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"Famously early to bed, President Bush decided to make an exception Monday night for what has been a rare event in his administration: a glitzy, Washington A-list dinner.
The menu's fragrant basmati rice and lotus blossoms, the saffron-colored, silk tablecloths and the trumpeting elephants fashioned from fresh mums and roses all pointed to India, for the guest of honor was Manmohan Singh, the visiting prime minister, and his wife, Gursharan Kaur.
....Mrs. Bush was sliding into a Bill Blass creation -- a silk chiffon evening dress of yellow and orange floral print with asymmetrical ruffles.
...The 134 dinner guests...were dining on...pan-roasted halibut, ginger-carrot butter, basmati rice with pistachio nuts and currants and herbed summer vegetables....
...For dessert, pastry chef Thaddeus Dubois whipped up chocolate lotus blossoms -- the lotus flower is a religious symbol in both Hinduism and Buddhism, two of India's religions -- to accompany a trio of mango, chocolate-cardamom and cashew ice creams. ..."