The World According to US

The graphic above has been making the rounds with my peers here in India.  While it's mildly insulting, it also reflects some truisms about Americans and their world view.  Certainly, this is how we, and our egos, look from the vantage point of the second and third worlds and their burgeoning markets.  I particularly like the characterization of Canada as "uninhabited."  We discount, criminalize, and marginalize a lot of the world that we either don't understand or don't have time for.  Not that we're alone in this.  My colleague who sent this to me commented that she'd love to do one of these from India's perspective.  I suggested that she just change the labels and have a little fun, since she's very witty.  Her rejoinder was that she'd have to start from scratch because certainly the Indian subcontinent wasn't large enough, relative to the other countries, to reflect the local point of view.

If there's one thing that the past year-and-a-half has taught me, it's not to discount the nooks and crannies and huge-ass continents of the world that I haven't seen.  It doesn't take but one visit to Khajuraho, Amer, Chiang Mai, Darjeeling or Ladakh, to put you in awe of the world's natural wonders and myriad cultures in all their complexity.  I cannot imagine my life now without having seen some of these things, but save for this opportunity to live and work in India, it's very likely that I never would have laid eyes on much of what I've seen.  It's amazing how single decision points can shape you as a person.  I hope that I remember to never stop exploring, and that I instill this wanderlust in my family someday.  We must truly be citizens of the world; no one of us exists in isolation.  The sooner everyone figures this out, the better off we'll be.

Bangkok - A Whole Lotta Wat!

I learned never, ever take Shannon on a late night flight.  Pumpkin needs her beauty sleep and did NOT enjoy the 3 hour flight and choppy sleep we got at the airport and on board the plane.  Fortunately, we arrived at the lovely VIE Hotel and were able to immediately check in, clean up and get some rest.  Which we promptly did, sleeping until 1pm or so.  Shannon swears she tried to wake me multiple times, and it's all my fault, but I argue she was sleep-deprived and under-motivated when it came to getting me out of bed.  In any case, the extra half day I tried to get us by taking the red eye more or less got frittered away in our spacious, ultra-modern, and ultra-cool hotel room.  Anyway.... sometimes you just can't fight these things; in the interest of domestic happiness, we took a much-needed pit stop and had a really yummy Thai lunch.

Kind-of refreshed and ready, we headed out to hit the first of many, many Wats, or Buddhist temples.  Our first stop was Wat Pho, or the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.  This was one of my favorite temples that we saw on our trip.  The Buddha is very impressive and the decorative arts on the temple are amazingly beautiful, but it was these things in combination with what Shannon and I ended up referring to as "temple+party" that really made the place come alive.  For some reason, the courtyard of the Wat was chock-a-block with food stalls, places to make offerings and buy incense, and monks chanting and singing.  Because the trappings of Thai Buddhism are quite ornate, colorful and shiny, the overall effect is one of a carnival.  It was great fun.  A place of worship like that would make you want to come every day.

After bowing to Buddha's mother-of-pearl toes, we made our way to Wat Arun, or the Temple of the Dawn.  Situated on the riverbank, Wat Arun gives you a spectacular view of the city skyline and the traffic on the river...if you're willing to climb the super-steep steps to the top.  I thought of Mom, because all of the temples are covered with ornate mosaic work, some in colored mirrors, some in porcelain flowers and figures - it's a pique assiette paradise!  I took lots of pictures to inspire my favorite mosaic artist.  I almost wished she was there, but not quite...Bangkok might just be the hottest city I've visited to date.  By the time Shans and I climbed to the top of Wat Arun, we were literally watering, and the fun continued throughout our time in Thailand.  I'll definitely go back, but if I do, it will be wintertime.  

Hot and sapped by our brief adventures into the wat-age, Shans and I headed for air conditioning.  Bangkok has a number of huge shopping malls and entertainment complexes where people hang out in air-conditioned bliss.  We discovered MBK, and found our home away from home in Bangkok.  Their food court is huge and operates on this coupon system that makes it pretty easy to get amazing Thai food for super-cheap.  We gorged on green papaya salad, pad thai, and a few new delicacies like hoy tod, mussels cooked in a scrambled egg mixture with chili-garlic sauce...mmmm, mmm, good.  MBK is also knock-off paradise, so Shans and I got our fill of fake Nars, MAC, Ed Hardy and Burberry, as well as some ultra-cool Thai t-shirts for Dad.  And to top it all off....they had Starbuck's!  Does it get any better?

On day two, we headed to the Royal Palace compound and were immediately transported into the set of The King and I.  The temples and palace buildings are amazingly beautiful and shiny.  I don't know how much of the work is original anymore, as the buildings must take almost constant maintenance, but they're still beautiful.  Shannon was most chagrined because there's also a dress code, and somehow neither her capris, nor her cute-little-top made the chastity cut.  Thus, she enjoyed our tour in two extra layers of men's shirt and sarong - not exactly the stylish figure she's used to cutting - double thumbs down from the Shan-doggy.    

Our second stop was the Jim Thompson House museum.  An expat silk magnate who popularized the Thai silk industry, Thompson was also a collector of Thai architectural pieces and household goods.  After his mysterious disappearance in 1967 (foul play suspected), Thompson's house was turned into a museum, to compliment his very popular eponymous silk stores all over Thailand.  The tour of the house and gardens was interesting and a nice respite from the crowded city outside.  After the museum, we walked to MBK to cool off and complete our shopping, before heading back to VIE and hitting the pool + cocktails.  Now perhaps we lack imagination, or perhaps the heat was a legitimate excuse, but Shannon and I were of one mind when it came to evening plans, and room service won out over the hassle, heat and bother of going back out into the city.  We had a very nice meal with a bottle of wine, and hit the sack early, in preparation for our morning departure to Ko Phi Phi, by way of Phuket.

Green Elixir

Green chutney might just be the world's greatest condiment.  Mixed with yoghurt and tamarind sauce, it forms the perfect trifecta for any fried food.  On its own, it compliments just about anything, grilled meat, paratha, paneer, you name it.  The champion of sauces, in all it's glory:

Green Chutney

100 grams fresh Coriander leaves (cilantro)

1 tsp chopped ginger

1 tsp chopped garlic

2 green chilis

1 tsp lemon juice

25 grams of fresh mint

1/2 tsp of cumin seeds

1/2 onion

1/2 tomato

Salt to taste

Mix and grind all ingredients in a food processor or grinder.  If liquid is needed, water or plain yoghurt can be added.  Puree and serve.

At Home in Kolkata

After Darjeeling and Sikkim, Shannon and I headed to Kolkata.  I had been wanting to see India's Eastern-most metropolis, in all it's teeming glory, and it just so happened that one of my friends from work, Debdutta, was going to be home for Bengali New Year, so we decided to make a visit of it.  

Shans and I had had about enough of the B-grade hotel action (of course), so we upgraded to the Oberoi in Kolkata, also because it was on some sort of wicked sale at hotels.com and was only costing $130/nt for all of it's 5-star glory.  Arriving there was a balm to my soul, truly.  Beautiful pool, lovely room, great room service, and fabulously attentive staff.  The Oberoi hotel is one of those places where you can get anything you need, promptly and with style - internet access, courier service for the sarees I bought, an amazing spa.  What more could two girls want?

On our first full day, Debdutta picked us up and took us to the Victoria Memorial.  The building and park are beautiful and they had a nice exhibit (with AC!) that gave the history of the city.

  Afterwards, we headed to the India Museum, only to find it closed the day before the New Year.  Darn it.  We'll just have to shop.

We grabbed a quick Bengali lunch and hit the saree shops looking for something for Shannon.  Poor Debdutta was so patient.  But, we were successful!  Shannon got a beautiful Bengali woven silk saree, turquoise and iridescent violet with an openwork flower design woven in pale gold.  Very pretty. I, on the other hand, chose a tussar silk saree, with a traditional design in vibrant turquoise and red.  Not because I need another saree, oh no.  Because it was on sale :).  Kolkata is also famous for its woven cottons, so Debdutta took us to the weavers' shop that her mom buys all of her cotton sarees from.  These are much more affordable than the silk sarees, running the equivalent of $12 to $25 USD.  I bought a few for mom to use as yardage, and 2 for me to maybe someday wear.  They are so beautiful.  I have to admit that all of the patterns and colors bring out a very greedy side of me.  Just the experience of being in the shop and unwrapping all of these unassuming little bundles only to find amazing, bold prints inside, was pretty spectacular.  Shannon and Debdutta got bored long before I did, but lucky for me they're good friends and very patient.  Hot, steamy and tuckered out from our day of shopping, we retreated to "the Obs" and let Debdutta finally go home.  We are indebted in so many ways for the tour guide services and the company.

The following day was the Bengali New Year.  Debdutta's parents were kind enough to invite Shannon and I over for lunch and to meet the family.  Debdutta picked us up at midday and wisked us off to her house, which lies on a street carrying the family name.  Debdutta's father is very involved in state politics, having once been a Member of Parliament (MP) representing Bengal.  Now, he organizes for his party and helps select the candidates that will run for major positions in the government.  Thus, it was a rare occasion for him to be home to meet us.  

It was lovely to meet Debdutta's family.  Her mom made us an amazing lunch: aloo poshto - potatoes in poppyseed curry, huge prawns, fish, Bengali dal - which is sweeter than North-Indian dal, mishti doi - yoghurt sweetened with brown sugar, and rasgullah for dessert.  Needless to say, it was amazing.  Since we were the guests and the youngsters, we ate first, and then chit-chatted in Debdutta's room until her parents finished their lunch.  Bengali New Year is an auspicious day to buy gold for Bengali's, so after lunch, we went with Debdutta to look for some gold jhumki, bell-shaped, traditional gold earrings.  We found some beautiful ones that Debdutta went back and got with her mom later in the day.  Too much fun.  After saying goodbye and many, many thanks to Debdutta, Shans and I headed back to the Oberoi to pack up and hit the spa.  Our flight to Bangkok was at 2am, so we dithered around at the Oberoi for massages and dinner, before heading to the airport around 11.  Bye bye Hindustan, hello Thailand!

There IS Butter in Butter Chicken

Murg Makhani.  I think of it as the heartstone of Northern Indian cuisine.  If you're non-veg, of course.  I couldn't leave India without having Abdul show me how to make it.  I'm not sure I'll be able to replicate it at home, but I'll make a valiant effort.

****

Butter Chicken

for 3 people

Marinade:

150 grams of curd (plain yogurt)

Red chili powder

Haldi powder (tumeric)

Garam masala powder

Dhania powder (coriander)

Chat masala

1 tsp Mustard oil 

Salt to taste

1 T Ginger garlic paste

Hang the curt to filter out the water and add all of the spices and other ingredients.  Mix 200 grams boneless chicken into the marinade and hold in the refridgerator for 2 hours.  Heat oven to 200 C and bake the chicken for 30 minutes.  Cut chicken into pieces.

Gravy:

First step: Onion puree

• 3 Onions
  

Cut the onion into thin slices and fry until brown.  Puree using a food processor.

Second step: Tomato puree (with kaju broken and magaj)

• 5 tomatoes
  
• 2 tsp broken cashew nut
  
• 1 tsp magaj (musk melon seeds)
  

Puree the tomato, cashews, and magaj.  I've seen Abdul mix these ingredients in a blender either before or after cooking them.  Also, the musk melon seeds are not required, according to Abdul and Preeti.  However, if you use all cashews, they tend to be a little sweet.  Since the nuts function as a thickening agent, you can use an alternate, less sweet nut.  We were thinking that pine nuts or sunflower seeds might work.

Third Step: Assemble & Cook Gravy

• 1 T ginger garlic paste
  
• 1 T refined oil
  
• 1 T butter
• 100 grams milk
  
• Cream for garnish
  
• All Indian spices
  
• 2 cardamom pods
• 2 cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• Fresh coriander leaves (cilantro)

Take a pan and add oil.  Add 2 cardamom pods, 2 cloves, and 2 bay leaves.  Add garlic ginger paste and sautee until brown.  Add mixture from Step 2 (tomato puree).  Sautee for 10 minutes.  Add 'all Indian spices' and the brown onion puree and cook well for 5 minutes.  Add the milk and butter, chicken pieces, and salt to tast.  Garnish with cream and fresh coriander leaves and serve.

Up Toward Mountains Higher

Princess Shannon has returned to India.  I (sorta accidentally) decided to give her a taste of life as I know it for the first part of her trip.  Darjeeling and Sikkim were two of the few places on my A list that I hadn't been to yet, so I roped Shannon into tagging along.  In discussing these plans with my colleagues in Hyderabad, I miraculously acquired another 5 people: Gina, plus Kate and Angela; Anup, plus his friend Apu.  It made for a nice-sized group to go and explore the wonders of India's northeastern provinces, and it definitely gave Shans a taste of what life as an expat has been like.

We flew to Badogra, which is the closest airport to both Darjeeling and Sikkim, and met up with a driver to take us up into the mountains.  As per the Indian norm, it was not without problems.  First our hotel was taken over by some visiting dignitary, so at the last minute, we were notified we'd be staying somewhere else.  Then, once we got there, our driver somehow managed to be standing outside this very tiny airport for the better part of an hour and still miss the crowd of 5 occidentals and 2 NRIs clustered at the entrance.  My expectation of and tolerance for these road bumps has increased mightily over the past year and a half.  I think, in many ways, this is a gift of patience that India has given me.  Forever more, I will roll with the punches just a little bit better, plan alternatives just a little more thoroughly, and know when I should insist that much more firmly.

Darjeeling was our first stop.  Perched at the top of a series of very windy roads into the mountain, it offers mist-covered views of the tea plantations and unbelievably beautiful glimpses of the Himalayan peaks, especially Kanchenjunga.  The ride up the mountain, though a little windy for those in the group who were on their first Indian road trip, was fairly uneventful.  We climbed through the lowlands, up into the tree line, passing temples and prayer flags hung through the trees, eventually driving alongside the famous toy train as it chugged its way up the mountain.  Amongst all of this peace and beauty, Shannon took a moment to wave at some kids by the side of the road.  Normally, this type of gesture is greeted with smiles and shy waves back, but this time, oh no....  One of the little boys, probably about 7 or 8 years old, stepped into the road behind our car and proceeded to thrust his hips at Shannon, miming that he was stroking himself.  Oh yeah, a little Darjeeling porn on our way up the mountain....super funny.  We all about died laughing.  Even the Indians amongst us said they'd never seen a kid do that in India.  See the beauty that Western cultures bring to the Eastern world?

While I don't think that the Viceroy Hotel should have been the same price as our original booking at the Elgin, it was completely serviceable.  Clean, neat, very helpful staff and a great location on the main mall.  In Northern India, the proximity to Tibet means you'll find at least two things in all of these Himalayan towns - monks and momos.  For our first dinner in Darjeeling, we decided to go in search of the latter and had an amazing meal of momos and thukpa at Kunga Restaurant, a Tibetan joint on the main road in Darjeeling.  We then wandered into town for the cheapest drinks ever at a local bar.  A weekend away in one of India's hill stations forces you to slow down a bit, enjoy the company of those you're with, appreciate nature and the much-cooler air, soak of the spirituality of its holy places, and just do everything at a much more leisurely pace.  It is good for the soul.

For our second day in Darjeeling, we headed out to see the sights and eventually to search for the local speciality - tea, of course!  We visited the Japanese peace stupa for some impromptu drumming practice and gorgeous views of both the stupa and the mountains in the distance. Darjeeling, like Leh has a heavy Tibetan influence, so we were able to visit one of the local monasteries; Shannon worked on spinning the prayer wheels and Anup got down with the people, the monk people, that is.  We then moved on to the Darjeeling Zoo and the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute - highlights were the whomping leopard sex, which I heard but missed seeing, and the sherpa practicum going on in the courtyard at the Institute, which I also managed to just miss, being absorbed in all of the tales of men lost to Everest over the years.  Gina assures me that both the sex and the sherpas were spectacular.  

After our animal adventures, we spent a significant amount of time and joke material trying to find this restaurant called the "Hot Stimulating Cafe," which apparently exists, but we definitely could not find.  In the meantime, we headed out to the tea plantations and the Tibetan Refugee Center.  I think many of us, being native or imported Californians, were thinking that tea plantations would follow the wine-tasting model, but au contrare.  We definitely got an up-close-and-personal view of the tea bushes, which look rather like boxwood, but there was no 'tasting room' to be had.  The refugee center wasn't as spectacular as the Norbulingka Institute in Dharamsala, but we managed to amuse ourselves watching the little kids play, and Anup even found a pick-up game of basketball - again, one with the people.  We hit The Elgin, where we were supposed to be staying, for high tea and had a very nice respite, along with our first taste of true Darjeeling tea.  Inspired, we headed back to the main road in Darjeeling to Nathmull's, and spent the better part of an hour sniffing and sampling white, black and green teas.  Apparently, one doesn't go to the tea, but rather has the tea brought to one. . . ah hah.

We hit the hay pretty early that night; matter of fact, Shannon didn't even rally for dinner.  At 4:30am, we were headed for Tiger Hill to catch the sun rising over the Himalayas.  There was much discussion as to whether the whole party would make it out at that ungodly hour or not, but we did.  Out, and all the way up to the top of the hill. . . . the very foggy, prayer-flag-swathed, and overcrowded hill.  As a native of Aptos, the fog made me feel right at home, but it wasn't so good for seeing the mountain range.  Our conversation went something like this:

Apu: Look! There's the mountain range

(all of us squint in the direction he's pointing)

Anup: Dude, those are just clouds.

Apu: Triangular clouds?

Me: Well, maybe I see the mountains. . . maybe. . . Yeah, I think I do!

Apu: (to Anup) See?!

Me: . . . Or maybe I don't. . . ?

And so on, and so forth. . . .

In the end, even with photo-enhancing software, I got nothing, not even triangular clouds.  I finally resorted to buying photos that were being sold from mornings where you could actually see the mountains.  And, of course, the day before was much better, supposedly.  But, hey - who can complain too much about an early-morning chai call with good company?  We would have been bummed if we hadn't tried.  After breakfast back at the Viceroy, our little party had to break up as Gina, Kate, and Angela headed back down the mountain and home to Hyderabad, and Apu, Anup, Shannon and I continued on to Sikkim.

The drive to Sikkim was beautiful.  I have come to love the Himalayan foothills for all of their fog and greenery, and for the degree to which they feel like home.  We saw a tourism poster for Sikkim that said "the Switzerland of the East," and that's a pretty fair description.  Steep mountains with stepped fields cascade into gorges filled with tumbling rapids.  In the lowlands, it is hot; up higher, it is misty and cool.  All of the architecture is steeply vertical, made to shed the elements.  Shannon and I only had a very brief day 24 hours or so in Sikkim, but it was still enough to get a taste of this lovely Indian state.  Highlights include:

• Getting a passport stamp, even though this is still India (?!)
• The hotel hook-up from Apu's friend, that ended up being a definitely B-grade option
• Gambling in Sikkim's first-ever casino for Shannon's birthday (and losing...wahhhh!)
• The human traffic lights (seriously?)
• The boys and their 'over-under' madness and preferring to sleep on the loveseat rather than together
• The beautiful pedestrian mall in front of our hotel that my friend William's dad helped to design
• Buying Dad a Nepali hat in the market, and taking a picture of how to wear it
• Visiting Rumtek monastery
• Shannon almost wetting herself on the way down the mountain - when will that girl learn that in India, it is unwise to drink multiple liters of water on road trips?

And then we're back in Badogra, and headed off to Kolkata!

Channeling Rosa Parks in Hampi

At the end of March, I went to Hyderabad for work and decided to make another attempt at going to Hampi (the last time, it was flooded).  Gina agreed to go with me, so on Friday night, we hopped an overnight train and headed south.  We had second-class AC sleeper tickets, so the berths were pretty nice and there was a very nice older Muslim couple who traveled with us and were very sweet.  They thankfully helped us tell the porter to wake us up in Hospet, so that we didn't keep going onward with the train.  This boiled down to us getting woken up and hustled out onto the platform at about 5:15am, but still, better than the alternative.  We caught a rickshaw and headed into the town of Hampi, still at dark o'clock.  Although he asked us which side of the river we were staying on, the rickshaw driver elected not to drop us there.  Apparently, it was easier to put us on the more populated side, but that was a pretty big bummer for us as we arrived a little before 6am and the ferry to our hotel didn't start running until 7.  Even though it was early for the restaurants too, we decided to go and wait at The Mango Tree until they opened.  We woke up the whole place once we got there; about ten people who work at the restaurant were sleeping on cots and mats in the courtyard.  They were very generous in welcoming us in and making us chai while they got the restaurant up and running.  I consequently loved the place.  Chai and hot breakfast before you're even supposed to be open - that is the way to my heart.

After breakfast, it was late enough to go back to the ferry and catch a ride across the river.  The river itself doesn't look big enough to require a boat, but it just barely is - especially with luggage.  We wound our way up the bank and through the sugarcane fields to our hotel, only to find out that they didn't have the AC room that we booked.  Since only one or two hotels in all of Hampi have AC, I was willing to compromise on a room with a fan and a non-working AC unit, and the hope that the manager would lower the rate to non-AC for us.  We got cleaned up, dumped our stuff and headed back across the river to see the temples in town.

Have I mentioned yet that Hampi was hot?  Like really, very, very, hot.  Like watering-all-the-time hot.  Consequently, our tour of the ruins was a bit laborious.  We spent most of the afternoon going to two of the three main temple groups in town.  We had a very nice vegetarian buffet lunch at one of the state tourist hotels and wrapped up our sightseeing about 3pm.  At this point, we started to get a glimmer of an idea.  First, it was hotter than schmuck.  Second, we had seen all of the most-famous monuments and weren't sure if there was much more worth seeing.  Third, if we took a night bus or train on Saturday night, we'd be back in Hyderabad in time for Sunday brunch with Jen on her last day, and a massage at Tangerine.  Hmmmm.....

I'm sure it's no surprise that we elected to go for an overnight AC bus to get home faster.  We were able to get the last two AC reserved seats, and so thought we were all set to head home.  I really should have known better, I mean really.  Traveling in India pretty much defines Murphy's Law on a regular basis, but I still make the mistake sometimes of expecting something different.  When we got back to our hotel we checked out and offered to pay the AC rate for the room.  Not only did they refuse to lower the rate, they also refused to acknowledge that there ever were posted AC rates, even though there was a defunct air conditioner in our room.  In the end, I didn't have time to argue.  I reversed the charges, after way too long on hold with both Make My Trip and Capital One, and we went on our merry way.  We hit Mango Tree up for one last meal, and then headed into town to catch our bus.

And this is where the fun really begins.... In hindsight, we decided what happened was that they overbooked the AC section of the bus and basically picked on the two foreigners as the most likely to be easy to screw over.  In any case, we go to get on the bus and the guy trys to walk us into the non-AC section of the bus.  We protest.  He insists we have non-AC tickets.  By comparing prices with a few other folks, we become sure that we paid for AC reserved.  Gina sits down in the AC section and refuses to move (go Gina!).  I contemplate getting off the bus to call the travel agent, as the man insists I should.  Gina says no dice - they might leave without us.  So, we sit down and refuse to move, Rosa Parks-style.  The two bus dudes yell at us a bunch and then try to 'refund' the difference in the ticket price so that we'll move.  We say 'no way' offer that to one of the other passengers and see if they take it.  Sure enough, they don't even bother because nobody would.  Then they try to get us to move to a full sleeper bus, supposedly Hyderabad bound as well.  Gina says, bad idea, who knows where it's really going.  So we refuse to budge again.  Bottom line - it worked.  At least to get us as far as Hyderabad.  We didn't sleep all that well - I kept thinking we'd get thrown off the bus at some point and the "AC" was intermittent.  But, we got to Hyderabad.  We ended up being the last ones on the bus, so rather than doing the last stop in Hi-Tech City like they were supposed to, they pulled off at a random intersection and told us to get off the bus and take an auto rickshaw.  In the melee that ensued, I left my Blackberry on the bus, so between all of the irritation and the lost equipment, I think the lying, thieving bus wallahs got the better of us.  After a half dozen aborted auto rickshaw negotiations, we finally got one to drop us across the street from the company apartments at Jayabheri.  Whew.

Brunch at Novotel and a massage at Tangerine did a lot to soothe my jangled nerves.  I had another saga trying to get my flight changed because for some odd reason, Kingfisher decided not to take any international credit cards, save Amex, that day.  I actually had to call my daddy and borrow his credit card for a fifteen dollar charge, if you can believe it.  However, in the end it all worked out and we got home safe and sound and were mildly soothed by our relaxing Sunday afternoon.

The sum-up on Hampi:  Don't go in anything that approximates a Spring or Summer month - Winter is where it's at.  Take the train both ways.  No lying, cheating, bus wallahs.  The ruins are beautiful, but they're fairly weathered.  Unless you really, really love hippi backpacker towns, you might want to spend your India travel time elsewhere.  I'm glad I went; I would have wondered otherwise.  And, Gina is a great travel buddy - I never would have channeled Rosa Parks on my own without her.

Cookin' With Abdul

Before I came to India, my biggest exposure to Indian food had been going to Indian buffet with Marilyn and Nader.  Since most of these buffet's don't really spend time on labeling the food accurately, nine times out of ten, I had no idea what I was eating.  Consequently, my entire experience of Indian food was a nameless but tasty assault on the senses, limited to the Walnut Creek and Concord Indian diaspora.  Adjusting to the onslaught of spices was surprisingly easy, with occasional re-sets of the palate at Sunday brunch.  I've come to love the food and I know I would miss it terribly and be crushed if I could replicate some of the dishes.  Consequently, I've asked Abdul, our cook, to teach me to make some of my favorites.  He loves an audience and has been very generous in sharing both his kitchen and his recipes.  Here's the first in what I hope will be a series -- Baigan Bharta, or as Aarif likes to call it "Megan Bharta."

****

Baigan Bharta

for 5 people

500 gm baigan (eggplant)

1 T chopped garlic

1 chopped onion

1 chopped in tomato

1 chopped green chili

1 T garlic-ginger paste (see separate instructions)

100 gm chopped fresh coriander leaves (cilantro)

100 gm curd (plain yogurt)

vegetable oil

"All Indian spices" = garam masala powder, tumeric powder, coriander powder, red chili powder, cumin powder, dry Fenugreek leaves, whole cumin

Salt to taste

Cut the eggplant in half and fry until cooked well, then blanch the skin, [peel] and finely chop the meat.  As an alternate to frying the eggplant, you can also cook or roast the eggplant in the oven, and then to proceed to peel and chop. Mix the plain yogurt into the chopped eggplant and set aside.

Take a pan and add 1 teaspoon whole cumin, chopped garlic, chopped green chili.  Sautee mixture in oil until brown.  Add the onion and sautee until brown.  Add ginger-garlic paste, sautee 2 minutes and add chopped tomato.  Cook well for 5 minutes and add the eggplant mixture.  Add all Indian spices [approximately 1/2 tsp each] and garnish with fresh chopped coriander.  Sautee 15 minutes until cooked very well.  

Notes:

This mixture can sit for some time after it's prepared.  I've seen Abdul strain it through a fine sieve to drain off excess oil before he serves it.  Although he doesn't mention it in the recipe, Abdul usually adds the same amount of salt as the other spices, so ~1/2 tsp.  This is generally a side dish, served with fresh chapati or roti.

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Garlic Ginger Paste

200 gm fresh ginger

200 gm fresh garlic

Peel the ginger and garlic and cut both into small pieces.  Add a little bit of water and blend in a grinder or food processor.  The end result should be a thick paste, which can be kept in a covered dish in the refrigerator.