Baaaaaaack!

Hello everybody,

Did I mention that we were going away on a mini-get-away?  Not sure if I did but Rich and I were very lucky to get away to LA for 4 days this past weekend to not only see my sister but to also celebrate our friend's wedding.  Here is my favorite type of blog post...a picture story!

First...the wedding festivities!

Here is the beautiful bride Cynthia with her fiance Nirpal, whom Rich has known since college days.  Isn't Cynthia absolutely gorgeous?  This was a traditional Punjabi wedding and part of it is a Sangeet/Mendi ceremony two nights before the actual wedding.  What's Mendi?

It's another word for henna.  It's made from leaves which have a natural dye in them.  Once it's made in to a paste, it can be used to create a sort of temporary tattoo on your hands or feet.  Although the application doesn't take too long with a skilled artist, it unfortunately takes about 2 hours to truly dry.  It will become cakey and then you can rub off the dried stuff to reveal the temporary tattoo!  Isn't it gorgeous?  I haven't had henna done in such a long time that I was thrilled to get some work done on the the outside and inside of my left hand.

Part of the festivity at the Sangeet was a dance where people danced with this thing on their head and they pass it from person to person until at last it gets to the bride and groom.  Fun, huh?  Here is Cynthia rocking it!

Two days later, we attended the wedding at a gorgeous Country Club in Tarzana.  Isn't the view gorgeous?  Breath-taking!

I don't know if you can see but here is a picture from the actual wedding ceremony where Cynthia and Nirpal walked around in a small circle with a red linen cloth between them.  They have to go around the circle four times...for four individual sets of blessings.  All the women sat on one side of the room and men on the other.  Everybody had their head covered (as you can see in the pic).  Neat, huh?  I love being able to experience other people's religions!  The ceremony was truly beautiful.

Here's a pic of the girls!

And one pic of the men-folk. 

The reception was a lot of fun!  Great food, open bar and hours upon hours of bhangra mixed music to dance to.  I was very proud of Rich for offering to dance with me quite a few times!  I really miss good ol' bhangra.  Here he is showing you his moves.  A-hem.  I know.  :)

And the rest of the trip?  We got to see one of Rich's best friends from high-school (sadly I forgot to take a picture of them) and we also got to spend a whole day with my sister, Aarti!

Yay!  I love this picture!

We went to Olivera St which has a ton of Day of the Dead art which I absolutely ADORE.  :)  Unfortunately I didn't get anything as nothing was calling my name...I know...how it that possible?  

We also got a free tour of one of the oldest houses in LA.  Here is a pic of Rich and my sister.

Here is one of us altogether...great pic, huh?

We took a little walk through Union Station which is a historic train station.  Isn't this gorgeous?  You had to be there to take it all in.  The ceilings were crazy high and the windows incredibly tall.  Everything in here was so majestic that it took my breath away.

Check out the 'light fixtures'.  I feel silly calling them that!

And don't forget to breathe in the beautiful art that adorns the ceilings.  Gorgeous!

While I was snapping away, Aarth and Rich were busy chatting away.  I love that they get along so well.  I caught this candid as they were laughing about something or the other.  :)

Following some sight-seeing, we went to a eatery called Father's Office.  I had heard so many yummy food stories about this place from my sister and her husband Bren, that I just had to taste their infamous burger!  Flakey bread, fresh arugula, high grade meat, incredibly caramlized onions and a crazy delicious fancy cheese make this one of the best burgers I have had!

Don't forget the sweet potato fries.  Yes, that's right.  Sweet.  Potato. 

I would love to have some right this minute!  They were highly addictive.

Really, could I be any happier?  :)

:)  We all loved our food!  That is pure delight on my sister's face!

During our trip, we did manage to get some time on the beach however it was very foggy, gloomy so we didn't stay too long.  I heart the beach.  I wish Arizona wasn't so damn land-locked!

 That's us!  (not much of a caption, huh?)

Rich isn't a huge fan of getting sand on his feet (???) so as I was down by the shore line, I looked back and caught him relaxing underneath an umbrella (note...it was overcast) fully clothed with socks and shoes on.  I love my quirky husband!

After joining him underneath the umbrellas, we were lucky enough to watch a small school of dolphins goofing around in the ocean!  Of course, at first I thought they were sharks but I quickly recognized the infamous dolphin dive.  I don't know if you can see but there is a dolphin fin in this pic.  You might need to click on it to blow it up.  This was such a special moment for me as I've never seen wild dolphins before!  I wish I was closer!  I was so excited that Rich had to remind me to stop squealing.  :)

And there you go!  Had fun?  I sure did have fun taking all of these pictures and sharing them with you.  :)  ps - can you see the henna on the inside of my hand? 

Peace,

~k