thesis time?

I officially have no more excuses for not starting to write my thesis (or dissertation as the Brits call it). The only problem: I don't know where to start!

buried in books/articles/research. {ahhhh}

Actually, not knowing where to begin is not my only problem...London's beautiful weather is proving to be quite a distraction as well. With a looming deadline, I guess there is no more time to procrastinate (or enjoy the weather) and have forced myself to stay in this weekend, get over my jetlag from India and at least finish a few pages. Luckily I have provisions in the forms of neon post-its, dark chocolate, diet Coke, pita and hummus.

Wish me luck!!

packing to leave

Why does it seem vacation time flies by quicker than normal time? Also how was it possible I fit all of my clothes and shoes in my suitcase before? As you can tell, I am having major packing struggles and am dragging my feet, mostly because I don't want my vacation in Delhi to end. {and because I don't want to start writing my thesis!}

my current situation

I'm trying every tip and trick in the book: rolling clothes, wearing bulkier items (hello wool blazer I never once wore while in Delhi) and stuffing things into my shoes. Hopefully I manage to fit everything in and still manage to have just a teensy bit of room leftover for one more souvenir I have my eye on! I am seriously considering wearing 5 layers of clothing in 90F Delhi weather, just so I won't have to check-in my possibly overweight carry-on...

PS- I basically want all of the below. Is there such a thing as the TravelFairy?

suitcases

my first fashion show!

Delhi Couture Week is happening now and completely randomly (and LUCKILY!) my sister and I scored a pair of tickets! The show we saw was Ashima Leena, a couture line designed by sisters Ashima and Leena Singh. This was my first fashion show ever and was an experience I will always remember.

my ticket

cheesing for the iphone in our seats

i'm sorry the pics are such bad quality! her dress was so beautiful--i'll try to find a better photo online to show you

The runway of the show, complete with a fog machine, live music and pretty chandeliers

The show started about 30-40 minutes late, which is sort of expected in India (nothing ever happens on time), but once we walked in, both of us were super surprised to see our seats were in the second row! The beginning was somewhat like a Disneyland ride with instructions to "get ready for the show," strobe lights and fake fog everywhere and then this woman comes out and begins singing. Someone said her name was Zila Khan and she sang throughout the entire show. I'm sort of surprised she had the energy to sing for that long!

The fashion show took place in a hotel and post-show we decided to get food in a hotel restaurant. I guess the models were given free dinner in that particular restaurant, because almost all of them walked in and ate there. My sister and I spent too much time stealthily trying to see what the models ate (which primarily consisted of kiwi, cheese, and a random/tiny piece of chocolate or cake) and people watching all the show attendees who were dressed to the nines.

Such a random and interesting experience!

swimsuits

The sky in Delhi is a weird combination of sunny and hazy. Not quite the lounging-by-the-pool-in-the-Indian-sun I imagined, but I guess this will have to do... Here are some swimsuits that I will wear next time I am vacationing in an actually sunny place.

River Island coral swimsuit, $54 / Polka dot one piece swimsuit / La Perla underwire swimwear, $185 / Shimmi bandeau bikini / Monsoon tummy control bathing suit / Bikini Lab bikini swimwear / Clube Bossa bikini swimwear, $110 / Huit fringe bikini, $73 / Karen Millen bikini swimwear

museum and sushi

The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art is the eponymous private museum of Kiran Nadar, established to showcase select works from her collection. It was housed in a random part of a shopping mall and took us almost 30 minutes to find the museum (even the information desk didn't seem to be too helpful). But the hassle was well worth it! Here are some pics I sneaked when the security guards weren't looking...

We were so happy when we finally saw this sign

Sudarshan Shetty's installation

Subodh Gupta's Line of Control. This photo does not do the work justice!

The museum outing left us a bit famished, so instead of our usual room service and watching TV routine we decided to head out for dinner. I had a necessary sushi fix at Delhi's most popular Japanese restaurant, Wasabi by Morimoto. The restaurant is located on the bottom floor of a hotel and the interior was modern and 'clubby'.

photo c/o taj hotels

Most importantly, the food was delicious!

chef's sushi selection

yellowtail jalapeno carpaccio 

 

oysters that my sister loved! the oysters are actually sitting on beds of salt.

So far my vacation in India has been almost too relaxing (if that is even possible!?). Tomorrow's plan is a morning yoga workout and spending the entire day lounging by the pool--please don't make me ever leave here!

cheesing for the iphone pre-sightseeing. #dork

gurgaon

After a very long journey, my sister and I finally arrived in Delhi. The first thing that strikes you once you step off the plane would definitely be the humidity/heat. Even at 11:45pm, Delhi was so hot! A relatively short car ride later, we arrived at our hotel for the first few days!

We stayed at the new and amazing Oberoi Gurgaon!

interesting floral arrangements found in the hotel

our room--so light and modern!

my delicious and authentic breakfast: Indian idli!

the centerpieces on our table at Amaranta. There was a tiny fish in there!

I still have a severe case of jetlag, which led us to eat dinner at 11pm yesterday night. We had one of the most delicious meals ever at Amaranta, the seafood restaurant at the Oberoi Gurgaon. The food was amazing and you get to even choose your own fish/lobster/crab to cook. Such a yummy experience!

The hotel has a complimentary yoga class in the mornings. The class was relaxing and at the same time a great workout (I'm still recovering from certain poses...haha). After yoga and a quick breakfast we checked out and moved closer to the heart of New Delhi. We can't wait to explore this area's restaurants and sights. Next up, a day at the museum!

synchronized diving

Synchronized diving has always been one of my favorite summer olympic events. Back when tickets for the London olympics went on sale, my goal was the secure tickets to any diving event and fortunately I got tickets to the women's 10m diving event!

our tickets!

My sister and I set out for the Olympic Park in Stratford a couple of hours before the event was scheduled to start. Surprisingly the jubilee line was almost deserted and our journey to the Aquatics Centre was only delayed due to a short torrential downpour (ugh).

cheesing for the self-timer

the teams warming up

Our seats were amazing and the energy in venue was so great! Unfortunately Team USA was not participating in the final, but the home team of GB was competing and the reigning champs China. The last three rounds of diving saw Team China pull ahead from the rest of the teams and their dives were inspiring. They even scored one 10! Obviously they won (well-deserved) gold, with Mexico at silver, and Canada bronze.

medal ceremony

olympic fever

The weather forecast in London is beginning to look a little bleak...aka RAIN. Here is what I plan on wearing when I cheer Team USA this week!  :)

let the games begin!

The Olympics are finally here! The most exciting event of summer 2012 will be the London Olympics and I have definitely caught Olympic Fever! :)

Today during work I was able to sneak outside to see the Olympic flame travel down the Thames River to city hall. The boat procession was beautiful and dare I say elegant?

Olympic flame procession

The opening ceremony is only hours away and I have prepared myself for the surprises that Danny Boyle, the creative director of the ceremony surely has in store. The atmosphere in London is unlike it has ever been in the past year and you can really feel the positive energy the city has now.

My sister and I were lucky enough to get hold of tickets for the Judo and Women's Diving events, so I really can't wait for the games to begin!