Is the book about the Spanish princess of Kapurthala available in English too? I am refering to the harlequin-titled 'Pasion India'.

How difficult is it being vegetarian and trying to travel in Spain
with NO knowledge of their language?
Enjoying your travelblog (?)
Have fun

That thing in the fourth picture (what is that?) looks more Indonesian than Indian to me.

Help me out, because my Spanish skills are laughable, but doesn't that Bombay Dry Gin ad translate to:

More perfect than one woman alone are two women (not to mention three)?

And if so, wha?

Either way, I vehemently object to this barrage of tales from Spain. It's making me want to quit my job and hop on the first flight to Madrid. ;)

Nina: It's just like something I picked up in Sri Lanka. So I imagine it's Sri Lankan as I saw it on sale everywhere. However it does look somewhat similar to barong masks used in Bali - which would be Indian-influenced Indonesian.

That thing in the fourth picture (what is that?) looks more Indonesian than Indian to me.

Yep, looks very similar to a Sri Lankan Ves Masks ('Ves Moona'). I think thats what BongBreaker is mentioning. These are the only articles I could dig up about the masks and the associated dances, if you're curious. cheers. (1,2,3)

Thanks BB & .ca. I didn't know about that Sri Lankan visual style (I've never been to Sri Lanka). Another reader educated by the Mutiny.

That's the badger .ca, thanks - I never knew the name. The second pic you linked to has two practically identical to the ones I bought. I have a little mask collection.

Yes, that mask is definitely Sri Lankan. Miniatures are often kept in some corner of the house as a kind of protection, but otherwise they're not used that much.

Yes, that mask is definitely Sri Lankan. Miniatures are often kept in some corner of the house as a kind of protection, but otherwise they're not used that much.

GGB: Really? Wow, had no idea. We don't use them much any more, mainly for cultural shows. Any possibility it may have come from (a) possible North Indian antecedants (?!) or (b) witt introduction of Buddhism (c) chance?

I was wrong, they're not kept in houses for protection, just for looks :-)

I don't know much about the history of these masks, but I do know about their use in contemporary popular culture in Sri Lanka and among the diaspora.

As flygirl mentioned, its not uncommon to find them in homes displayed as art, but also small versions are kept around ward away bad spirits (or at least this has been my experience). I’ve got one above the door in my work station right now. :-)

In sri lanka, as far as I can tell, they are still used in dance (larger versions than those
that traditionally hung on walls and above doorways of course), especially in Kandy. They’re used for ceremonial purposes and watched as folk dance as well...and of course in those ubiquitous 'cultural shows' here in Canada. ;-)

Manish,

In Spanish, "Indias" often refers to the Americas. Because Columbus believed he had found India, much of Spanish America had (and still has) the designation. For example, the full name of Cartagena, Colombia, is Cartagena de Indias. Thus, Archivo General de las Indias is probably an archive of files relating to Spanish America. And Cafe de las Indias is certainly Spanish American coffee. In May I wrote this article which deals with the confusion in the Spanish language. I should state that the Portuguese language does a far better job in differentiating between Amerindians and Asian Indians. See my post for more information.

Re: the ves mask dances in Sri Lanka;

Check out this image.

Vikrum, yes, thanks, I vented about the same thing.

... locally, ‘las Indias’ means the Indies, i.e. the Americas. Only ‘la India’ qualifies as the name of the country. ‘Indio’ means Native American, while ‘Hindú’ is the word for desi, even if you aren’t. [Columbus] was confused, confused, confused.

Sevilla is where Columbus' tomb lies, Cordoba is where he got permission from the queen to go off and discover India, and so this wasn't just a The Moor's Last Sigh tour, it was also a tour of misconceptions. By accident, which is fitting.

.ca,

thought so :-)

delicious marmite: great photo...not from _Maname_ by any chance?

How difficult is it being vegetarian and trying to travel in Spain with NO knowledge of their language?

Being vegetarian means you eat lots of patatas allioli (potatoes and mayo) and out-dine (lots of Italian and pizza). You'll come back lighter.

The train ticket sellers are usually multilingual (definitely English), while others may speak some French and a bit of heavily accented English.

Is the book about the Spanish princess of Kapurthala available in English too?

I haven't seen it in English, and Google doesn't turn anything up. Pasión India is about about Anita Delgado, a Spanish teen taken as a wife by an Indian raja.

Then there is the picture of Rani Amrit Kaur Sahib of Mandi, the only daughter of Maharaja Sir Jagatjit Singh Bahadur of Kapurthala, by his third wife, Rani Prem Kaur, alias Anita Delgado, a ‘‘Flamenco dancer’ and dancing associate of Mata Hari, the spy. This surprising match and the ensuing wedding festivities in Spain gave rise to an expression still used to describe those seen to hitch their star towards climbing the social ladder — ‘as if they are getting married to a maharaja’. [Link]

Reading Brinda of Kapurthala’s memoirs, however, is a different feeling. She was educated in France by Jagatjit Singh, her Francophile father-in-law to be, the same bon vivant who built a mini-Versailles in the Punjab and created a huge rumpus by espousing Spanish dancer Anita Delgado. [Link]

Maharani Prem Kaur [née Anita Delgado], born Malaga, Spain, died 7th July 1962, married 6thly, 1942... [Link]

vikrum - the archivo de las indias is an amazing repository of documents from colonial latin america and some from the Philippines. If I remember correctly from my last trip to Seville the cafe de las indias is right across the street and is usually filled with american study abroad students.

About the Ves masks, they have similar masks in the south of india, well, with the same idea, to ward off evil. You'd find them outside houses, on commercial vehicles (esp. lorries) etc.

GGB: Really? Wow, had no idea. We don't use them much any more, mainly for cultural shows. Any possibility it may have come from (a) possible North Indian antecedants (?!) or (b) witt introduction of Buddhism (c) chance?

I was wrong, they're not kept in houses for protection, just for looks :-)

brimful-

Help me out, because my Spanish skills are laughable, but doesn't that Bombay Dry Gin ad translate to:
More perfect than one woman alone are two women (not to mention three)?
And if so, wha?

It means: There is only one thing more perfect than a woman, two women (not to mention three women)

It literally says: more perfect than one woman there is only two (so not to say now three women)

Your Spanish skills are definitely not laughable!

This is a pretty good article on the use of masks in Sri Lanka. Similarities to Nepalese or Balinese masks are coincidental, with a trace of similarity in terms of shaman culture and Buddhist influence. The most popular masks for tourists are the Yakka (devil) masks (vesmoona means mask) with tusks, but there are other variations as seen in the article.

Anecdotally, I can attest to their use in exorcism rituals, especially on women. The shaman/dancer dons the mask to sort of scare the demon out of the "possessed" women, and the ritual is very much a rural village practice. They are taken very seriously, although one perspective is that the women might simply be hysterical about having transgressed some village social norm.

It means: There is only one thing more perfect than a woman, two women (not to mention three women)

It literally says: more perfect than one woman there is only two (so not to say now three women)

Hmmm.....It sounds like it basically means "The more the merrier", ie. 1 is good, 2 is better, 3 is even better, etc etc.

Obviously written by some badmaash roguish type. Nothing like me, then ;)

*joking*

I saw a demon painted on a hospital wall in Bangalore serving the same function as European gargoyles. I much prefer them to Bhutani dicksentries.

As for the masks, they struck me as a Kali adaptation. They were painted on the side of a Reyes Magos parade (the three kings coming to visit baby J) on a float in Cordoba.

Thanks, oodles-- I'm still not sure how that fits into drinking Bombay Gin... will it make you see double (not to mention triple)? It's nice to see that liquor ads are fairly nonsensical (and chauvinistic) no matter what country you are in!

I'm still not sure how that fits into drinking Bombay Gin... will it make you see double (not to mention triple)?

It's a menage-a-trois reference, I think.

Brimful sounds very much like a good Indian girl if she didn't manage to figure out the double-entendre within a split-second. I guess her mind isn't as masalafied as some of the rest of us, God bless her ;)

Brimful sounds very much like a good Indian girl

I have no idea what "notarized" means, but you should definitely have it printed on your biodata. All good Indian girls have multiple, parentally-authorised, PG-rated, easy-to-distribute biodata, of course.

All good Indian girls have multiple, parentally-authorised, PG-rated, easy-to-distribute biodata, of course.

They're called blogs...

Oh yeah, blogging as a matrimonial ad- that is, of course, why all Indian women blog.

... that is, of course, why all Indian women blog.

I didn't say it was only the women ;)

You must read Passion India, this is the name of the English version of the book, the spanish dancer is a shameless gold digger and the king of Kapurthala a perfect gentleman.You will feel only contempt for her while you admire the Indian king