The Most Delicious Meal I Had on My Trip to Delhi
‘Dilli dilwalo ki' is a very popular saying in North India. I belong to Mumbai, and this was my first trip to Delhi when I had the most delectable meal of my life. I have spent all my life in a small apartment in Mumbai and had a great time throughout. I used to hate the Delhi-ites, not because of any personal reason, but just to agree with my Mumbai-kar friends. It is more like a culture to gossip about Delhi-ites in my city, and the Delhi people do the same about Mumbai-kars I am sure. So when I had to travel to the capital of India, I did not have many expectations from the city, but to face reservations. Anyway, the generous folks of Delhi proved me wrong.
So there was this one day when I was in Garden of Five Senses in Delhi doing the mainstream touristy thing, clicking photos around the amazingly constructed park. It was the month of December, and I was expecting a great weather. I had left my hotel alone with just a light sweater on as the weather was bright and slightly sunny. However, the weather took a U-turn in just a few minutes, and it started raining heavily.
I am already infamous in my peers for not remembering the directions. I forgot the way out of the garden and had to take shelter under a small cemented construction. As soon as the rains eased a little, I ran out of the place asking for directions to exit. Somehow, I managed to get out of the garden, but my mobile data had stopped working, so I could not book a cab. Neither could I find an auto-rickshaws nearby. Just when I had started feeling stuck in the middle of nowhere, I saw a café and decided to take shelter there, all drenched.
I went there to that little café and collapsed in a chair without bothering to see what was going on around me. After feeling inundated in the garden for more than thirty minutes, I was cold, wet, exhausted, and confused. I finally opened my eyes and looked around at the five empty tables. Someone from behind rested a hand on my shoulders and said in an utterly sweet voice, "Oh dear, you must be exhausted." It was a lady who ran the café. She asked her husband to bring a towel and a blanket, and he came rushing with the things. They helped me dry myself and use the blanket to warm the body.
This was the most gentle old couple I had met in my entire life. Without asking for anything, the lady brought a freshly brewed coffee with toasted bread. This simple meal was the most delicious one I had ever eaten. I could see the genuineness of this gesture in their eyes and the smile on their faces was priceless. They helped me book Self-Driven Cars on Rent in Delhi, about which I had no clue that the service was available in the city. After waiting for a few hours, the car rental in Delhi arrived, and I reached my hotel safe and sound.
The few hours of waiting for the car gave me a good time to relax and talk to the elderly couple. They told me that they had a daughter studying in Mumbai and that they would expect someone in the city to do the same for their daughter if she was stuck somewhere. I registered it immediately in my mind and paid back their debt by inviting her daughter for lunch one day when I returned. I assured her that she could ask me for help any day if she feels like. Just a cup of coffee and the warmth of the couple's conduct reaffirmed my faith in humanity, and I never hated Delhi-ites, or any person from a different part of the world, without knowing them.
