Mid-week holiday

Since I was over the worst of my cold, I went out to dinner with coworkers on Tuesday night. We went to a place called Out of the Blue. The menu was so varied, that I’m not sure exactly what kind of cuisine it was supposed to be, except that it was mostly continental, I suppose you could say. The part of the restaurant we sat in was like a covered tent, and although there were fans, there was no air conditioning, and I felt like I was melting away. My green Thai curry was excellent, once it cooled down and stopped sizzling and smoking. But by the end of dinner I wasn’t feeling well because of the heat, so we continued the evening with drinks at Olive, just down the road. Olive has A/C, and a live DJ. It’s a good crowd, good ambience, and excellent bartenders, who met our demands for brain hemorrhages, blue kamikazes, and B-52 shots.

Wednesday was a day off for an Indian holiday (the last day of Navratri). The day itself is called Dussera, which according to one web site, “marks the day on which Lord Rama, a reincarnation of Lord Vishnu, liberated his wife Sita who had been abducted by Ravana, the king of Lanka. This festival, celebrated throughout India, culminates with the setting fire to an effigy of Ravana, thus signifying the end of evil”. All I really picked up on was it’s a day off, and there’s fire (cool!).

The Aussie, the Kiwi, and I spent the day with a friend from Mumbai. She’s the Aussie’s friend from when she went to Uni in Melbourne. She took us to an excellent café for lunch, where I enjoyed goat cheese crostinis, a café latte, and a tropical fruit lassi. (Mm, yum – much better than the masala dosa I had for lunch today,…again). Then we went for shopping in Colaba at the outdoor vendors, although I wasn’t in the mood and didn’t find much. We ended the day with dinner and drinks at the Dome, an outdoor lounge bar on the top of the Intercontinental on Marine Drive. It has a beautiful view of the water and coastline, and the ambience was surprisingly chic, with large white coaches and arm chairs, candles on the tables, and a glass railing.

We made friends with a Swiss man (he’s been living in India for 4 years, and we think he’s the Swiss consulate or something) who was there testing out the menu and chef for an event he’s hosting at the end of Diwali. They were making cheese racqlette, which is like cheese fondue on a plate. I had never heard of it before, but it was yummy! He and the chef came over to our table periodically to give us samples and chat for a bit. It was really nice, and unexpected, of them.

During the drive home, we passed so many celebratory groups just dancing in the streets, with trucks decorated, and people playing drums and music. I didn’t see as much fire as I was hoping for, but there were plenty of firecrackers and even some fireworks. Some were so loud I though they were gunshots. Overall, it was a really nice day off, and it was particularly nice to be shown around by a local.

I’m back at work today and tomorrow, before I leave for my weekend trip to Dubai on Friday night. It’ll be a quick two-night trip, with shopping and going out being the main activities on the agenda. Next week I actually plan on working the full 6 days in a row, which I haven’t actually had to do since the last week in August, either because of Indian holidays, or planned weekend trips here and there.