Manjari's Wedding

The Wedding
Originally uploaded by Jane Rubio.

I can't believe I got to spend three days in a castle in the middle of Rajasthan for my friend's wedding. It's too hard to explain how cool it all was. Check out the pictures at www.homepage.mac.com/janerubio/PhotoAlbum14.html.

Note my cool outfits.

It was a serious five day affair, with multiple receptions and ceremonies. Beyond the coolness of henna staining our hands, Rajasthani village women singing and dancing with their faces covered, slathering yogurt all over Manjari's face and hair, dancing in a circle with the women, visiting a Jain temple, singing Girl Scout songs and hits from The Sound of Music on the bus from Udaipur, I got to meet and hang out with some amazingly warm, sweet, and fun people.

Manjari's family is the bomb. After spending two nights with her parents in Mumbai, I felt like an adopted daughter. (They kept telling everyone I was Indian.) Her cousins and brother-in-law's family were all so welcoming and FUN. I can't really stress how hospitable they all were. From the moment I stepped off the plane, I didn't have to worry about anything. Manjari made sure all the accommodations and transportation were taken care of, along with time to do the touristy stuff and participate in all the wedding events.

The were a bunch of us internationals. The gang included: Kaniaru (a Kenyan living in the U.S.), Piu-Ying (a Hong Konger living in Ireland), Akiko (Japanese living in Korea), Soojung (Taiwanese living in Korea), Jo (American living in Manilla), Sue (Korean living in Hong Kong), her godmother (Korean living in . . . .Korea), and me (American/Venezuelan/Colombian/Indian living in Katy).

These are pictures of us hanging out in Bombay and Udaipur-- www.homepage.mac.com/janerubio/PhotoAlbum16.html.