I will conclude my posts and anecdotes on my trip to India and Nepal, with a story which took place in Birmingham.
In May of this year, I went to the Indian embassy in Smethwick, to apply for my Indian Visa. I didn't know it yet, but this was to be the start of a most incredible odyssey. For now though, I'd just spent what felt like days at the embassy, standing in queues, signing documents and answering prodding questions.
Ravenous, I stumbled upon Bharawan Da Dhaba, on Smethwick's high street. Maybe it was just my insatiable hunger that day, but I tasted some of the best, most delicious homecooked Indian food my palate has ever had the pleasure of encountering. I was smitten with this small, authentic joint, essentially an extension of this Punjabi woman's kitchen. As I started to tuck into freshly prepared Aloo Paratha, veggie chickpea curry and curd, a young lady of no more than seven years old came and sat with me. Her name was Kanika, she was the cook's daughter, an adorable Indian girl, newly arrived in Brummie. She had mischievous eyes and her hair pulled tightly into a platted ponytail. She interrogated me with a few questions. We chatted for some time, and drew each other's portraits, which we then signed and gifted each other. Naturally, as she sketched me, she inspected me from head to toe. Lucky for me, she was a giver of compliments. My curly hair especially intrigued her (she was gracious- Indians I met in India straight up told me how messy they found my hair).
The Indian dudes sat at the next table seemed a little bit bewildered at this friendship we'd forged in just under ten minutes. They asked me where I was from, probably taking me for a babysitter or a foreign au-pair. We got chatting too, and I told them about my plans to travel to West Bengal.
Towards the end of my meal, Kanika looked up at me, and in her high pitched Indian accent, told me. "I like you, you are my friend". I blushed and replied likewise. She then looked more intensely: "Do you love me?"
I replied, in classic awkward British diplomat style, that I didn't know her very well yet so I couldn't say. This didn't seem to satisfy her curiosity, and with wide eyes she replied "You said no?!"
I laughed and she moved on considerably quickly, in the fashion of a seven year old, and happily took my plate and cup away when I was finished. I payed up, complimented the chef and wandered out.
I waited for her in the street, and she was quick to come out to say 'bye-bye'. "Keep shining, beautiful!" I exclaimed, as she gave me an enthusiastic high-five. I hope I may have brightened up her day even a tenth of how much she brightened up mine. I thought to myself, "India bodes well". And I was certainly not disappointed...
...I have recently updated my blog feed with all posts from India and Nepal. Be sure to check it out below!
Below: Kanika's beautiful artwork
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