangalorean seafood that Priya and Kush had introduced us to. It was so adorable to see Charlie dress up for dinner. He wore a pair of black dress pants I thought he'd never wear, as well as a buttondown shirt with a collar. He adores and idolizes Appu and it's so cool to see.
May 1, 2010
Went for breakfast at the Egg Factory--our favorite breakfast joint--then to UB City for a tour of the over-the-top opulent mall. Then dropped by Alla and Chris's to see them and Bruno. Had an interesting conversation about the Indian economy. A few minutes into the conversation, I mentioned to Chris that Ravi was a business editor, and Chris
# posted by Kelly @ 8:40 PM 
