The week has had its up and downs...The boys [not being condencending, that is how they and Praveen have been acting] have been fixated on the new camel cart tent.
I was trying to be patient thinking ohh it must be a 'surprise' for me but after a few days of being told just one more hour and still not finished I lost the plot and got a bit snarly- we have clients to think of, we have samples to sort out so we have things to show buyers....

 Finally it was finished [and very flash I admit] and NO, NO, No there was going to be no doors or no coat for the camel,
got home last night and Sohan, the lad who looks after the animals had decorated Baba, new rose on his nose, necklaces down his neck, all the hair from his ears [his lovely fluffy ears and even eye lashes trimmed] the penny dropped.
There was a boys spitting competition going on here. The Camel Festival is starting and this is all about having the flashest camel and camel cart around.
Last year Praveen was offered twice what he paid for Baba because a year in our care and he was twice the camel he had been [yes a fat camel] so obviously the boys are out to get even more notice this year.
I just asked Praveen to take me and some visitors out driving in a few days time and he was all "oh no, Baba is working at the Camel Fair taking clients " you will have to charge your friends".
Well! as you can imagine I was all "WHAT!!!! my camel???" Smart man only a few seconds and he was "yes your highness, of course I would like to escort you are your friends out in our new camel cart" got to love a man who knows which side his bread is buttered on  :)

So that was an up...the down 2 new tailors whose work has been good, came in the day after Diwali [and so receiving their Diwali bonus] to say they needed huge advances on their wages or they would leave. Why would we give them the equivalent og half a years wages? In advance we were talked into this once before and the guy seemed to think he could not be fired because he owed us money....never again...
so now we are down on tailors and I have a lot to do....more tailors will come but sometimes the way people behave drives me nuts.
Next week we are running away from home to Ahmedabad for a few days to the Make it New Again conference  should be most inspiring, it is all about ethical design, fair trade, cross cultural associations.
Also a little get away for us I do admit- we have splurged and are staying at the House of MG my most favourite hotel ever...so everything will be exciting...
happy week to you :)