A list of sorts
1. Yesterday I went to a cooking class with my neighbor. She was meeting me there, so I walked down the hill alone. We live on the side of a wide ravine. On our side is one village, and on the other side is another. The light as I was coming down the hill made the houses on the other side of the ravine glow enough that I had to stop and catch my breath. The sun was out for the first time in days and it was that late afternoon light. My feet were almost too light to hold me down.
2. The cooking class was excellent. Of all the food I’ve ever had in India, nothing has compared to the food that comes out of an Indian woman’s kitchen. We sat on the floor and chopped vegetables together. I learned a new dish (Malai Kofta) and a new spice (Kasoori Methi. I cook with fresh Methi in Goa, but never knew before now that it was available dried). Her outdoor kitchen was in a small earthen house with dung walls.
3. She told us many things. “In India, the man is king. His wife must do whatever he says.” “School is very expensive now, which is why I only have one child.” and “My husband used to be a mountaineering guide. Seven years ago he fell, and now he is paralyzed from the neck down. Now I work very hard.”
4. We all ate together. I told them about going to Burkina Faso and hearing that the way I ate with my hands (the Indian way) was wrong. Instead of pushing the food in with my thumb, I needed to do more of a scoop and turn with the fingers. I never did get it right.
5. Tripta keeps joking about how I should leave Solo with her when we go, so that he can learn Hindi, and I can collect him next April. As she continues in her jokes, I wonder if she’s actually serious. Whether or not she’s joking, the answer is a resounding NO.
6. Seven is already a very affectionate age for Kid A. I believe I’ve had more hugs in the last three days than I had the entire year that he was six. I love 7.
7. All of our train tickets are booked. We leave on the 19th, and will be in Goa (with stops on the way) by the 5th of October. I can barely wait.
2. The cooking class was excellent. Of all the food I’ve ever had in India, nothing has compared to the food that comes out of an Indian woman’s kitchen. We sat on the floor and chopped vegetables together. I learned a new dish (Malai Kofta) and a new spice (Kasoori Methi. I cook with fresh Methi in Goa, but never knew before now that it was available dried). Her outdoor kitchen was in a small earthen house with dung walls.
3. She told us many things. “In India, the man is king. His wife must do whatever he says.” “School is very expensive now, which is why I only have one child.” and “My husband used to be a mountaineering guide. Seven years ago he fell, and now he is paralyzed from the neck down. Now I work very hard.”
4. We all ate together. I told them about going to Burkina Faso and hearing that the way I ate with my hands (the Indian way) was wrong. Instead of pushing the food in with my thumb, I needed to do more of a scoop and turn with the fingers. I never did get it right.
5. Tripta keeps joking about how I should leave Solo with her when we go, so that he can learn Hindi, and I can collect him next April. As she continues in her jokes, I wonder if she’s actually serious. Whether or not she’s joking, the answer is a resounding NO.
6. Seven is already a very affectionate age for Kid A. I believe I’ve had more hugs in the last three days than I had the entire year that he was six. I love 7.
7. All of our train tickets are booked. We leave on the 19th, and will be in Goa (with stops on the way) by the 5th of October. I can barely wait.