Hi everyone,
It's hard to believe 1/4th of 2025 has gone by ...
Here I am sharing what else I did during my visit to Kansas City .
After the meetup ,my friend took me to a middle eastern restaurant for lunch. I was very conscious this time about ordering food in the USA- the portion size is huge, you are always asked about sides and drinks.
There are so many cultural differences between dining out in India and USA. Major ones being- portion size, sharing of food and tipping culture. Not going to talk about these here, if you are interested to know about Indian dining culture , leave me a comment.
After much contemplation I ordered falafel sandwich with grilled veggies , side of lentil soup. Both were delicious.
If you have been following crafty news , you may be aware that Joann's , which is chain of big craft stores in USA is closing down. I came to know about it in January thru a office portal and I planned to visit it during my visit. My colleague was so kind to drive me to the nearest Joann's , her sister joined us and we scavenged thru the aisles. I picked up one skein of each DMC floss available. So happy I was able to add new colors to my stock.
Next day, my colleagues took me to Kansas city Zoo and Aquarium. I usually skip zoos but it was such a nice day to be outside that I took the chance.
Got to see some new to me animals.
On the second day of my trip, my team and I volunteered at a thrift store. Now, thrift stores don't exist in India and volunteering and community service isn't part of school /college system and doesn't earn you credits. My colleagues in the USA have to complete certain amount of volunteering hours as part of employment. I love thrift store concept and volunteering at one of them was such an enriching experience. Here is what I picked up from the thrift store.
I had an extra day before I flew back to India- my team took me to Kauffman Centre for the Performing arts and we were able to get a tour of the facility.
One of the visual and auditory highlights of Helzberg Hall is the Julia Irene Dennie-Kauffman Casavant Organ, Opus 3875. This custom-built instrument was commissioned to showcase incredible sound, elegant beauty, and perfect harmony complementing the acoustical and visual design of Helzberg Hall.
I close this post with the picture of these cross stitch leaflets/booklets my teammate gave me. She was talking to her mother about how I do cross stitch , her mother who is down sizing very generously sent these for me. How often do you meet people who gift stuff to strangers?
I'm humbled by the love and affection my team showered me during my short trip.
