London!
After leaving Zürich, I had a one-day stop in London because my family was staying behind in London while I had to leave for Boston to start my internship. I debated writing this short post, but technically it met the criteria of an international visit: leaving the airport. Hey, I don’t make the rules! Well, actually, I do. Anyways, enjoy this story about my 24 hours in London!
The four of us (mom, dad, sister, me) landed in London and made our way to the neighborhood of Edgeware. I inhaled some chai (note: not chai tea), Indian snacks, aloo paratha, some beer at the insistence of relatives, and some more snacks. After a semester in Switzerland, I was so happy to have access to virtually infinite Indian snacks. I ate to my heart’s content before heading to Kaushal Mama’s mother-in-law’s, Kundan Dadi’s, 80th birthday party.
There, I met a lot of relatives that I hadn’t seen in over a decade. In between all the hi’s and hello’s, there was a South Indian cook on the premises who made uttapam, dosa, and anything your heart desired (as long as it was South Indian). He was from a place called Madras Flavours, and I debated asking him to come to Plano and work for us. It was delicious, and after not having South Indian food for 6 months, it was a dream come true. We then cut the cake, and I was given a surprise by having my name as an additional name on the cake! The cake had the names of several people with birthdays in June, and I was moved by the gesture, especially since I was only in the country for <24 hours!
It was time to head back to Ashwin Masa and Minaxi Masi’s place. On the way back, I saw a phone booth and had to click a picture. My sister and I then took a quick walk around the neighborhood and went exploring. For dinner, they prepared my favorite food, pani puri! This is hard to find done well in restaurants, and I was glad to have a homemade version of it It was truly a day of eating for me and I had an absolute blast.
The next morning, I woke up early, had some chai and snacks, and headed to America.
Takeaways
- Nothing hits harder than ethnic food after a long trip
- At any large family gathering, there is a 100% chance of meeting relatives that you do not know but they speak fondly about knowing you as a baby
- Londoners know how to make Indian food!
Rose (what went well): The Indian food was so delicious and a much-needed break in between my time in Switzerland in Boston.
Bud (what was good but could be improved on): I wish I knew more relatives’ names and backgrounds so I could have more meaningful conversations with them. I felt very lost in most of my conversations at the party.
Thorn (what did not go well): A one-day trip is simply not enough. Considering I had a final exam on Friday evening and had to report to work on Monday morning, Saturday is all I had. In the future, I hope to make a much longer trip.
Rohan Chhaya 