My Sari-Godmother

We arrived in Kochi (also written as Cochin, the former British spelling) a beautiful coastal town in the state of Kerala, which means land of the coconuts. The first evening I got my first view of what a monsoon looks and sounds like, both wind and rain, and it’s quite a show. Luckily, I was on the protected balcony of the very plush Taj Hotel.
However, the sights and sounds of the monsoon rains are nothing in comparison to the visual spectacle available at a local sari shop, Jayalakshmi. My friend P. called her sister-in-law in Kochi, who swept me up at the hotel and led me with quiet confidence and grace through the experience of perusing, choosing, and purchasing a sari in a town that is famous for their quality and beauty.
See the photo to the right for the view I had when I first entered: dozens of people waiting for their orders to be filled and sent to the delivery desk, 3 floors of the vibrant colored silk saris, with several draped over the balcony for special effect, and the friendly and familiar buzz of hundreds of women engaged in serious beauty commerce. We began on the 3rd floor, where the region’s particular cream and gold colored saris are, but we didn’t find anything in the dozens we were shown that intrigued us sufficiently to interrupt the hunt. Next we went to the second floor where there are floor to ceiling shelves filled with saris of incredible beauty. We sat on short legged chairs in front of a low long table of sorts. Above the table a bit was a floor that the saleswomen walked on, with the shelves full of saris behind them. My sari-godmother directed them in general in the local language, Malayalam, as to my color preferences and general wishes, and that was all the encouragement my team of attendants needed. They pulled out from the shelves saris of stunning patterns and color combinations, and opened them for my inspection. My job was to pretend I was royalty and reject or give a favorable glance to those I might consider. When I showed serious interest in a particular sari, 3 young women descended from their stage area with the material in question, all 6.5 yards of it, and proceeded to fold and wrap it around my body so I could get a better sense of how it would look on. At first I felt rather silly, but grew accustomed to the level of service very quickly. Once I decided on a sari (actually, to be truthful, on 2 of them) I was whisked down another floor to get the correctly colored petticoat to go beneath it. Finally we paid at the cashier, then proceeded to the delivery at the front door. It was so very friendly of this relative of a friend to spend 2 hours with me (2 hours which went by very quickly in such pleasurable circumstances) and being there with a local made it both easy and more enjoyable. I’m finding this impressive Indian hospitality in every city I’ve visited, and I look forward to more close encounters of the friendly kind very soon. Here is the link to some pictures of Kochi and the sari shop.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/39413808@N05/sets/72157621376294673/

BUT, I cannot fail to introduce another Hindu deity today, for it is lovely Lakshmi, goddess of wealth, happiness, and BEAUTY. Lakshmi was so beautiful after she emerged from an ocean of milk (don't ask) that all the gods fell in love with her. In the end Lakshmi became Vishnu's consort, and she can be seen at his side often massaging his feet. Now that's love. When she's not busy rubbing Vishnu's feet, her 4 arms are busy with lotus flowers, gifts of prosperity ($$$) and the holy Ohm symbol. She should always be depicted wearing a sari, because the ones I've seen only add to the beauty of these gorgeous women.