Maximum City pre-Wedding

We flew from Kochi to Mumbai the day after Christmas. We arrived in the evening and immediately fell into a whirl of activity, food, and color that has lasted for days. We came to celebrate the marriage of the nephew of our long time friends John and Varsha. After checking into the hotel we headed out into the Mumbai night to pick up Varsha's sister Pinky and their mother Neela. After a short visit to the house we climbed into cars and were driven to Pinky's favourite restaurant, Global Fusion. We arrived around 10pm and were informed That this is actually quite early for an Indian dinner. Global it was. Small plates kept arriving at regular intervals followed by visits to any one of ten food stations for main dishes. All good.

Neela is quite a force. After Varsha's dad passed when she was nine years old, Neela took over a family of four girls. Dolly, Varsha, Pinky, and, Pappu. Varsha said that the girls grew up quick. She opened a salon and supported the family with its proceeds and help from extended family. The daughters have all grown into beautiful, successful women, each in her own way. They are also forceful women, again, each in her own way. I've watched them gently direct the men in their lives with everything from clear directions to subtle gestures over the past several days. It is Dolly's son Mikhail (named after Gorbachev) whose wedding we're here to celebrate.

One thing about this family is that they are all into glamor and bling. Appearances matter. Knowing this Augie and I spent our first morning in Mumbai getting haircuts and a beard trim. Total came to 350 Indian rupees, or about $5. We doubled that as we tipped the barber and he was pretty chuffed. Sitting next to my oldest friend Jules in that shop watching my son getting a trim was a pretty special moment. Who would have thought that the two of us would one day be sitting in a shop in Bombay watching the chai walla dole out tea to a bunch of guys who are currently our age when we met some forty plus years ago.Read more