You must buy I give you very good price

Two of my co-workers from The Corporation and I hit New Delhi to do some shopping. We hired a little car to take us to two destinations: a rug and pashmina vendor favored by Hillary Clinton and a market where goods from all regions of the country are sold.

The rug and pashmina vendor was a little old man from Kashmir who had framed letters of commendation from dignitaries such as Hillary Clinton (three letters!). He was dressed in flowing white pants, a white tunic and turban and had a long white beard to match. He was very friendly and enjoyed showing us the different kinds of cashmere pashminas available: hand-made of cashmere, machine-made of cashmere, machine-made wool, embroidered, plain, etc. It was dizzying to see all the different options, but you certainly could feel the difference in quality.

He also began showing my co-workers some very finely woven rugs: silk on silk, silk on cotton, silk on wool, wool on wool, etc. We soon became experts and identifying rugs by material and how tightly the knots were woven together.

Everything truly was beautiful, with rich colors and intricate patterns. We spent nearly two hours in the store examining his wares and negotiating prices. In the end, we left with four rugs and eight pashminas total.

Next, we went to The Cottage Emporium, a multi-storey marketplace where Indian crafts are sold. We wandered through all the different sections, admiring the metals section, the woodwork section, the tea section, the linens, the saris, the bangles, the furniture, the paper mache and the leather goods. Everything was being offered at very reasonable prices so Panda!!!! sort of went crazy, buying all sorts of fun Indian goods. I'm not quite sure how I'll get everything in my baggage!