The Presidential Estate, Dinner, and a Movie

This weekend, Jenny, Nancy, Kaitlyn and I talked politics, foreign affairs and green energy over tea at the President of India’s Estate. No big deal. In case you’re wondering, the answer is “no”, we were not discussing these topics with the President of India, Prathiba Patil. We were discussing them amongst ourselves…in the guest waiting room…prior to our guided tour of the estate…I had lemonade. It was still rad. We couldn't take our cameras with us, but here is a photo of the front. The dome is right above Durbar Hall (explained below).



When Jenny and I were in D.C., we went on the White House East Wing tour that shows the “Blue Room” and the “Red Room,” etc. that haven’t been used in decades. That tour requires a 3-6 month wait unless you know people. Today we took a tour of the Presidential Estate (or “abode” as they call it) in Delhi, and I think that we just happen to “know people” here. Winnie had her driver, Rajmal, take us directly to the front gate of the Estate this morning. When the guard said that we weren’t on the list for the day, Rajmal handed him the Executive Housekeeper’s business card, and we were on our way. Aside from being close to India’s president, Winnie is also good friends with the housekeeper (who actually has very legitimate duties).

Sheba, the housekeeper, previously trained the staff at the best hotels in India, and traveled all over the world to learn the best practices in the hospitality industry. She and her Presidential Estate staff treated us like gold. As I mentioned, we were treated to a tea service in a private guest room. We were the only 4 people walking around the estate, and our guide was remarkably laid back. From the guest room, we were led around the estate, which was first built by King George V in the 19th century. In the first wing, we saw an oversized replica of the British crown, the china and kitchen-ware used by the British viceroys, and old picnic baskets. That was pretty cool. Other, more notable stops on the tour included:

Durbar Hall, a large domed room, and the site where England handed “Power of Attorney” (as the guide called it) over to India on August 15, 1947.

Ashoka Hall, which I would describe as India’s Sistine Chapel. The entire ceiling is intricately painted with tigers, palm trees and elephants, with lots of bright blue, gold and red paint. Ashoka Hall is where many receptions are held for ambassadors, etc.

A massive banquet hall, decorated with old English rifles and revolvers, where international heads of state gather for dinners with the Indian President. Our guide lifted the covering off of the rug so that we could get a better look, and showed us where former U.S. Presidents have sat.
An art gallery with everything from romantic Rajasthani art to contemporary Buddhist art.

A side room with all of the gifts that Presidents of India have received, including recently discovered, ancient gold tablets from the President of Bahrain that indicate the historic relationship of Indians and Bahrainis; a sword from the King(?) of Saudi Arabia, and an Indian flag that Tenzing Norgay carried with him to the top of Mt. Everest.

A walk around the 12 acre Mughal Garden in back of the estate, and a peek into the President’s spotted deer park.

After the tour, and a brief stop at Khan market, our foursome parted ways – Nancy and Kaitlyn stuck around Kahn for some shopping, and Jenny and I headed for the Select Citywalk to catch dinner and the movie Hancock. Dinner was great, and the movie was alright as well. I was a little embarrassed by the violent image that the movie paints of the United States. I know everybody in the theater understood the fictional aspect of the movie, but I’ve never seen so many guns in one movie before. If that was all I’d seen of the U.S., I would just as soon vacation in Iraq. I wanted to tell the Indian family sitting next to us that the last time I heard a gun fired was when I was 12 at Steiner scout camp.

As I mentioned, Jenny and I had dinner prior to the movie. We ate at Geoffrey’s, a good bar/restaurant where we had eaten a few weeks earlier. Over cheese and spinach stuffed chicken, Jenny and I talked about how much fun we’ve had in our first two years of marriage: In the 2 and 1/3 years since our engagement, we’ve been to the four corners of the Continental United States (not UT,AR,NM, & CO, but CA,WA,ME,& FL) New York City (three times), Miami (twice), Boston (one and a half times), the San Juan Islands and Olympic Peninsula (thank you Mom and Dad!), and to a New Year’s Eve Gala in Catalina Island’s Grand Casino. We’ve been to South America (thank you Shelley and Dave!), numerous Caribbean Islands, and we had a three hour layover in Paris. We’ve lived in two national capitals and the Indian state of Andrha Pradesh (for two weeks). We’ve been on countless road trips, hikes, and dates. We’ve been to Jazz games, RSL games, U games, and the first ten minutes of an opera. We’ve played in soccer tournaments, ping pong matches and roller hockey games, and we just took up Yahtzee and our own version of the card game “War”. After all is said and done, though, there are few things we enjoy more than filling a bowl up with popcorn, making a batch of Orange Julius, and watching movies under a blanket, on the blue couch we got from my sister. The other day we lamented the fact that, once we get home, it will probably be a while before we get to spend every minute of two and a half months together again. We're so grateful to our family and friends, without whom, none of the things we’ve done would have been possible. The Hinckley Institute has sent us all over the world, our families have taken us in, and our friends have split gas money to California.