Jan 11-13 Vibing in Pune

 1/11

For lunch today, we had pata gobi (cabage and potatoes) and the dal today had some tomatoes, giving it a red color.

 

On the way back from the school today, our auto driver was chewing betel nut, which is considered a psychoactive drug and is a major cause for oral cancer in India. At first, I was concerned to see the driver spitting out red liquid but apparently it’s not uncommon. Many classes chew betel nut, though spitting the juices/saliva out is associated with the working class.

 

Before dinner today, I had some eggs for the first time since the hotel breakfast on arrival. I felt revived by the nutrition – now I know why grandpa and great-aunt value eggs and milk for the nutrition. Soon, everyone was cooking themselves some eggs, probably because we all need the nutrition. Side note, the egg yolk looks and tastes different. It is closer to an orange color and tastes richer/more complex.

 

Funnily enough, we had the same dishes as lunch for dinner.

 

1/12

We took an auto with four people for the first time today. The autos typically three people, but one person sat on another’s lap.

Cows are everywhere

At school today, I finally smacked one of the giant mosquitos. It’s slightly bigger than my thumb nail!

 

While working in the conference room, we could smell the chiles coming from the kitchen. We decided to order some momos; I was particularly craving chicken. I was too hungry to wait for the food delivery to arrive, so I grabbed a chapati from the mess (cafeteria). Disturbed by me eating the chapati plain, the students offered me some achar to go with the chapati. Knowing their perspective, I accepted the offer though I was perfectly happy eating plain chapati.

 

On the way back, two auto drivers didn’t want to take four passengers. Following my mom’s practices, we offered a 20 INR “tip.” Should have known that the bargain for everything because they responded with 50 INR but we settled for 30 INR. Next time, we’ll start with 10 INR and probably end up paying 20 INR.

 

Rishika requested chola (chickpeas) for dinner, so that we could mix up the protein. It was served with potatoes and puri (fried bread). The puri was light and airy. While it was oily, I needed the energy. The puri combined with the chola was very tasty.

1/13

We went grocery shopping in the morning. In addition to more bottled water, we acquired fruits and vegetables!

 

It was the sweetest guava I’ve had, with less tartness and tropical pungency than usual. I also tried a custard apple, though it wasn’t really ripe enough. The texture is like very soft jackfruit and the flavor was mainly a honey-like sweetness.

 

Guava

Custard Apple

At NavGurukul, we observed the student council, though we wish that they didn’t acknowledge and accommodate our presence.

 

For dinner, we cooked up some green beans and tindora (ivy gourd). We sauteed them in ghee and salt, happily munching on them as appetizers. Vidya made the tindora slightly crispy and brown on the edges. It was first a bit sour and “gum” (Cantonese, present in a lot of vegetables), and then a little bitter afterwards.

Raw tindora

Sauteed tindora

Dinner served by the cook was paneer and peppers + tomatoes + potatoes.