Party on

Yesterday, Cap and I went out for a few hours to celebrate his birthday. (Thanks to Danielle and Norb who had the kids for hours, way longer than I anticipated---the kids of course were in heaven.)

We drove out to Jersey City and stopped in to see Cass, Bob and their kids. Cal is talking up a storm and was a total love bug. Helene is mellow, alert and big. She fell asleep in my arms which was such an honor. Cap and Bob bonded over music, film and art (Bob is one of a handful of folks who Cap can really talk to in depth about these things). Cass looked great, adjusting to life with two kids and looking forward to a break in kinder winter climes (good ol' SF).

Then we went to India Square, a long block lined on both sides of the street with Indian restaurants, cafés, markets, cd/video shops, clothing stores, and the like. It was fascinating driving past the Phillipine neighborhood, the lone Polish diner, then the Italian strip, before reaching little India.

We trolled for parking wondering just how far the carloads of families, the strolling friends, the occasional couple walking close, had come on this day to grab a bite to eat, load up on rations, and just soak up the warm-despite-rapidly-falling-temps vibe and bustle.

Cap had done some glancing at online reviews and we opted for a restaurant, more upscale than greasy spoon, that had gotten rave reviews. We were seated next to a happy, boisterous crowd that were filling up before a wedding. We opted for the massive buffet where each dish looked more enticing than the last. The food was fresh, spicy and flavorful and we stuffed ourselves silly.

Afterwards, we went to a market and after leisurely checking out the simple and orderly assemblage of goods, we left with a giant bag of dried lima beans, a bag of spicy snacks and a bottle of tamarind sauce.

Onward to the cd store. Cap adores Indian music. The shopkeeper sang the songs off the various Asha Bhosle cds that she brought out for him to help him know whether the cd had the right era of songs that he was looking for. He ended up choosing two cds and when we were short the cash and Cap had literally emptied out each pocket and placed every last coin he had on the counter, she told us to bring in the last $2 next time we came in (no cards, no checks, and no need to run across the street to the ATM).

I hobbled back to the car. I was so full and felt like my stomach was ballooning as the food sat there with no where to go. It took me hours to recover.

I've been keen on visiting India someday since seeing the movie Darjeeling Express. Yesterday I felt like a got a glimmering glimpse of a mutation of life half a world away.