It all started friday night with Drawer pestering me on how much fun it would be to just get up hop on the bus and come home with her to mlore. My mangalore. All thanks to her i suddenly fell homesick. I tried hard to finish work as soon as possible. With a pounding head and work piling up i worked like i was on red bull but nothing seems to be getting done on time. I gave up, no way could i get it done on time. That made me all sulky and moody. I wanted to go home. I wanted to go home. That was all that was ringing in my head. Even the big bar of chocolate did not cheer me up. I was all sulky the whole friday night and no i was not pms-ing it was more like mms-ing (Mangalore Memories Syndrome). Haunted by it whole night long. I had dreams and nightmares about ppl from my mlore life.
Saturday morning i decided its time i did the most dreaded activity. SHOPPING. And lets see if retail therapy can work its wonders. Trust me it never did. I always hated shopping. And always will. Cousin happily tagged along and we started off on the maniac journey in the streets of blore. I was hoping that we could just sit on the bus and stare at the vehicles whizzing away. But as luck would be it, we stepped into an over packed bus. We were packed in like sardines. Reminded me of the mlore buses. Where the conductor would not spare even an inch or a centimeter, and stuff passengers into the bus. The bus dangerously tilting and
chugging along the road. Same experience here. Except i never got to smell anyone's armpits. Thank God for the Volvo buses. But yeah I stood the whole way. Whole freaking hour. I reminded myself no thinking of home. No getting sulky. No haunting memories to make me home sick.
Famished by just that ride we decided to have lunch first. And we went to this restaurant called Kudla. Oh yes its a mangalorean restaurant. There its in my system now am missing home more than ever. But it was a good thing. The restaurant did remind me of home in a good way. The false wooden ceiling reminded me of my grandma's house and we both cousins just could not stop getting nostalgic about the old days. Blame it on the place or the food. I could not help it. The kori rotti, the bangda fry, and prawn masala rice just stuffed my happy tummy with nice mlorean memories. Conversing in tulu with the waiters and the owner, it truly felt home like. But still made me sulky. I wanted to go home. .
And then we walked all the way to brigades. Again nostalgia crept in. The long walks i took to go anywhere. The walks i took home. The walks i took to college. The way i kept pestering my friends. "Lets just walk". This was just not helping. I want to go home.
That was it! i told myself no sulky mood. Am going to enjoy this day. We went to a shoe place to buy some slippers. And i dont know what came over me i started bargaining in tulu. That wasn't the surprising part. The baffling part is when the shop guy responded in tulu. I did not know whether to hug him there or just give him the money and scoot. Thats what i did, i just scooted from there. Could not bargain.
While walking around the place i saw someone familiar. I did a double take only to realise i was seeing things. How the hell can a person come all the way here just for a day. This is just not helping me. I got sulky again. Distracted myself by shopping. Went about spending on things that i would not normally spend so much on. Retail therapy just does not help.
Too tired with all the exercise of shutting myself away from mlore memories. I had enough i told my sister. Lets just go home. We could not get a direct bus. So we got down at marathalli and she took me to this store. THE MANGALORE STORES. It had everything mlore in it. Red rice. Green chakkulli's, beaten rice, rose cookies, cockum. All sorts of other food items. The famous SRR masala packets just hit me hard. They are the same masala makers that manufacture those lovely masalas right near my place. I remember walking past that place and i could smell chillis and strong garam masalas. Who am i kidding. I cant run away from mlore memories. It will stick and stay with me forever like a leech.
Not to forget i ended my day to a nice tender coconut. The sweet water and and creamy malai just lifted my mood right there. Best part i atleast found my little mlore here in the maddening blore. No more sulky me. If i cant go home. I ll get home here. Time to start loving this place. Time to start making memories of Bangalore.
