farewell dinner

tonight the teachers of wenddy i house invited me to go out with them. they tried for last sunday, but a fuel strike prohibited the culmination. we met at a designated point and walked about 20 minutes to another part of town which i've passed many times, but to a restaurant i never seemed to have noticed. it was indian and chinese cuisine, we sat on pillows on the floor surrounding a square table. very thoughtfully, they had made reservations, but the time of day it was, there was hardly anyone else in there yet. unfortunately i didn't have my camera with me cause a trip to the shipping office took a lot longer than anticipated and i couldn't run home to grab it. so, others took photos which i will try and post later, but the evening was very pleasant. they are very sweet people and always ready to smile and laugh. the chinese teacher and i would smile at each other when the rest would go off on a nepali spoken tangent, but soon enough, one would realize our 'absence' and switch back to english. first we had drinks...i was the only one who got a glass of wine and they later commented how pink my cheeks had gotten! ha! then, we ordered several plates of 'momos' which are a nepali staple...stuffed dumpling/spring roll kind of steamed appetizer. we shared those and for the main course, i asked them to order their favorites. biryani and naan were on the table in no time and, again, we shared family style. after dinner, they presented me with a hand carved hanging wooden picture like thing that also is very traditional nepali. so nice. and a lovely written message, as well. we walked home and fortunately passed the new baskin robbins, so, even though it was getting dark, we stopped and had ice cream. when we reached the point where the first teacher turned off on her way, the other teachers waved good bye, but i walked up to her and gave her a hug. i never quite know what to do in these instances, but i felt it was ok and they put a lot of energy to plan and organize this gathering on my behalf so i wanted to show my gratitude. i was next to turn off and when i started to say good bye, they easily fell into a hug...and not just one of those pat on the back hugs, but a real, warm, genuine, lasting hug. they want me to get back in touch with them when i return from india. i'd love to have them over and prepare mexican food for them; it would really be a pleasure...as was the whole evening. that kind of stuff moves me far more than viewing touristy sites. the people and how they live is way more interesting and satisfying to me. hope all's well with you. don't be alarmed if i don't post for a few days...i'm headed to india tomorrow for 3 weeks. i'll have internet access, but probably won't be online as much. take care! love, j