Because HRLN has 26 offices around the country I have had a couple of opportunities to get out of Delhi and visit other units. I had 3 days working in the Mumbai office and this week did some training in the Kochin and Trivandrum offices in Kerala. This was a perfect opportunity to have a short holiday and spend 24 hours on a boat exploring the backwaters. It reminded me of what I knew, but had not experienced - the fact that India is a huge and diverse country.
This was my home for the night and this (above) was the view from my window. I had a cook, an engineer and a driver just looking after me - not a bad way to spend the day. The cook prepared 3 wonderful meals, unlike anything I had tasted before.
Up until now I have rather failed in the appreciation of Indian cuisine. It's not that I don't like it or mind the heat. Its just that I find it, well, rather "brown". It can be quite rich, heavy and oily, enjoyable once or twice a week but for me not once or twice a day. When I get a phone call from home often I'm preparing dinner I get asked the question "What are you having?". I can sense the anticipation of something wonderful and exotic. It then comes as somewhat of a disappointment when I reply "toasted cheese sandwich".
But here in Kerala my plate/banana leaf was arranged with a rainbow of different dishes, all fresh clean and tasty. A magenta beetroot salad, a yellow lentil daal, an orange pineapple chutney - and no brown. So it's not that I don't enjoy Indian food, it's just a question of finding the right region to suit my palate. And if eating here comes with a view of palm trees and sunshine on the water then so much the better.
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