First Day in Karnal, India

Navjot and I arrived on Thur. the 12th in Karnal, and things were non-stop ever since. Neha's brother took us right to the hotel venue for the ceremony where the parents finalise the marriage arrangement--ring ceremony. Guests mingled about, drank sodas, teas, and coffees, and ate all kinds of appetizers. Unlike my last stay in India, I enjoyed sampling this new food---fried cheese covered in a spicy sauce was my favorite. The first appetizer our hosts recommended was called golgappa, a fried shell of a potato filled with masala (spicy) water. I stared into the tiny murky pool, my nose wrinkled in suspicion, then I popped it in…they are eaten whole. The spicy-sweet water tasted awful to me, and my eyes lost focus as I concentrated on swallowing the water quickly and smoothly. The masala tasted much better within the fried potato shell, which I crunched on after I swallowed the offending water.
Then we went to Vicki-auntie's (mother of the bride) house--I napped a little--amazingly, since the place was a madhouse, people moving in and out of rooms, going through luggage, changing, greeting new comers, drinking tea, and just general fussing. The lack of quiet and privacy challenged my isolationist tendencies.
But, Vicki-auntie had the wisdom of a guardian angel; she sent us to a friend's house who lived a 5 min walk away. Our hosts were long-time friends and associates of Vicki-Auntie by profession: the mother was a retired doctor, and her daughter was visiting to attend the wedding, but she lives with her family in Bombay. The mother's name was Aruna, the daughter's name was Vidushi.
This place was perfection for me. Navjot and I had a room and a bathroom, so I was allowed to have some quiet time during the few breaks we had. Vidushi spoke really excellent English. She lived and traveled with her husband for years while he was a navy captain for the merchant ships. I got the impression that she was a little more progressive in her thinking (perhaps from Bombay living and strong mother and auntie figure in her life). Aruna built their current house and moved her work to private practice in on the first floor of their home. This was quite an accomplishment for Aruna because she did this alone—she had lost her husband when she was young. I asked a lot of questions, and they shared a lot with me. One quick fact I learned was that electricity always stays on in Bombay area, which shocked me, since everywhere I’ve been in India has daily power outages. Spending time in this home was a very nice part of my stay.