Back Home

Hello,

We're long overdue.....but we made it home safely on Wed., January 21. To catch you up.....

We had a couple days in Mumbai before leaving India. We arrived on Saturday afternoon and were met by Gerry's mother's cousin Yvette. After a visit with Yvette's parents and son we moved on to our hotel and dinner. The journey was through heavy Mumbai traffic, increased greatly to the movement of the visiting Prime Minister. With the security threats, road closures and extra sweeps to secure the area meant a lot of waiting on the road. We finally made it to the hotel, had some dinner and sent Gerry's parents off to the aiport for their very late night flight home to Los Angeles.

Sunday in Mumbai - the annual Mumbai marathon, and the route began and ended very close to our hotel, with the route on our hotel's street. So, we couldn't go anywhere, except on foot. So we wandered a bit, found the University of Mumbai and a lot of closed shops on Sunday morning. After the marathon ended and roads cleared we went on a guided half-day tour. We saw a Jain temple, a house where Ghandi lived for several years and a nice museum about his life and endeavors, the Dhobi Ghat where laundry has been done for many years, city gardens and the India Gate and Taj Mahal hotel. We also drove by a world heritage train station. Many of these places will be familiar to anyone who watched media coverage of the terrorism attacks in November. As we drove, our tour guide Ida would point out a footbridge used by the terrorists or the neighborhood in which the Jewish community center that was attacked was located. A bit eerie, but understandable.

Sunday night we were able to meet with Gerry's father's sister Aunty Alzira, her daughter Loretta and husband Edgar and their two children. We had a nice dinner all together and visited a bit. Monday, we were met by cousin Lynette (Alzira's other daughter) and enjoyed a breakfast together before riding to the airport. From Mumbai to London, on British Airways, and they still served Indian food on the plane.

In London, we made our way to a cousin's flat - Camilla and her boyfriend Giles were gracious hosts. They had done 6 months of traveling in and around India about a year ago, so we swapped stories over dinner. We had a full day in London and spent it (staying as warm as possible) wandering about SoHo, Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square and along the Thames River. We met up with two families for dinner, great to meet more extended family.

The next day, back to Heathrow and an American Airlines (no Indian food) flight home to Los Angeles. Since then, laundry, getting back to a normal sleep schedule, washing Sarah's shoes (it's quite a thought to consider all the things you step through on India's streets), dreaming of Goa's beaches and back to work.

And so it ends - and we have the memories, photos and purchases to remind us of an amazing adventure. We finally went to see Slumdog Millionaire. Perhaps a bit more intense to see after just being there amidst India's masses, but absolutely worth seeing. Oh, and I'm reading The White Tiger - and interesting book set in Delhi that gives an inside look at the life of the servant class up against the privelege and corruption amongst (some of) the wealthy.

So thanks for keeping track of us, for supporting us along the way and for welcoming us home. If you missed anything along the way, you can find it all here on this blog. Along with a few photos.....

If you or anyone you know is interested in making your own adventure in India, please let us know! If nothing else, we can recommend our tour company and a really great driver!

Madame Moon Sarah & Sir Gerry