Capital, old chap

So, we're home. Suitcases across the floor and not much inclination to unpack. Birthday parties to plan. Things to catch up on. The flatmate's story of where she was "that night." Bombay, unchanged, business as usual, but perhaps, maybe it's my imagination, a little bit quieter.

And so, I move on to my recollections about Delhi. JC was quite a success, and I think he had fun too. We didn't do much, no sightseeing or anything (except a day spent at Daryagunj and Kareem's), but we did manage to meet quite a few people. And he did get to see what Delhi's like if you live there, and not as a tourist.

Things I got:

I got my first set of birthday presents from the 'rents. A Nine West tangerine bag and beige and tangerine shoes to match. (SO lovely, I feel hot and power woman-like each time I wear them) and new RayBan shades--just the kind I wanted, big ones with plastic frames so they don't burn my face each time I put them on in the sun and darker than my old ones, which is also what I wanted, seeing as we're hitting our late twenties and crow's feet have begun to make their presence felt.

I also went to Janpath, with Fariha and JC, where I bought a red floral pattern dress which makes me look like Jennifer Lopez with the boobage. JC got Christmas presents, and I also got my first lesson in how men shop for presents. There was no deliberating, just chop-chop-chop, this is what I want, okay, I'll take five. Phew! It seems more effecient, but less fun.

From Daryagunj, I got a bunch of books including The Wonder Spot, written by Melissa Banks (author of one of my favourites--The Girl's Guide To Hunting And Fishing). It's one of those books that is so good that you have to stop every now and then to inhale and make sure you're reading slowly, so it doesn't finish too fast.

And, I also got myself a dustbin for my room, something that I've wanted for the last two years. It seems rather odd to be going on about a dustbin, but I've been looking for just the right one. Not those Magnet industrial kitchen ones, not the plastic ones, I wanted the steel look but slightly more classy. I think my new bin does that. I've very proudly discarded two ciagrette packets in it right now. My resolution for Year 27 is to be slightly more handy around the house, so I'm going to begin with keeping my space a little more organised. It's tough to break bad habits formed for YEARS, but hey, it's worth a shot, eh? Household hints for the harried will be welcome.

Partying like it's 1999:

Stone happened some ONE GAZILLION times. They let you SMOKE, which nowadays is all I seem to need from a bar. That's the nice thing about a lot of places in Delhi, they have the space to put out a smoker's balcony. (Psst: in Bandra, there's Zenzi and Banana Bar, if you're desperate for a cigarette with your drink.)

We also did the oldnew TCOpus with Crowley. I guess I'm just going to have to accept that TC as it was is dead and gone. KVA and I were actually having a discussion about it. "The old TC was a legend," he said, "And even if they reopen in the same place, it will never be the same." Sad, but true. Still, it is heartwarming to see that the DJ hasn't changed his playlist in two years.

Very nice Saturday night Blingbees do at a new restaurant called The Yum Yum Tree in New Friend's. It was a 90s night, which meant not only 90s music (yay!) but also 90s prices (re-yay!), which meant a hundred bucks plus taxes on drinks. So we---Fariha, Rehaan (old friend, has just returned from phoren), JC and I--got completely, out of our minds, shimmying on the floor, talking to everyone around us, shit faced.

One night we met Leela and Ishan at Aqua, where the bouncers recognised me, making me feel all posh. It was someone's pre-wedding party, but they said to bring friends, so Leela did, joyfully. Sadly I was driving and couldn't take advantage of the AWESOME open bar, but I think JC had both our shares.

What we ate:

Big Chill (no brainer, but duuuuuuuuuude, prices have gone up by like a HUNDRED rupees)

Sancho's (a new (?) Mexican place in South Ex. Lovely food, I'd recommend it highly)

Kareem's (Mmmmmmmmmm)

Stone (where they do a really good medium rare steak. Seriously.)

Moet's Sizzler (Meh.)

Ubiquitous weather reference:

Cold weather is fun!