This morning at 4am IST I was waiting for the cab to bring me back to the apartment. In the pre-dawn sky a full moon was hanging brightly. I felt I could touch the moon. There were wispy clouds lazily passing in front of the moon. It reminded me of the summer days of my childhood on my grandparent's farm in Nebraska. I would lie in bed and watch the moon dancing in the nighttime summer sky. I would be listening to the cattle lowing in the pasture. The crickets would be chirping louder and louder as the summertime air got warmer. As a child you have no cares in the world. This early morning I had a brief moment of a child without a care in the world other than what new experiences tomorrow will bring. This is the same moon my family and friends were looking 12 hours later.
Today is St. Valentine's Day. The sun is shining with a light wind blowing. The temperature is perfect. Again another perfect and beautiful day in Mumbai.
In my previous post I had written about the experience of shopping at the Mall. I had jumped ahead of myself. There is so much to tell about "How do you enter a Mall in Mumbai?".
The cab drops us (Vijeta, Ashish and I) off at the entrance of the mall. The doors to the Mall are right there. I started heading toward them. Noooooo! Vijeta points me to the line to go through a metal detector (airport style) and have your bag checked. There was a guard directing the person in the line to one of the two metal detectors and another guard opening all the bags to be inspected before the next stop. Again - I was heading to the mall doors (you know they were that close to me...). Vijeta tells be to go over there.
Note: There was no Male and Female lines this time.
The men step up on a little platform and a male guard uses a wand to verify there is truly nothing on the person. The women are brought one at a time behind a temporary room with a curtain and female guard. She demonstrates to me what she wanted me to do. I held me arms out and she used the "magic" wand to scan me. I felt I was in a sci-fi movie. I finally made it to the mall door. I walked in and the first thing I saw was a kiosk for Tupperware. TUPPERWARE!
Mr. Tupper of Tupperware was from North Grafton, Massachusetts. This is the town I live in. He begin creating the famed Tupperware products in his home.
The amount of security checks to get into most buildings should make a person feel at ease. I think is the threat of terrorism any greater here than in the United States. Is the United States so naive or India paranoid? I believe Americans have short attention spans. India wants to protect everyone who lives and visits this beautiful country. Americans are concerned about losing their civil liberties instead of safety in the larger cities.
I am climbing down from my soapbox to discuss St. Valentine.
St. Valentine was a Roman Catholic priest in Rome in the year of 269 AD. He was beaten and beheaded because he would not renounce his faith. He is the Patron Saint (this is the saint/person you would pray to) of couples in love, beekeepers, engaged couples, married couples and travelers. This is the short list.
I love this song about My Valentine by Martina McBride. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNGwNntQECA
Today for work we are supposed to wear Red and/or White. I have a Boston Red Sox shirt. It has red. Ritika and I are going to the stationary store to buy red and white paper to make hearts for the people who did not wear the colors. We will be wearing Red and White.
Yes - Westboro - I am going to wear the colors. I will not rebel again
The people who work at eCW in Mumbai have a wonderful bond. The minute it was midnight they started wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day. We were shaking hands and "bro" hugs were given.
I have not updated the people who are worried about me eating properly. Rohit's mother is an amazing cook. He has been wonderful bringing extra dinner to share with me and others. Today the IPMs are having a dinner. I will be dining with them. Everyone (most everyone) knows I like chicken (white meat) without bones. I will eat the outer meat if it is attached to the bone. It will be great time.
Did you know the Mumbai mosquitoes can bite through a sweatshirt? Now you do!
Today is St. Valentine's Day. The sun is shining with a light wind blowing. The temperature is perfect. Again another perfect and beautiful day in Mumbai.
In my previous post I had written about the experience of shopping at the Mall. I had jumped ahead of myself. There is so much to tell about "How do you enter a Mall in Mumbai?".
The cab drops us (Vijeta, Ashish and I) off at the entrance of the mall. The doors to the Mall are right there. I started heading toward them. Noooooo! Vijeta points me to the line to go through a metal detector (airport style) and have your bag checked. There was a guard directing the person in the line to one of the two metal detectors and another guard opening all the bags to be inspected before the next stop. Again - I was heading to the mall doors (you know they were that close to me...). Vijeta tells be to go over there.
Note: There was no Male and Female lines this time.
The men step up on a little platform and a male guard uses a wand to verify there is truly nothing on the person. The women are brought one at a time behind a temporary room with a curtain and female guard. She demonstrates to me what she wanted me to do. I held me arms out and she used the "magic" wand to scan me. I felt I was in a sci-fi movie. I finally made it to the mall door. I walked in and the first thing I saw was a kiosk for Tupperware. TUPPERWARE!
Mr. Tupper of Tupperware was from North Grafton, Massachusetts. This is the town I live in. He begin creating the famed Tupperware products in his home.
The amount of security checks to get into most buildings should make a person feel at ease. I think is the threat of terrorism any greater here than in the United States. Is the United States so naive or India paranoid? I believe Americans have short attention spans. India wants to protect everyone who lives and visits this beautiful country. Americans are concerned about losing their civil liberties instead of safety in the larger cities.
I am climbing down from my soapbox to discuss St. Valentine.
St. Valentine was a Roman Catholic priest in Rome in the year of 269 AD. He was beaten and beheaded because he would not renounce his faith. He is the Patron Saint (this is the saint/person you would pray to) of couples in love, beekeepers, engaged couples, married couples and travelers. This is the short list.
I love this song about My Valentine by Martina McBride. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNGwNntQECA
Today for work we are supposed to wear Red and/or White. I have a Boston Red Sox shirt. It has red. Ritika and I are going to the stationary store to buy red and white paper to make hearts for the people who did not wear the colors. We will be wearing Red and White.
Yes - Westboro - I am going to wear the colors. I will not rebel again
The people who work at eCW in Mumbai have a wonderful bond. The minute it was midnight they started wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day. We were shaking hands and "bro" hugs were given.
I have not updated the people who are worried about me eating properly. Rohit's mother is an amazing cook. He has been wonderful bringing extra dinner to share with me and others. Today the IPMs are having a dinner. I will be dining with them. Everyone (most everyone) knows I like chicken (white meat) without bones. I will eat the outer meat if it is attached to the bone. It will be great time.
Did you know the Mumbai mosquitoes can bite through a sweatshirt? Now you do!
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