The event opened with an Indian dinner in the cafeteria, all kinds of very good food indeed, no idea what I ate, but it was great, and the sound of munching took over from the endless phoning for a while...
My honorary granddaughter,
seen here posing with her parents, for several photographers, which is why they didn't all look the same direction (!) was a big part of the evening, in the singing group, really good a cappella,
and several of the dance routines, including the classical dance the one with all the bells on the ankles, very difficult stuff. This involved her mother dashing backstage several times to help get her into and out of complicated outfits.
The two MCs, surprisingly funny for kids, some great lines. And some great inside jokes Indians make about themselves -- this was a special treat, since though I have Indian friends, I'm really not into the inner jokes. Several were about Indian parents, delivered by kids who may have been born in India, but are really American in outlook now, and the parents present fell out of their chairs laughing. I also liked the "how do you know you're really Indian" jokes, including: I can prove it. "After school, you went to shoot hoops. Not Indian. I went to the library. This proves it!" and since this was the night before AP subject exams, it went over big!
I think spicy Indian food is an upper itself, and then the loud and wonderful music, which is great when you see the dance that goes with it, just lifts you up and keeps you there. And once again I was blown away by the sheer glamor of the dressed up girls and some of their mothers -- the ones who hadn't come straight from the commuter train, in New York corporate gear.
My friend, the mom, all glammed up in Indian clothes and makeup,was on pins the whole time with this and that, typical mom requirement on a big evening, and I was the grandma, just nodding and smiling and saying, oh she's lovely, and not worrying about whether she ate anything before the performance. Easy job, this grandma stuff.
What a wonderful evening. And how delightful to have such a fabulous extended family.
ReplyDeleteIt is fun, and quite an honour, to take part in other culture's festivities, isn't it? And Indian food, my goodness, out of this world (once you adapt to the heat of it), spices I'd never tasted or heard of before...glad you had a good time, a real pick-you-up! J in Cowtown
ReplyDeleteThere's a ladies'wear shop kitty corner from my kitchen window (next to the much frequented by the world Dollarama) and it has the most beautiful silks in the window behind clear yellow blinds...nowadays so many saris are polyester, and though beautiful, they don't rustle like silk. I have resisted the temptation to enter the shop.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Grandmas. Very pretty young lady and lovely sari she is wearing. I wish I could have been then.
ReplyDeleteYour chosen granddaughter is lovely! What you said about her reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw once that said 'if I'd known grandchildren were so much fun, I would have had them first'. In your case you got to choose which has to be special!
ReplyDeleteIt is always a fun to attend these types of events where Indian Recipes is the main cuisine. The environment and the food both complement each other.
ReplyDelete