Feeling a little better

Ok, so perhaps my lack of sleep had me overreacting a bit to the hotel situation. It's really not bad as budget rooms go, so I really have nothing to complain about. The hotels with the best Taj views are the budget ones, so I gambled that the good view places might have posher rooms, and I kind of lost, but it's not like I got the ultimate grossest room ever. It's not spotless, but it's got a western-style toilet, and they're looking into why there's no hot water (it's an off time, so the boiler may not be on full blast). Maybe it's not such a tragedy. (check again tomorrow if I've had a freezing AM shower).
And their rooftop restaurant is really nice - great Taj view in daylight. I'm surprised to find that they don't illuminate it at night...hmmmm...if it was in the states, it would be covered in fiber-optic designs and other vulgarities! It's kind of refreshing!
So I went and did a little retail therapy - even buying trinkets for peeps back home makes a girl happy. I also did a little no-intent-to-buy window shopping a la Breakfast at Tiffany's. I'm drooling over these marble tabletops inlaid with semiprecious stones, but they're
a) really expensive
b) humongous
c) super heavy to lug around with me
d) did I mention they're thousands of dollars?
Someday when I'm rich and famous and have a flashy home where something that glittery wouldn't look out of place, I'll come back and get one. Or seven. :)
On the way home I stopped at this little sweets joint. Literally a hole in the wall, I don't think it constitutes an actual "room" in the true sense of the word. Indian sweets are totally foreign to me (aside from my all time favorite gulab jamun and the ever present kheer), so I had this guy recommend something for my overwhelming sweet tooth. He recommended this stuff called...I kid you not...barfi? Burfi? Sounds like barfi. Anyway, as far as I can gather, it's these little squares of milk solids and sugar. It's good, and I am looking forward to taking my little leaf-dish home with me, getting a pot of masala chai on the roof and making the best of my accommodations.
And tomorrow morning I will wake up early and see the Taj change colors as the sun rises...Regardless of anything else, that will make it a beautiful day. I took this trip so that I wouldn't turn 30 and realize I'd failed to have the adventures I dreamed about as a kid. Now, on the last birthday before that tragedy was scheduled to happen, I am doing something about it, and it is the best gift I could give myself. I will savor my chai and the warmth of the morning sun and count my multitude of blessings, including all of you guys reading this blog. Lots of love!