Shopping!

I finally finally finally got to a place where I could buy fabric and unstitched clothes! Sizes run very small here.Indian women have small frames: slim hipped with narrow shoulders, and for the most part, they're a lot shorter than me. Salwar suits are the main thing women here wear apart from saris. I'm not going to be a ridiculous western woman in a sari, but I am going to rock the tunic and pants look. You can get "ready made", which is already sewn up to a particular size, or you can get an unstitched suit. The fabric's been cut and the patterns are set for the top, pants and coordinating dupatta, or scarf that pulls the whole thing together. I will probably skip wearing the scarf; extra fabric's not what I'm trying to wear when its this hot. It took some convincing the sales people that I wanted plain (ie: not bejeweled) and lightweight cotton. I still got some embroidery, and the two i settled on are far from plain, to an American eye. I then went over to a linen store across the way, where i bought some lightweight linen for four tunics: red, orange, a very pale peach, and a very pale yellow. And some heavier line for the pants, a color I can only describe as dark linen: oatmeal crossed with sand. The shops both have onsite tailors, and it was a bit wierd standing there in a crowd of men being measured for a top and pants. Especially as my measurements are being shouted to the guy with the pad writing it all down. Whatever, I'm sure my size wasn't the only wierd thing about me.

Four tunics and a pair of pants were a little over 100 bucks. Two Salwar suits for about 60. That includes the lining and the tailoring. I'm going to buy my entire wardrobe for the next six months while I'm here. It's hot weather until November back home, and I can't afford bespoke tailoring there. Heh, but I know what bespoke tailoring is, so what does that say about me?

I'm sure I could've found better prices, (the women in the office told me the mall I ended up going to was too expensive) but I need some lightweight clothes now. I'll keep looking out for fabric stores; once the wife of one of the other housemates gets here next week, I'll ask her where she's found good silks and cottons. Last time she was here, she spent days and days looking for fabric stores. I've only sort of looked, and in the end went to a mall down the street. Once things calm down at the office, and everyone isn't working til 11pm every night, I'm suppossed to go shopping with one of Sion's coworkers at a local market where she knows a place to get good lightweight cottons. And it turns out that Narasima's wife is a tailor! I found out too late. I'm sure I'll be sending a lot of business her way though.

Sion can't wait to get some suits made for himself, and some shirts and pants.

We're going to come back with so many clothes.