Shoe Shopping, Jasmine for My Hair and Indian Women
Well, it is now Thursday and we are going out soon to check these eyeglasses and then to have my palm read, but let's get back to the shoes yesterday.
Poor Ravin! The majority of men do not like shopping, especially with women, and this was actually the first time Ravin did something like this. For those of you who know me well, you know how difficult it is for me to find shoes that fit my feet...little did he know what he was in for! I tried to explain that where my feet are concerned, I cannot try and save money and must have only the best...if he would have believed me at the beginning, we could have saved some running around, but he insisted on first taking me to a bargain shoe place and of course there was nothing there for me...then two other places where we hit a blank...finally we wound up at the shopping mall I originally wanted to go to and of course there were not only shoe stores but sporting goods shops also...I easily found several which were suitable, but either they were too wide, as usual, or they did not have my size etc. Then he took me to an Indian shoe shop called Woodlands I think.......(all of a sudden forgot the name...but he will be back soon and I will ask) and they had FABULOUS sports type sandals, but unfortunately, they were not narrow enough for my foot...they were extremely comfortable and you could see were very sturdy.
So then we went back to the sport shops and finally, in one, found a perfect fit, width, color etc. for my feet...Reebock's for only 89 shekel! I'm sure they are manufactured here but who cares...there were Nike's but they were the same price as in Israel and even Rockport but I was not interested in paying so much money and now have a perfectly comfortable and weather resistant sandal for the rest of my trip for a ridiculously low price.
Yesterday before we went out for the shoes, one of the maids came in with a jasmine garland in her hair...many women wear them here, and I commented on how beautiful it was, so she said she would get me one ....and sure enough, this morning, the day maid came in with a garland for my hair which she pinned in for me, and I walked around the whole difficult morning with the amazing smell of fresh jasmine accompanying me all the way. When I got home, and took my hair down to rest, I tied it onto , my wrist and the smell is still wafting its way to my nose and into my body and bringing me much joy with it's wonderful aroma...
I will end this now and continue with the next entry...the stories are beginning to pile up and I am finding it difficult to put them all down in writing...so I've made notes for myself as I truly want this journal to reflect the experience as it flowed for me....not necessarily every place I saw or visited, but the things I felt during each experience...I still find myself thrilling to the simple thing of just biking through the streets and seeing the scenes of daily life here...the dress of the women still fascinates me...I think I would never get tired of looking at the infinite variety in pattern, color, style and imagination which goes into the same basic design of the shalwar kameeze. Wish there was someway I could wear it so well. I've even seen pregnant women in saris who still walk beautifully and carry themselves with grace and ease...none of the "waddling" we are so used to seeing in Western women,....
And then of course if the test of survival I go through each time we head out on the bike. If I have survived the numerous rides on the bike through the thick pollution of bus fumes, bike exhausts, cars etc without getting sick, I guess I can survive anything...it truly is an experience I never imagined myself going through! I would not like to do it on a permanent basis...I would take precautions (I see many women on bikes and they use the dupatta (scarf) from their sharlwar kameeze as a face covering to keep the fumes out of their faces and of course to protect their skin from the wind and dirt and pollution...Indian women are very careful with their skin, nails, hair etc.
Poor Ravin! The majority of men do not like shopping, especially with women, and this was actually the first time Ravin did something like this. For those of you who know me well, you know how difficult it is for me to find shoes that fit my feet...little did he know what he was in for! I tried to explain that where my feet are concerned, I cannot try and save money and must have only the best...if he would have believed me at the beginning, we could have saved some running around, but he insisted on first taking me to a bargain shoe place and of course there was nothing there for me...then two other places where we hit a blank...finally we wound up at the shopping mall I originally wanted to go to and of course there were not only shoe stores but sporting goods shops also...I easily found several which were suitable, but either they were too wide, as usual, or they did not have my size etc. Then he took me to an Indian shoe shop called Woodlands I think.......(all of a sudden forgot the name...but he will be back soon and I will ask) and they had FABULOUS sports type sandals, but unfortunately, they were not narrow enough for my foot...they were extremely comfortable and you could see were very sturdy.
So then we went back to the sport shops and finally, in one, found a perfect fit, width, color etc. for my feet...Reebock's for only 89 shekel! I'm sure they are manufactured here but who cares...there were Nike's but they were the same price as in Israel and even Rockport but I was not interested in paying so much money and now have a perfectly comfortable and weather resistant sandal for the rest of my trip for a ridiculously low price.
Yesterday before we went out for the shoes, one of the maids came in with a jasmine garland in her hair...many women wear them here, and I commented on how beautiful it was, so she said she would get me one ....and sure enough, this morning, the day maid came in with a garland for my hair which she pinned in for me, and I walked around the whole difficult morning with the amazing smell of fresh jasmine accompanying me all the way. When I got home, and took my hair down to rest, I tied it onto , my wrist and the smell is still wafting its way to my nose and into my body and bringing me much joy with it's wonderful aroma...
I will end this now and continue with the next entry...the stories are beginning to pile up and I am finding it difficult to put them all down in writing...so I've made notes for myself as I truly want this journal to reflect the experience as it flowed for me....not necessarily every place I saw or visited, but the things I felt during each experience...I still find myself thrilling to the simple thing of just biking through the streets and seeing the scenes of daily life here...the dress of the women still fascinates me...I think I would never get tired of looking at the infinite variety in pattern, color, style and imagination which goes into the same basic design of the shalwar kameeze. Wish there was someway I could wear it so well. I've even seen pregnant women in saris who still walk beautifully and carry themselves with grace and ease...none of the "waddling" we are so used to seeing in Western women,....
And then of course if the test of survival I go through each time we head out on the bike. If I have survived the numerous rides on the bike through the thick pollution of bus fumes, bike exhausts, cars etc without getting sick, I guess I can survive anything...it truly is an experience I never imagined myself going through! I would not like to do it on a permanent basis...I would take precautions (I see many women on bikes and they use the dupatta (scarf) from their sharlwar kameeze as a face covering to keep the fumes out of their faces and of course to protect their skin from the wind and dirt and pollution...Indian women are very careful with their skin, nails, hair etc.
posted by Jane @ 6:07 PM
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