Marketing

That’s what they call going to the market here.

And here’s what our housekeeper brought after marketing today, to Chutney’s utter delight:

• a watermelon
• four mangos
• a kilo of apples
• two kilos of tomatoes
• a kilo of green beans
• six little lemons
• garlic
• ginger
• mint
• green coriander

All for 460 rupees (about $8.60) – not too shabby!

In other news, we were recently told that our permanent housing will be on the Embassy Enclave (aka the Compound). I know it’s like living in a fishbowl and that’s not for everyone but we are really excited and can’t wait to move into our new digs, which happen to be a two-story townhome with a small yard and a carport. Our tentative move-in date is May 23, so stay tuned for pictures.

Also, I bought tickets to Bulgaria, so it’s official, the kids and I will be spending the better part of June in BG. We will be flying Aeroflot Russian Airlines, which makes me a just a wee bit nervous  but we’ll be in BG right smack in the middle of cherry season and that makes me very happy. We will be eating cherries until our tummies hurt. Is it June yet?

Last but not least, it seems like my security clearance for the Foreign Service has gone through and now I need to get a physical check up (even though my medical clearance is current because I had to update it before coming to India) before I can move to the next phase in the long process of becoming a Foreign Service Officer – the suitability review. I am not sure how long that step takes but am happy to be moving along.

There’s a lot more news to report like buying an Indian car, hiring help in India, shopping for fabrics and looking for a tailor, visiting the Red Fort and shaking hands with Secretary Clinton at her recent visit here in New Delhi but I’ll have to table those topics for future posts.