Friday: The day of rest in Bangladesh, so in order to be culturally sensitive, we did the same. We had planned to get pedicures and manicures since they only cost about $1.50 each (I was thinking of you Mags!), but when we went to the salon, there was no hot water. So, we decided to go shopping instead. We were intent on buying sari’s to wear to the party that evening in honor of Heather & Ananto’s (Salim’s son) birthdays. I admit, I was afraid. But, I decided to try once I found out you actually wear things underneath so even if the whole thing accidentally fell off, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. Luckily, we had Salim’s daughter to help us or it would have been a hopeless situation. Picking out the sari was the hardest part. There are so many choices, and being inexperienced, there was no way to know how it would look. Once we picked one out (and Salim's children purchased us jewelry to match as a gift), it was off to another stall in a market down the road to buy the top and the bottom. The bottom was easy because, like all bottoms here, they are drawstrings. The top was another story. Interestingly, the sari’s and everything that goes with them are all sold by men. 
After shopping, we took my first rickshaw ride to the party. Being on the side streets wasn’t so bad. I figured even if I bounced out when we went through a pothole, I probably wouldn’t die. I might be run over by a super thin man on a bicycle or hit my head, of course, but is that really so bad? Then, we took a main road filled with buses and taxis. was a little nervous when the driver turned the wrong way down a one way street and began to weave in and out of oncoming traffic. I know this is not uncommon, but it still felt slightly unsafe.
When we arrived, Salim’s daughter helped us into our sari’s. It took almost half an hour. I had no idea what an art form it truly is. I am always amazed at how beautiful the women look in the sari’s here. Heather looked wonderful, but I felt like I was wearing a deflated floral circus tent. But, it was good fun, and we will be laughing at the pictures for a long while.
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