On Friday we celebrated 11 years of marriage, nearly 13 years together.
That's not the down part. Really.
Actually, Friday was great. Ian took the day off work so once we put the kids on the bus the day was ours. We left the house and spent money. Down the ECR is a store called Collections Unique, a source of antiques like so many places in Chennai. I had spotted a pretty little curio cabinet and wanted to show Ian, but new inventory arrived and while the curio was there, a different one caught our fancy. It should be delivered to the house on Wednesday.
On the way to lunch Ian spotted the billboard with the Laz-E-Boy (or however that's spelled) chair. We "discovered" the Stanley Boutique off Khaddar Nawaz Khan Rd. It's one of an assortment of shops selling high end products. Naturally Auroville is there for handcrafts and organic foods, Mermaids for swimwear and underthings, and Sports Locker among many others.
A comfy recliner will be delivered in a couple weeks.
The Peshawri restaurant in the Chola Sheraton was our lunch destination. Excellent north Indian food in a beautiful setting. I still don't care for mutton though.
The kids came home, packed their bags and went to the neighbors for a sleep-over. Wonderful people, our neighbors, who will house 4 kids in addition to their own two. Ian and I took advantage of our free night and checked in to the GRT Grand here in Chennai. Note to self: you know your anniversary is coming up, it's the same day every year, plan more than a week in advance.
Why we won't be returning to the GRT Grand:
1) One viewable English movie channel, and not a good one. Plenty of Tamil and Hindi, HBO was totally fuzzy, I suppose we could have watched rugby. Wait, we did. If you're going to put a pricey flat screen on the wall, bother having something to watch on it.
2) If the TV works that is. In a suite with 2 TVs, one worked. The den TV didn't turn on, then again, neither did the ceiling lights.
3) For a business hotel, the in-room computer should work. At the very least it should turn on.
4) For a 5-star hotel, the bathrooms should be updated. Including the tub. It shouldn't be a nasty gray thing, smaller than the one we have at home, with funky black stuff building around the jacuzzi jets. Not when you're in the themed "Rajasthan Room" which highlights its jacuzzi tub.
5) When the jacuzzi jets are turned on, the bathroom should not fill with the stench of sewage.
6) The covers on the bed should be washed. Not just the sheets. For $300+/night, the bed cover shold not have massive yellow stains and black streaks on the underside.
7) When something is ordered at a restaurant, that item should be delivered:
a) At the HighTime bar, cocktail samosas should show up in less than 30 minutes. Wait, we were there for an hour and they never showed. As we left, we asked that they get sent to the room.
b) At breakfast we each asked for a savory crepe. No crepes showed up, but one overly spicy omelet did. Someone didn't get their omelet.
8) For a 5 star hotel, they should figure out how to make -good- coffee.
I'm sure there are a few other niggly things, but that was the jist of our stay. I'm sure they do conferences just fine.
Even with the hotel disappointment, we had a great time together. Honestly, I love him more today than the day I married him. Looking back, I realize that I had a selfish love a decade ago, holding on to him because he loved me. Thankfully I've grown up quite a bit and I know that I love him for everything he is, not for what I am to him. It's a happy feeling. Our marriage could have failed many spots along the way, but it didn't. I hung on because failure isn't an option. He hung on out of love.
There's no way to repay that sort of devotion except to return it. Here's hoping I can become half the person he is already.
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