Chennai - Stole my heart through my stomach...

My dad always says, Take anything people give you with love.. It can not cause harm.. and as an example he cites my mother... he says nothing she gives , even if it is stale food can give you a bad stomach b'coz it come with Love and lotz of it.

This has stayed with me all my life... through my travels, through my time in other cities and every time those words are acted out to perfection in front of my own eyes.

I've lived in Mumbai, There people feed you.. coz they have to .. coz they need the money.....My thoughts go back to my time in Chennai.... I was scared to go..coz i had heard so much about it... about the heat... about the people.... but now... I love tat place...

If the saying ' the way to a man heart is through his stomach is true' : Chennai definitely took the high road into my heart..

I stayed at my friends place for my first few months in Chennai..... the aunty who came in every nite to make sambar ( different flavors I have to say : Each one incredibly tasty and unique) , Rasam and rice….. Left a taste in my mouth tat still sends a smile on my face… It din’t take long for me to understand her love… she used to religiously turn up every morning and evening to make tea and breakfast and dinner for us… she needed the money too… but she did it coz she loved us…. I met my friend recently and when I enquired about the lady.. he told me that she had cried when they had decided to move houses..

Archana my colleague at work…. My god the Thakkali saadam (tomato rice) her mum and a lot of times she used to make…all of us at work loved it…… I used to enjoy the binge…. Thankz lady if u ever read this..

Even the Rs.20 meals at Ambika woodlands at Alwarpet, I have to confess I used to wait for Saturday afternoons to have lunch there…. And to do just tat I had to lie my way out of a lot of meetings on Saturday afternoons… Anyway Who would have meetings on Saturday afternoons…Get a life…. I want to eat Ambika Woodlands…

Every little food I eat in Chennai has left itz mark on me… from archana’s( not my colleague, the place in nungambakkam)..nd archana’s thakkali saadam… to cascade’s Chinese fare.. to the meals at ambika woodlands… I loved it all…. And all during tat time I had Ghosh babu for company,,,

I miss tat life……. I want it back….