Rajahmundry October 2016

On 6 October 2016 we attended a "Cradle Function" for President Prathi's new son, Nephi, at the family home.

The ceremony was simple. They first put the baby in a traditional sling cradle that hung from the ceiling. Grandma and Grandpa had pictures taken of them and the baby in that cradle. Then they asked us to place baby Nephi in the new cradle that they had purchased for him. It was a great honor for us. There were dozens of pictures taken of that. Then everyone came to the cradle and left a small gift and sprinkled some yellow rice on Nephi’s head as he slept. More pictures, and more pictures…

Then we all went upstairs to a rooftop landing area and had a great lunch. There were probably 50 people who came and well-wished baby Nephi and had lunch.

Here is a Rajahmundry fruit treat that comes only once per year. They are called Apple Custard fruit.  They have large black seeds all through the fruit. You peel back the soft skin of the fruit and eat the inner white contents--being careful not to eat the seeds. They are sweet and sort of custardy tasting!

Good hamburgers, fries and Diet Coke at the Bangalore Hard Rock Cafe!!

Soooo Good!

We visited the new chapel that is almost ready to be occupied.

Very nice.

Can't wait to move in soon!!

So...

No shoes,


No hardhat,


No safety glasses...


But he has a safety scarf on his head!



Well, that's OK then!

On October 20th we had a 3rd Branch Elder's Quorum--Relief Society activity at the church.

This is the park that we walk at each morning.

This day, we became LIFETIME MEMBERS of the Park Association!

For $1.50 each, we can come and walk any time for the rest of our lives!



They are so proud to have two Americans sign their book as LIFETIME members!!

Walking to the park one day, Larry did some Street Badminton with one of the neighborhood boys.

One of our responsibilities (?) is to inspect all of the new construction along the street as we walk to the park. Here, we see (top)
a large dump truck size pile of sand. 



24 hours later the entire sand pile is gone into the construction of the new apartment building.

Here is the crew at work moving the cement from the mixer up to the second level of the building. At this site, they rigged up a lift with a cable pulley connected to a large diesel engine with a spool on which the cable was attached.

We were invited to Family Home Evening with the Taneti Family.

We talked about the importance of family temple sealing.


They were sealed last year, just before we arrived in India, in the Hong Kong Temple.

While driving down the street a while ago, Raju pulls over and says "You need to try sugar cane juice".  

So we did...

Pretty sweet, but good.

Here is an example of the typical milkman in Rajahmundry.
He brings the milk in large stainless cans on a motorcycle to your door every morning.

Sometimes ya' just gotta' have Thumbs Up right out of the two liter bottle!!

After 13 months of sleeping on a four-inch board, that was supposed to be a mattress, we were blessed to receive a new bed that actually had inner-springs, memory foam and a pillow-top!
Waahh Hooo!!!
Here the mattress store guys bring it up the 5 floors to our apartment after a ride on the top of an Auto.

Larry "cuts the ribbon" on the new bed...



We check its comfort level...



Darla puts the final touches on it...

We went to an "over the top" Birthday Party for Sathwik on Oct 23, 2016. More than 500 people gathered at a function hall to hear loud music, watch kids 5 to 12 play games, take photos, and eat. This is a tradition for first birthdays in India--very large birthday parties!

October is also a popular month for weddings in India. Here, the groom is escorted to the wedding with a small parade and a band.

A Visit to the Uadgingutta Temple near Hyderabad, 28 Oct.
We were invited by the MLA to come to this very large Hindu Temple to participate in their prayer service. It was very interesting. We were honored with flower leis and a special scarf.

Small things become big things when you don't have them...


It is VERY hard to find lettuce in India.



We found some!!




Wahooooooooo.

YSA All-India Conference Hyderabad 27-29 Oct 2016.


About 480 Young Single Adults converged at the Summer Green Resort for three days of seminars, fun and inspiration.

Stake President John Gutty spoke at the final devotional meeting.




The young adults enjoyed the time together.

The Summer Green Resort had signs along the streets with a message...

These two cute little girls caught our eye as we were moving from one village to another in Nalgonda. They were working very hard on the floor.

Diwali is one of the biggest national holidays of India. It is called the festival of the lights. (Top) Here is a design made by our neighbor in the hallway--it is made with colored sand. (Bottom) Our neighbor invited us to their Diwali family prayer service. 

Lakshmi, the goddess at the center, is the Goddess of Wealth and Wisdom.

Darla had her birthday while we were in Hyderabad celebrating RO Clean Water units in the villages of Nalgonda. When we returned to the hotel, the Courtyard Marriott staff had prepared a special birthday treat for her...

October is a month of birthdays! Shekar Alamury's twins also had their first birthday.

It was at his home up on the roof landing.

About 50 people came to wish his twins--Leona and Reynold--a happy first birthday!!




Our YSA Family Home Evening was on Halloween. We played the 1996 movie "Hocus Pocus" with Bette Midler--and made them a Halloween treat of candy and cookies.

We had also given a Halloween treat bag to our ten-year-old neighbor girl, Kirtana.



This is what we found the next day on their apartment door.



They were showing their respect for our traditions as we had shown respect for their Diwali traditions.