A Day of Shopping - September 28

Since we had a free day before our flight back to Dallas we decided to take advantage of it and go to the coolest shop in New Delhi, The Central Cottage Industries Emporium. I could spend a ton of money in this place. They have some of the most beautiful handmade items. Everything from clothes, fabrics, wood carvings, marble carvings, paintings, toys & furniture.



We picked up some cool hand carved elephants.



Somehow they carved an elephant inside of an elephant.



I also picked up some beautiful Mithila paintings. This unique artistic tradition has its origin in the ancient kingdom of Mithila. Nowdays, this art form is identified with Madhubani District in the State of Bihar and hence is also known as Madhubani Painting.

Practiced exclusively by women, the pictures are made by them on walls and floors of their traditional homes on auspicious and festive occasions. Since the late sixties, this art form has encompassed the medium of eco-friendly hand made paper.

Devotional in theme, these paintings depict scenes from the ancient Epics and Legends and are rich with Vedic and Tantrik symbolism. They are, in fact, simplistic manifestation of the philisophical heights achieved by Indian civilization. Tatoo, also called Godna, is a very distinct form of Mithila Art. Traditionally people get their body tattooed in the belief that it enables them to meet their kith and kin in heaven.











I found some goodies for the kids.





And some tapestries for the living room.

Back to the Embassy, on the Roof & Celebrations - September 27

The girls went with Rajeev back to the American Embassy to take care of paperwork while I went up on the roof of the hotel to take some pictures of the city. Rajeev said this is the most modernized portion of New Delhi. From what I've seen I have to agree with him even though it's hard to believe looking at the buildings.



















I went to the front of the hotel to people watch and to wait for everyone to return. The doorman kept asking me to take his portrait and wanted me to mail him some prints. I snapped a few and he wrote down his address for me.





The girls showed up soon after with the good news that the missing paperwork was sent over and we have the green light to travel back to the states with Girija. We went back to the room to celebrate & rest so we could have a celebratory dinner with Rajeev later that evening. Girija was happy with the news too.





Rajeev took us to a place similar to Dave n' Busters. Girija got to play on her first playground.



We also found out she loves french fries.



Rajeev bought us all a popular Indian desert. It's basically a mixture of rice, sugar & milk. We got to see another side of Girija this evening. The hyped up on sugar side. She was screaming and belly laughing all the way home. Note to self: don't feed her sugar on the plane ride home.

Lunch with Rajeev & Back to New Delhi - September 26

We were able to relax at the hotel and play with Girija before heading over to have lunch with Rajeev and his wife. Girija is adjusting well. She loves having a lap full of toys and has enjoyed all of the affection she is getting.

We stopped for a few quick shots by the doorman.



And a shot of Christi & her mom in their Saris.



Papu picked us up at 11:30 and took us to Rajeev's place.

Here is a shot of Grija not wanting to go for another car ride.



Rajeev has a beautiful home. We visited, ate a delicious home cooked meal & rested for an hour before having to get on the road for the 4.5 hour drive to New Delhi.

Lunch is served.



Rejeev and his beautiful wife.



Rajeev is an amazing man. He adopted one of his daughter's from Nepal. She is now 28 and helps run an orphanage they opened in Nepal three years ago. His goal was to create an orphanage that felt like a home. Most orphanages he workes with have caregivers that treat it like a job. Many do the minimum required to fill that job. He showed us video of the building he just finished renovating for the kids. All of the kids have their own bed, there are tons of bedrooms so they don't all have to sleep together. They have a large kitchen with a permanent house mom & house dad looking over everything. The outside has a walled in garden so the kids can play outside in safety. They have a warm staff that puts the welfare of the kids first. They teach the kids & get them out of the orphanage so they can experience life. If you are looking for a good place to donate this orphanage would be the ideal place: http://www.shristinepal.org

We arrived back at the hotel around 6:30, had dinner & played with Girija in the room. She smiles constantly and loving all of the attention.

Tomorrow it's back to the Embassy to see if we can get all of the paperwork worked out.

Agra & the Taj Mahal - September 25

We got up early, ate a bite at the hotel restaurant and hit the road for Agra to see the Taj Mahal. We drove south into a downtown area that would have looked like any typical downtown area in the States with high rise buildings. That is if you ignored the cattle in the streets and the shacks along the road. It was nice to see some modern buildings. Girija instantly fell asleep and slept until about the last hour of the trip. She woke up and soon started getting sick from the car ride. Not surprised since this was her second time in a car. After spitting up her stomach settled down & was calm the rest of the drive.

On the road to Agra we avoided the typical livestock,



elephants,



and camels.



It's never a dull moment driving in India.

We made it to Agra around 1:00, got settled in the hotel & had a bite to eat before heading over to the Taj Mahal to take a tour. The Taj is an amazing place. They began construction in 1632, a year after the emperor Shah Jahan's wife Mumtaz Mahal died giving birth to their fourteenth child. The principal mausoleum was completed in 1648 and the surrounding buildings and garden were finished five years later. The outer buildings are constructed of red sandstone and were inlaid with simi-precious stones and white marble.





Cathey and Girija.



Christi and Girija.

A Day of Frustration, Rest & Joy - September 24

Christi, Cathey, Girija and Rajeev went to take Girija to the doctor to get looked over. It's part of the adoption process. It's hard to tell how the locals feel about a white woman with an Indian child. They have been staring since we left the orphanage. While she was in the waiting room everyone in there was staring her down.

From there they went to the American Embassy to do paperwork. Turns out a form from the U.S. government wasn't sent over and Christi has been scrambling to see if she can get it faxed over. Unfortunately it's not an easy process to get someone on the phone. We are hoping it doesn't cause us to stay longer than planned. Christi's cousin & her husband works in Washington DC & they have been working like crazy to get the appropriate people involved to help us out. They have been a blessing. The orphanage also didn't sign a document. Their home office is in New Delhi and Rajeev was able to take care of that part.

I stayed in the hotel, updated the blog & rested. The spices have been hard on my stomach & it's catching up with me. We were suppose to head to Agra this afternoon but with the missing orphanage document Rajeev had to take care of we decided to drive there tomorrow morning.

We had a great afternoon with Girija. She is feeling more comfortable around us and her personality is starting to come out. She knows how to turn on the charm. When she smiles her entire face crinkles up. It makes you melt. We took her down to the lobby to walk around. She smiles and waves to everyone that walks by.

She made friends with the security guard at the hotel.



And played on the bed with her new toys.



She loves warm milk.



And always gives us a huge grin when she finishes drinking it.



Tomorrow morning we are driving to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and have dinner with Rajeev and his wife at their home. It's going to be a fun day.