People people everywhere ....not one familiar smile, Nor one kind glance!

People people everywhere ....not one familiar smile, Nor one kind glance!
Yes, sometimes it's very true that the more the crowd the more lonelier you are. And that is precisely where i am.
Everything around looks so shallow , hollow and fake. Far far away, in the struggle of their own lives  do they miss me too? Do they hear my silent call ?

To one of the most beautiful girls I have known

Dear Merlin

Yes, I still (choose) to spell your name incorrectly.

As i took my late night walk today, my thoughts were you and only you. Were you watching me as I thought how handsome daniel looked on his birthday? Did you walk with me as i thought how beautiful you looked in that yellow saree on your engagement day? Is this how we connect across this distance?

May you be in peace and joy wherever you are. May lots of love and heavens choicest blessings shower on Daniel. 

Murphy again

A door lock repair that has been pending for weeks, two faulty window frames, a wobbly coffee table, a leaking tap; a handyman who attends phone promptly, promises to come everyday and does not turn up; two small kids- one down with viral and other a fussy toddler; husband away; lots of cooking and lastly, freelance work.  Feel handsfull. 

"Born" Identity....

I was at the shuttle bus stand this morning with my mother in law. I saw another lady waiting for the bus as well. I have seen her often around the condo and she looked familiar. I have often wanted to ask her if she had a house in Bangalore. I decided today was my chance to do so.

Me: Aunty...by any chance do you have a house in Koramangala , Bangalore? ( I thought she was my old landlord's wife). 

She: No..I am a singaporean. I have been here for 40+ years. Long time....

Me: Oh!! Okie. You look very familiar... so i thought id ask you. 

Smiles Exchanged... 

She: Where are you from? Bangalore? 

Now this is a question I find very tricky. Born in kerala, married to a tamilian , settled at Bangalore. So where do I belong? I think to all of these and may be more. The time based logic that I have spent 21 years of my life in Trivandrum made me say " Kerala". Her face looked slightly confused, maybe she heard me speak tamil to my mother in law a while ago. I quickly added up "She is from Coimbatore". 

She: Aahhh ok.

She spoke in tamil to amma about her life, children and asked amma how she found Singapore. Amma replied with a "Yes...its good". The two ladies got chatting and somewhere down the line she asked amma...

She: You are a brahmin? 

My blood is already asking me how it matters. But I chose to be a silent spectator of the elderly conversation. 

Amma replied: Yes.

She: Iyengar?

Amma: No... Iyer.

Now I knew this was coming even before she asked.

She (now looking at me): You are also???

Even before I blinked my eye, amma stepped in and replied "Yes, she is also iyer". 

All I could do is return both the ladies a smile. Their world is strange.I do not belong there for sure. I do not understand the importance of being a Nair nor being an Iyer. Being either does not give me any more importance or value than what I truely am. I would like to teach my kids that there are two people...only two. The good and the bad. Nothing more....Absolutely nothing more. 

The land of the lord in gods own country

It is the land of lord Padmanabha ; soil of the travancore kings in gods own country.
The mighty arabian waves wash through the enchanting coast, plush green coconut trees deck up most of the land which is surrounded by seven hills.
Thiruvananthapuram, meaning "city of Anantha Padmanabha", known internationally as "Trivandrum", is the state capital of Kerala, and is located on the western coast of mainland India. If you are looking for a beautiful landscape, great food, mix of modern times set in a backdrop of medieval Indian architecture and a wonderful cultural experience; this is the place to be.

"lakshadeepam festival at anantha padmanabha swamy temple. Happens once in 6 years.

How to get there: Thiruvananthapuram International airport , the first in the state is located around 15 kms from main city and is easily accessible. It is connected well to UAE, Singapore and seasonal flights to Australia/ Europe too. The Trivandrum central railway station and bus stand are located at Thampanoor and connect the capital to all parts of Kerala and India well. The roads are great, but watch out for occasional potholes , esp during the monsoon season. The state is densely populated, so the highways are not really "freeways" to zoom through. They are narrow and there are just too many heavy vehicles using it. To commute within the city, there are auto rickshaws that are reasonably priced. Taxis are available from the airport, railway station and bus stand.

When to go: If you love the rains, the best time to go is during the harvest festival season. Onam, the main festival in Kerala, is celebrated between August - September every  year as per the local calendar. The city is decorated and there is a whole week of tourism promotional events that happen which ends with a grand procession. Spoiler Alert - Mind the rains and the crowd. Not for fussy travellers. October - February is usually considered peak tourist season. The native language is Malayalam, but the state is one of the most literate in India, so you can move around easily with English and Hindi too.

Where to stay: There are many 5 star beach resorts like - Taj , Poovar island resorts etc that a comfortable stay in world class facilities. For people who want to blend in with the city have an option of a good amount of hotels with accommodation within the city. One should think twice before booking secluded places and quite corners in the city. Homestays can also be tricky. With a sudden influx of labourers from other states in Northern India, the safety quotient of the city has gone down.

Places to see: The city has a good mix of places of historical importance, beautiful scenery and for relaxation. A typical tourist package would cover the below.
- Backwaters of Veli tourist village.
- Kovalam beach, hot favourite among tourists. This beach is one of the busiest during tourist season. It has some amazing beach shacks, resorts, traditional ayurvedic massage centres, local shopping centres etc.
- Shanghumukham beach - As the name suggest, the coast line is shaped in the shape of a conch.
- Varkala Beach.
- The Padmanabha swamy temple. There are some traditional rules followed here. Read up on some do's and don'ts before your visit to temple. For e.g: dress code. Apart from temple, there are lot more things to see and do at East Fort. Ramanayar Palace and KuthiraMalika palace museums have a good collection of antiques from the royal times.
- The city's zoo is a good picnic spot if you are travelling with kids. But do mind a little stenchy smell here and there.
-Sri Chitra art gallery. This is haven for the art lovers. They have a lovely collection of Raja Ravivarma paintings that are famous around the world.
- Kanakakunnu palace is the place where all the cultural festivities happen. It is the place to be during the harvest festival season. There are exhibitions, food stalls, traditional dance performances and a kids fair.

the lovely Kovalam beach.

What to Shop: Most tourists come for the traditional ayurvedic experience which is getting more and more popular. They come and get a full ayurvedic treatment, buy oils and consumables for a year before they head back. The next best thing that people buy is gold. Almost every street has a jewellery shop, but look for ISI mark 22 carat pure gold. It makes sense to buy it from leading jewellery shops such as Bhima, Malabar gold, Joyalukkas, Kalyan etc. The traditional off white costume with pure gold zari work , a cotton hand weave of kerala also appeal to the west. Banana chips made from raw banana fried in coconut oil is another must buy. The local shops at East Fort , Chalai bazar and Palayam market are good places to buy all of these. Brass antiques and khadi weave from SMSM behind the old secretariat building is quite famous.

Food lovers paradise: When in the capital, a must have is the traditional tapioca and fish curry meal. A wide variety of local seafood flavours are available at most of the restaurants here. Mubarak, a non vegetarian paradise is located in the busy streets of chalai bazar. There are specific hotels for pure vegetarians. One should look for chains of  "Aryaas, ananda bhavan, arya bhavan around the city. You can also get a decent North Indian, Chinese , Italian, Maldivian food around the city quite easily. One should also definitely not miss the late night food stalls, popularly known as "thattukada". The hot dosas served with sambar and spicy chutney is sure to leave your taste buds wanting more. While at it, do not miss the double omelet and end it with a piping hot cup of "chaya" (tea).

I am pressure cooked. Yes, thats exactly how i feel right now. How does one explain in a better way the water that is boiling inside the pressure cooker that is up on the flame with its whistle on- boiling hot, but no outlet to go. 

And while you are boiling, you are also cooking something. Technically everything seems to be good. Food gets cooked. Once cooked what do you do with the remaining water? Throw it away!! Yep... that is what I really am. 

DrumStick leaf and Cauliflower Curry

We had a big drumstick tree in our backyard at home back in Kerala. Every time I buy drumsticks and its nutritious green leaves for a couple of dollars I miss my tree which gave me all that for free! And to add to the woe when I buy these leaves from Little India they give a bunch full. To wash and clean the whole bunch picking only the leaves you get a masters degree in Patience.

Initially I had issues with storing it without making the leaves dry. What I now do is once I have washed and cleaned the whole bunch,  I wrap it in a news paper (not the glossy shiny one..the classic traditional newspaper) and store in refrigerator. It stays for more than two weeks without loosing moisture. Alternately you can even spread the leaves to strain water on a newspaper and then put them all in a box and store it in the refrigerator. Both these ways of storage have helped me a lot.

There is whole lot of benefit from their tender leaves. Read more on the below website on them.
http://smartwaytohealth.blogspot.sg/2013/01/drum-stick-leaves.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moringa_oleifera

Now I know that "Muringa" as its called in Malayalam/Tamil came from its botanical name or may be vice versa.
To let another secret out I am not a great fan of the taste of the leaf and I hate all stinky veggies which includes Cauliflower. So when I saw these two lying around in my fridge I wondered how I can cook it so as to entice me. Here is how I managed. Luckily it turned out tasty too apart from holding all the nutrition. :)

So to cook this curry what you need is

Cauliflower - half the flower. Cut and wash the florets neatly. Its one of the most insect prone veggies as well. Why don't the worms get put off by the smell? But then they eat is raw.
Green Peas - handful washed and strained. Fresh is always good and healthy. Stored ones would do as well. You can even skip it for this recipe. I just wanted it to be there along with the other veggies.
Drum stick leaves - whole bunch.
garlic -1 pod
ginger- a small thin slice.
1Tbsp pav bhaji masala
1tbsp garam masala
1 Onion diced.
Cashew nuts-a full cup ground into a fine paste with little water.

Fresh Drum Stick leaves stored in a box in fridge stays 2-2.5 weeks.

Make a tadka in pan spluttering mustard seeds, dry chillies and curry leaf. Add the onion and required salt to taste.Add a spoon of fresh ginger garlic paste and sauté till onions are golden brown. Now add the cauliflower florets and green peas. Add the pav bhaji masala and garam masala. Mix well and steam cook this for 5 minutes closing pan with a lid. Add a glass of water and add the drum stick leaves.Allow it to cook for 5-6 minutes. Now add the cashew paste. Mix well and allow the whole thing to cook for 7-8 minutes.
Add coriander leaf to garnish before serve. Goes superbly well with rotis/phulkas/any Indian bread. I think it  should go with plain white rice too.

cauliflower green peas drum stick leaf curry

It worked for me since my son would never eat the leaf when cooked with lentils or coconut. He does not eat cauliflower as well!
In this he could hardly feel the taste of the leaf so he actually ate all of what was served for him.