Visit to the grandfather's village, Dec. 16

If this marriage and wedding has been filled with contrasts, then this day was a perfect example. We woke up after a night in the luxury Taj Hotel which was a gift from friends and family. After breakfast and relaxing, we were picked up by Abhijeet's family. I was asked if I wanted to go visit his grandfather's village and I felt very honored since I know that he is a very traditional and respected elder of the family. After a few more stops along the way, we loaded up the jeep with all 9 of us and headed out for the village. I was forewarned that village life is very simple without electricity or plumbing, but I didn't even notice this at all on our visit. The surrounding desert was serene, calm, and pure. We arrived and greeted his grandfather as well as a drummer. We then were seated and some family members began to prepare us with some traditional wedding garb. As it turns out, we went through a few of the old marriage traditions with this small group of family in the village. We did a small walk, a few traditions, and were then blessed by parents and grandfather. My favorite tradition, however, was one that I had learned about prior to my India trip. A ring is placed in a bowl of water and both bride and groom have to stick their hands in to find it. We play for 5 rounds and whoever wins the most is said to be the one who will "run the show" in the marriage. Needless to say, with my prior knowledge and my sheer determination, I won 4 out of 5 rounds. Oh, I forgot to also mention that the tradition allowed me to use both hands while Abhijeet could only use one hand. Abhijeet's favorite tradition was getting to carry a sword in his hand. He was feeling quite the king that day! We left the village by night fall to head back to Jodhpur. We were crammed close in the jeep, and as Abhijeet says, my family likes us to be close and get to know each other, literally!