The hotel staff at all the hotels during this trip absolutely adored and doted on Kaia every time they saw her. They chased her around, played endless games of poking and peekaboo, and followed her around everywhere to ensure she didn’t completely wreck havoc or run into anything dangerous. I’ll be honest at times that I kind of just let them run with it. Occasionally, Chris gave me a look that said, “What are you doing? Go after her!” but I thought, meh! What could go wrong?

When you’re on vacation with your young child, you always have to be on high alert to ensure they are safe and well, so you can never really let your guard down. This is especially the case with a rambunctious little toddler like Kaia, who has recently started walking and wants very much to assert her independence. But while at all the hotels we stayed at on this trip, I figured that I’d just let them indulge Kaia, and she’d obviously be safe. This was why at certain times, for a few minutes at a time max, I’d actually just let Kaia go off with a hotel manager or even place her directly in the arms of a security worker while loading up a car for a day trip. There’s no harm in that, right? And I knew she’d be safe with them. But really, I also did this because I knew that the hotel staff would be okay with it and not be taken aback by it. I would absolutely never do something like place my baby in the arms of a security staff worker at a U.S. hotel because they’d probably refuse or think I was totally mad. But that’s the level of hospitality you get when traveling in Asia: people in general are more family oriented, so they understand the importance of keeping a child safe, but they also have a far higher level of dignity in their day to day job that you just don’t see as much of here in the U.S.

Sri Lanka is a unique island country that oftentimes lives in the shadow of its larger neighbor India. In terms of cuisine, a lot of people like to make blanket statements that Sri Lanka’s food is basically just a version of Indian food. That is… sort of true, but not quite. There is a lot of overlap with southern Indian cuisine, in the form of dosas, hoppers (called appam in India) and rotis/parathas/flat breads/rice. There are definitely common elements, like the prevalence of different rices, rotis/flat breads, and curries, but they are definitely different. Sri Lankan food is unique in that the food is not (overall) especially hot (like it can get in certain parts of India), but it’s extremely “in your face” with its flavors. Just on our first day, we had a number of different sambals/sambols (a spicy coconut one called pol sambol, a caramelized onion one called seeni sambol, and a spicy chili one known as lunu miris!); different types of vegetable curry with complex flavor profiles; a Jaffna curry with the crab we had at Mayura hotel; kiri hodi, a thin coconut curry that you can dip hoppers into. The variety of sambals is more akin to the variety and types we enjoyed while in Indonesia.

Sri Lankan food’s base is definitely rice, coconut, and local fruits and vegetables. Similar to East Asian cuisine, Sri Lankan food, unlike Indian food, uses pandan leaves in its curries and sauces, which I found both refreshing and delicious. Sri Lankans also love using vegetables in pickles and quick curries and stir fries; I noticed morning glory (or kong qing cai, also known as water spinach), a common East Asian leafy green vegetable with hollow, crunchy stems) being sold ubiquitously all over Central Market’s produce stalls. Sri Lankan food also uses another unique component in a lot of its dishes: Maldive fish. I later found out that this is not actually fish from the Maldives, but bonito tuna that’s been boiled and dried in the sun, then shredded. It’s added to various dishes to add a level of savoriness to each bite. I saw endless piles and bins of dried Maldive fish all over the markets and streets of Kandy.

Unfortunately, outside of Sri Lanka and Staten Island in New York, which has the largest Sri Lankan population outside of Sri Lanka, it’s nearly impossible for us to find Sri Lankan food and groceries. I did befriend someone on Instagram who happened to be married to a Lankan, and she told me that Melbourne, Australia, actually has a suburb where you can easily find not only Sri Lankan restaurants, but food and grocery. This got me excited for our next trip back to Melbourne and further exploring the delicious world of Lankan flavor!

During our time in Sri Lanka, we decided to do one side trip from Colombo and chose Kandy. Kandy is the former capital of Sri Lanka when the island country was ruled over by a monarchy. Today, it is the capital of the Central Province of the country and one of the country’s most populous cities. It is considered a cultural capital of Sri Lanka, given its rich history and being home to the Temple of the Tooth Relic, which is known as one of the most sacred places for Buddhist worship in the world. Kandy is a popular destination for domestic travelers seeking a holiday, as it is in the midst of a number of tropical plantations, especially tea. Given the higher elevation of Kandy at over 1,500 feet, the area surrounding Kandy in the Central Province is very popular for growing tea.

When we arrived, it certainly felt like an interesting mix of chaotic urban hustle and tranquil, lush flora. The city encircles itself around the main sprawling square area, which is hustling and bustling, and the huge artificial lake, which is home to a number of interesting fauna, including various species of large birds and the notable Asian water monitor, which is one of the largest lizards in the world. When I first saw this animal, I got a bit spooked and didn’t know what it was. Initially, it seemed like an alligator or crocodile, but not quite. We speculated that it must be in the lizard family based on its outward appearance. We actually got to see this peculiar creature our first morning in Kandy while walking around the lake: this massive lizard was eating its breakfast: a big, fat fish, slowly being sucked down its throat in huge gulps!

One of the main sights I was eager to visit while in Kandy was the Central Market: it’s known as the locals’ market for everything from clothes, household items, jewelry, trinkets, souvenirs, to fresh produce. Of course, we were not interested in the clothes or household items, but the produce! I especially had my eyes (and stomach) set on a few types of fruit: durian, jackfruit, rambutans, mangosteen, and mango. When we were in India, we knew that durian was not a fruit that was either native or liked, and we were told that we had just passed peak jackfruit season there, so we unfortunately did not see any jackfruit being sold anywhere. But on our first visit to the Central Market, we immediately found one single vendor selling durian, and we zeroed in on him immediately and asked how much it would cost. He smiled and replied that it would be 400 LKR per kilo; that’s $1.33 per 2.2 pounds!! We agreed, but only if he’d cut it for us, which he happily had one of his people do. We picked out one durian, and they weighed it out: in total, it would cost us 1,400 LKR, which is the equivalent of $4.50 USD — what a total steal for us! I don’t know what I was initially more excited about — the fact that we found a fragrant, ripe durian, or how cheap it was! We parked the stroller and literally just stood there, eating durian with a random plastic fork I found in the diaper bag and our bare hands. The surrounding vendors found this so, so comical: they all watched us intently, with each bite we took, and kept smiling at us. As for the durian itself: it is likely one of the very, very best durians we’d eaten in a long time. It was perfectly ripe, extremely creamy, sweet, custardy, and complex tasting. We kept marveling how good the durian was (Kaia took one bite and refused; I guess she doesn’t have the same taste buds as back in the autumn, when she willingly ate Malaysian durian…). And after the first cut, we erroneously thought we were done, but no! The vendor cut the NEXT part of the durian to reveal two more massive hunks of durian for us to gorge on! That was pretty much our dinner on our first evening in Kandy!

When we were just about to leave, I realized that they had king coconuts, the unique orange-hued coconuts that are native to Sri Lanka. These king coconuts are famous for their special water and are used for drinking almost exclusively, especially since they don’t yield much coconut flesh. So, I asked for one to cut open and drink. It cost just 150 LKR, and we had king coconut juice for the very first time. The juice was sweet, but sweet in a very different way than the coconut water that comes from green coconuts. Oddly enough, it also felt a bit lighter. The king coconut water had this tartness at the end that was unique. When I asked if they could cut the coconut open after we were done drinking, they hacked it open with a small machete to reveal a small amount of white jelly. Well, even the coconut FLESH is different on a king coconut than a green coconut! I had no idea! It was just a small amount of flesh, but all three of us, even Pookster, relished it.

We told the fruit vendors that we’d come back to have more fruit, and we made well on our promise. The next day, we came back and asked for a few kilos of jackfruit, which was also ripe, sweet, and so satisfying. They indulged Kaia with two free bananas, which she happily ate (she refused the jackfruit, sadly), and also cut open a mangosteen for us to eat (also super juicy, sweet, and yummy). We also had some free rambutans, but unfortunately, we just couldn’t eat more fruit at that point to buy more; we were so stuffed!

We also visited the Embilmeegama tea factory for a free tour and tasting. It’s located just outside of Kandy, so we had an Uber driver take us there (someone who was very eager to make a commission, so he lied and told us he was driving us to the larger version… which was a completely different tea factory altogether, made and marketed for tourists, and had no relation to Embilmeegama. When I walked into the facility he drove us to and asked if they were Embilmeegama, they said they were not, but a “much better place for tea.” Well, I said thanks, but no thanks! Then, I went back to the car, told the driver this was not right and that he had to take us to the spot we originally requested). When we entered the actual Embilmeegama tea factory, a woman dressed in a sari walked up to us and greeted us in English. She took us on a quick tour of the factory. I’ll be honest and say that this is real tea production without even the slightest bit of sugar coating or glorification. This is a real, working tea factory that is producing tea for real human consumption. They talk through the production process while there are real workers right there in front of you working the machines, manually sorting through tea leaves, and enduring the extremely hot, dusty conditions inside. The guide noted that after sorting, the “inferior” tea leaves and dust were used in tea and tea bags for the locals, while the vast majority is exported to western and Middle Eastern countries (read: rich countries. Ouch. Again as I said: no sugar coating here. They say it just like it is). As educational as the process was, it actually made me feel sad that there are real people who have to endure these dark, hot, dusty conditions every single day; this is a grueling, truly thankless job. I have been a tea drinker for most of my life and a tea lover since college, yet like so many things we consume, I’m totally removed from this arduous and ugly process of tea production. I’m in a privileged position: I just get the fun, delicious part — enjoying the actual drink. It definitely leaves me with conflicting feelings.

When we did the tea tasting, which was held on the top floor of the building in a massive, open, well appointed and inviting room, I ended up purchasing three items: one box of fancy tea bags for my friend (tea bags that are actually filled with real tea leaves, not dust as tea bags are usually stuffed with), one box of Silver Tips Ceylon tea, often consumed as a health tonic as opposed to a “tea” (and… priced as such, as it was extremely expensive by any standard of currency, and likely one of the most expensive teas I’ve ever purchased!), and one box of luxury broken orange pekoe fannings, extra special (BOPF, ES), which is only sold directly in the factory and not exported at all. I was a bit hesitant when I heard how expensive the latter two teas were, but I figured: when am I going to be back here or in Sri Lanka in general to buy these? Plus, I knew if I were to attempt to source the equivalents back home, they’d likely be even more expensive. Tea is obviously a commodity, but it’s also an experience, and so I wanted to bring this experience back home with me.

I wasn’t quite aware of this when I was young, but looking back, I recognize now that I lived a very delicious and privileged foodie childhood. When we would have family dinners out several times a year with my cousins, aunt, uncle, and grandma, inevitably, we’d always eat at a family favorite Cantonese Chinese restaurant, and there would always, always be crab or lobster on the table. Most of the time when this was ordered, it would be fried or sautéed Cantonese style in ginger and scallion or with garlic, but regardless, the seafood was always extremely fresh, sweet, and sumptuous. It’s funny to think that I actually ate crab more regularly as a growing child than I do now as an adult. Then, I didn’t have to think about paying for it (the glories of being a child and not having to worry about paying for anything because an adult would always take care of the bill), and I had no concept then of things that were “cheap” or “expensive” to buy and eat. Plus for a short time as a younger child, my mom did the generous deed of shelling all the lobster and crab for me. When I got to a certain age, she (reasonably) insisted I had to do it myself, which I did most of the time unless I was too lazy to shell it and would just skip it altogether (the audacity to turn down crab!!).

Since then, I’ve had many opportunities to eat crab and lobster, whether it’s different varieties, different preparations, and in different countries (and, well, pay for it with my own money, for better or worse, ha). Sri Lanka is known for many things: pristine beaches, its lush, green landscape and incredible biodiversity, Ceylon tea, cinnamon, hoppers, curry, and CRAB. So I knew when we finally came, we needed to have crab in at least one meal, if not more ideally.

We arrived yesterday afternoon in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, on a short flight from Kochi. After we arrived at the hotel and settled in, we took a quick Uber ride to our first stop: Mayura Hotel. So, this isn’t what it sounds like, as it’s common in Lanka to call restaurants “hotels.” Mayura Hotel is a very local restaurant in the Pettah neighborhood of Colombo. It’s a small hole-in-the-wall with just a handful of tables (yeah, we definitely weren’t going to bother even trying to ask for a high chair here!). They serve one thing and one thing only: rice and curry, with your choice of omelet, chicken, fish, prawn, mutton, or crab to come with it. The prices range from 450 LKR to 1700 LKR. Surprisingly, the crab wasn’t even the most expensive option at 1700 LKR – that was the mutton meal! So for 1450 LKR, or about $4.65 USD, you could get a full crab and curry meal here! WHAT A STEAL!

When you are seated at Mayura, a friendly old man comes and lays a large banana leaf in front of each diner while asking which meal option you’d like. We opted for the fish meal and (duh) the crab meal. Once he’s collected the order, he comes back with several small pots, one at a time, and a big ladle. Then, he ladles different components onto your banana leaf: first, the rice, then two types of vegetable curry (that day, I think they were a mix of green beans, potato, pumpkin, and okra), and finally a thick, creamy, Lankan style dal called parippu. And as the main part of your lunch meal, he brings over a fried fish and a metal plate with a medium sized, deep red color crab on top, with a small metal bowl of curry. The curry that is served with the crab is called jaffna curry: Jaffna is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, and is also famous for its curry of the same name. The curry mix consists of red chili, coriander, cumin, fennel, turmeric, fenugreek, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, curry leaves, and (what really makes it different than Indian curries) pandan! The curry was really addictive: Chris said that he actually enjoyed this curry more than the crab itself! He didn’t want to bother with cracking the crab himself, especially since a) he doesn’t like cracking crab and b) he was holding Kaia for most of our meal here, so he insisted I eat the majority of the crab because I love it so much. He doesn’t love crab as much as I do. What a good, thoughtful husband.

We’d already eaten a number of delicious meals while in Kerala, but this meal was truly delicious in every sense of the word and an amazing first meal in Sri Lanka. Every component of this meal was scrumptious, from the two vegetable curries, each with a different and tasty, complex sauce, to the parippu (so creamy and rich, and different than the average Indian style dal!) to the crab and fish. The little fried fish we got was really meaty, with a nice crisp skin that Kaia loved and ate a lot of. As for the crab – wow. While the legs were quite a lot of work and didn’t yield too much meat, the really meaty part was the base of the body. Crab can be very frustrating: you have to crack (with your teeth here – no crackers at this place!), then pick at them for what feels like forever in order to get, at times what seems like, a tiny smidgen of food to eat. But when I finally started peeling and attacking the body of the crab, that’s when I realized where all the good stuff was. While all the manual labor involved will likely not yield the mountain of crab meat I may think I deserve, this crab was worth the effort: soft, silky, very sweet, and a little spicy. With shellfish, I like to do all the work up front so that I can enjoy all my rewards at the end. So when I finally got a big mouthfuls’ worth of crab meat, I dunked it into the Jaffna curry and put it in my mouth: it was like an explosion of flavors that made all that tough work seem okay in the end. I know I’ll be thinking about this meal for a very, very long time after this trip has ended.

And oddly, I even incurred some injuries during the cracking and de-shelling of this crab: one cut finger tip, plus a tiny crab splinter in my thumb! Neither has ever happened to me before when eating any type of crustacean, but I suppose you can’t always have pleasure without a little pain…

We got there just in time to eat our meal before they started wrapping up, as they close at 3:30 every day. The place was packed, mostly with what seemed like local office workers in the area, as well as some small families. The service was extremely friendly, and they have a sink at the back for you to wash your hands (thankful for this, as it was much, much needed after all that shelling!). The pictures we took of this place and the food we had here just do not do it justice. And I’m still in slight shock that we were able to have this incredible crab meal for less than $5 USD.

When we visited the Lulu Mall, one of the things I definitely wanted to do was check out the hypermarket that was on its ground level. I don’t think I’d ever been inside a hypermarket, but it’s exactly what it sounds like: a massive store that combines a supermarket and a department store. Here, you can not only get your weekly grocery haul, but also pick up kitchen supplies, trousers, a dress, diapers, pencils, a lamp — almost anything! Of course, hypermarkets would be a thing in the fast-paced world of India! 

It was a total zoo inside: endless people streaming in and out and in literally every single one of its very long aisles. While there, I picked out a new ladle (I LOVE the utensils in India; when we were here last, I bought a large stainless steel spoon and handled strainer in a kitchen supply shop in Chennai, both of which I still use every time I make chai on the stove), a mix for appam (remember that I said the mixes in India are GOOD and have zero preservatives?!), plus TWO mangoes. 

I could not believe my eyes when we got to the produce aisle: multiple rows of mangoes, all labeled, of course, by varietal. In India, a mango is not just a mango: you must share what variety it is. I kept feeling the mangoes to see which were ripe enough for us to eat in the next day since we’d be leaving soon for the next leg of our trip. And I finally settled on two: the gudadath and the nadasala. The gudadath is native to the state of Kerala, with a thick texture that is extremely juicy, perfumey, and huge in size and weight. Some gudadath mangoes can weigh as much as 600 grams and be larger than the size of my face! The second mango, the nadasala, was originally cultivated in Tamil Nadu. It is smaller than the gudadath, rounder like a kesar, and is sweet, perfumey, and floral. I read that it’s a popular juicing mango.

The hotel indulged me, once again, and had a kitchen staff member cut my mangoes and send them to our room. I stared at the flesh of both mangoes lovingly: they looked so different than the Mexican mangoes we normally eat, and even versus the neelam, himsagar, alphonso, and kesar mangoes we’d eaten in India! Both mangoes’ flesh were almost translucent, a deep yellow-orange color. The gudadath texture is akin to jelly if you can believe it. It was extremely juicy, sweet like honey with all these different complex notes. The nadasala was also extremely juicy, dripping sweet with a nice surprise of tartness at the end of each bite. The flesh, similar to the gudadath, was also on the softer side and a bit translucent. It’s no wonder the nadasala is a top choice for making mango juice! 

Mangoes in India — it’s really just another world here with this magical fruit. The varieties are endless, and the complexities of flavor and the meatiness of the flesh are just so unique. The only regret I have from this trip to Kerala is that we did not taste even more varieties of mangoes! Also, I’m pretty bummed that during this entire time, Pookster absolutely refused to eat ANY mango at all! She had eaten so many ataulfo mangoes over the last few months and has been on quite the mango strike for the last several weeks. This was just blasphemous to me! 

During our last trip to India in June-July 2018, I had fond memories of how amazing the service was at the hotels. At the Jaipur Holiday Inn, which is not even a luxury hotel, they were so eager to please that when I asked for a fork, knife, and plate to cut some mangoes and lychees I’d purchased, and I said I wanted to cut them, the person at the front desk insisted that someone from the kitchen cut the fruit up for me and would have it sent to my room. I still think about that experience all the time and think, WOW, now THAT is service!

At the Kochi Lulu Marriott Hotel, where we have stayed while in Kerala, the hotel staff have also been quite attentive, especially at the daily breakfast buffet. There has been a cart where a staff member makes fresh filtered coffee and pulled (yes, REALLY pulled like on the street!) masala chai; another cart where pancakes and waffles are made to order; an entire station in the back where fresh parathas, uttapams, dosas, and pooris are being churned out to order, plus a fresh squeezed and blended fruit juice station. All of this is on top of all the other stations covering fruit, western food (ugh), endless north and south Indian specialties like kadala curry, fish curry, khichdi, puttu, idlis, and a large variety of sambars and chutneys. We asked the manager about what variety of cut mangoes were at the fruit station, and they insisted on having the chef send out a full plate of cut and skinned mangoes — two types every morning: neelam and himsagar — delicious, meaty, floral, perfumey, and super rich in flavor. We were in mango heaven and were completely spoiled.

One last thing that happened that stayed with me there: at the juice station, you also have fresh coconut water as an option. Usually, the juicer will cut the coconut and pour the water out for you fresh, but one morning, I asked for the whole coconut. I was obliged, but on the next day when I asked for the same thing, he told me that management said guests could no longer get the whole coconut at their table. I was okay with that, but I followed up by asking him if he could help cut out the coconut fresh for me after pouring the juice. He immediately smiled and said yes, then proceeded to try to use the same knife to cut the coconut in half. Unfortunately, the knife was too dull. He then called over a colleague to see if he could maneuver the knife better for him — still no luck. Then, as if that was not enough, a third person came over with a sharper knife, but the three of them STILL could not get the coconut open. Finally, the juice guy told me that they’d have to take the coconut to the back kitchen to get cut with a sharper knife, and he’d have the coconut flesh sent to my table. I was a bit worried; I didn’t want anyone getting injured or having a finger or two cut off just to get me my requested coconut meat.

Some time had passed; still no coconut flesh for me. So I asked the hotel manager if he could check to see if the coconut meat was still coming since we had to get on with our day. He came back a few minutes later with my cup of coconut meat. I took one bite — it was absolutely delicious — sweet, refreshing, meaty. I took another bite and felt a little bad that the hotel had gone to such great lengths to get this small cup of coconut meat for me, but I realized that well, they believe and know that they are in the hospitality industry for a reason: that is to serve customers and make them happy. And so for them, they’re just doing their job. I tipped the juice guy and gave him profuse thanks for his efforts. At that point, I was quite full from a full on Indian breakfast, so I brought the coconut meat back to our room and placed it in the fridge to enjoy after we got back at the end of the day.

The next thought I had was: as IF something like this would EVER happen back in the U.S.! They’d immediately say no, then expect a tip for doing very little. The people who work in the hospitality industry in India take true pride in their work and making customers happy. While I think that is likely what the average hospitality worker likes to think they think in the U.S., the level of effort and dedication can definitely not be matched to the high level I’ve personally witnessed in Asia. There is, frankly, a level of integrity here in hospitality that just doesn’t exist in the U.S.

The first time I’d heard of a “hill station” was when I was on The Chai Box website, and the founder had created a blend of cardamom and rose chai that she named after memories she had at the Shimla Hill Station in Himachal, India, located at the foothills of the Himalayas. I later learned that hill stations were common in India, known as towns in the low mountains of the Indian subcontinent, often popular as destinations for holidays and honeymoons, especially during the hot seasons when it would be a bit cooler there. When I was researching Kerala and where to go given we would be flying in and out of Kochi, it was really overwhelming to narrow down where to go given our short amount of time here. Munnar seemed like a logical choice given it is about 4 hours by car and was known for its rolling hills, scenic valleys, and endless tea plantations and spice gardens.

We’d visited tea plantations before. We’d seen them while walking and hiking in Hangzhou, China, known for the famous Longjing or Dragon Well green tea. We’d seen them in Taipei after taking the Maokong Gondola up into the mountains overlooking the city; a number of tea plantations are up there. But this was the first time we had walked through a tea plantation and literally been in the hills with them. When you see these endless hills, with row after row of tea bushes (actually trees, but cut short to make it easier to pluck the leaves – still not sure how I never knew this before…), it almost seems like it’s fake, like something out of a postcard that wouldn’t really look this gorgeous in real life. But it really is just as stunning as the photos online. We also got lucky with the weather, as when we walked through the plantation, the rain temporarily stayed away.

Another notable part of our day trip to Munnar today was the spice garden we visited. The state of Kerala is very famous for its spices; it’s considered the land of spices, even within India. It is listed as being one of the top 15 states in India for spice export, with its top spices being pepper, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon (of course, some of my faves!). We got a straight taste of the freshness of these spices today when I got to eat fresh cardamom seeds from a not yet ripe pod off the plant (it was so strong, almost like I had multiple cardamom pods’ worth of seeds in my mouth!), and also got to squeeze a nearly fresh clove and see its juices seeping out of it. That was evidence of exactly how fresh the spices were, how very recently, these spices were dried and prepped for purchase.

Everyone always says how key it is to cook with fresh spices, but the reality is that most of us do not have the freshest spices and keep the same jars or containers of spices for years, if not decades. Plus, until relatively recently, most of us living in the west had no visibility into how our spices, whether whole or ground, even got to our local supermarket or grocery store; we didn’t know what country they came from, when they were processed, or exactly how “fresh” they were; the spice trade was essentially a black hole. I myself have tried to be better about not keeping old, stale spices, but it’s hard because it’s not like spices are cheap, and it’s hard just to throw things away for me, especially with food that hasn’t actually gone “bad.” But when you smell and taste these extremely fresh, bright, and vibrant spices, it almost makes you feel more alive, as trite as that sounds. Because here, you actually are tasting and smelling what these babies are intended to taste and smell like, with a pungency that is very much in your face, pure and natural. I picked up some cardamom, cinnamon sticks, and mace, which I’ve actually never purchased before, but I have seen it in some Indian recipes but just omitted it since I never had it. Now, I don’t have to! Seeing and tasting the plants and spices today was a really exciting and invigorating experience. I’d love to see more spices and their plants and how they are cultivated.

Shopping is not really something I do much anymore in person. If I have to buy something, I usually will just go online, try to find the best deal, do a few clicks, and have something delivered to me. Being in malls while traveling is something I also avoid. Part of it is because I don’t necessarily travel solely to buy things, and the other part is that Chris absolutely detests malls. But when I found out our hotel was literally right next door to the famous Lulu International Shopping Mall, I figured we might as well go check it out, and if for nothing else, then most definitely the FOOD COURT. Food courts in the U.S. absolutely bore me, but internationally, I always find them interesting, similar to how I like going to local markets and supermarkets. It’s fun to see what people like to eat in other places.

Lulu Mall covers over 17 acres, so it’s not only one of the largest malls in all of India, but it’s also the number 1 tourist attraction for Kochi the city on TripAdvisor apparently. Inside, there is a massive arcade and entertainment center, as well as a bowling alley. The “hypermarket” on the main floor was a total zoo, but had every single grocery and kitchen item imaginable there. When we got to the food court, my jaw almost dropped: it was like an Indian foodie’s dream: almost everything I could possibly want to eat that is Indian food was there. All the usual northern Indian dishes were represented, but the southern Indian food representation was INSANE. Endless dals, curries, appams, dosas, idlis, Kerala fish fry, Kerala beef fry — you name it, and it was in that freaking food court. And then, what REALLY got me excited: THERE WERE ENDLESS Indian Chinese food options!!!!!

In New York, we have Tangra Masala to satiate our Indian Chinese food cravings. It is still, to this day, one of my top 5 most loved restaurants in New York, if not the world. When Chris ordered some chili noodles today from a stall at the food court, it was so, so addictive: it had that nice wok fry flavor, Chinese seasonings, with Indian spices and heat. It was so, so good. While Kaia can handle a decent amount of heat for her age, these noodles were clearly spicy for her; she kept going back for more water, and as she ate more noodles, she kept slurping, indicating the heat was getting to her, but kept going back for more, in between bites of her mutton biryani.

In addition to these stalls, we also got excited at a juice stall, where Chris picked up freshly blended kiwi juice; a FALOODA Nation stall (OMG OMG, falooda!!!! LOVE); and an ice cream stand that just had different fruit flavors, even jackfruit and alphonso mango, of kulfi. I could have honestly spent the whole week just eating at that mall and have been totally satisfied.

Kerala, the mother and fatherland of Chris, literally means “land of coconuts.” “Kerala” comes from two words: “kera” meaning coconuts, and “alam” meaning “land.” And it’s no wonder that Kerala is named what it’s named because literally everywhere you look and turn, there are coconut trees everywhere. It’s kind of like being in Hawaii: even if you were poor and homeless, if you had the ability to climb a tree, you’d have food.

Today, we took an all-day tour to Allepey to ride on a private boat along the backwaters of Kerala. Allepey is not only the place where Chris’s nana was born, but it’s also a popular destination for backwater boat rides and stays in Kerala. In India, Kerala is not only known for having the highest literacy rate, but it’s also known for being a popular domestic honeymoon destination. One of the things I looked forward to most here was being able to finally try the ever elusive “toddy,” a sweet, naturally fermented drink that is produced from the sap of coconut trees in the state. When first tapped from a coconut tree, the toddy is already a bit fermented, but after a few hours, and then a few days, the strength of the alcohol gets higher and higher. Our guide had us stop at a toddy shop along the water, and we hopped off for a glass of toddy each.

We each ordered a glass of toddy, tapped fresh this morning, and it was certainly a unique flavor: slightly sweet, almost rice-like in flavor, with an interesting light effervescence that is quite similar to that of kombucha. The closest thing I could compare it to that we’d had previously on our travel was makgeolii, the raw rice wine we drank from a local drinking spot in Busan, Korea. After having tasted this, I could already imagine how much more delicious appams could be if made with fresh toddy. Appams were something I didn’t know about before Chris. When I met his family, his mom made some appams from a mix (by the way, I usually hate on boxed mixes, but seriously, India takes “mixes” to a whole other level — the quality is high, and there’s never any preservatives in these things! HOW DO THEY DO THIS??!), but I was hooked and knew I had to try making it myself. While they are still tasty using mixes and/or yeast, the flavor of course would not be the same as when made authentically with fresh toddy. Unfortunately, from what Chris’s mom shared, as well as our guide, fresh appams made with fresh toddy is almost like a relic of the past; people just don’t make it this way anymore, and if they do, it’s only for very special occasions like Easter dinner.

The cute part of our visit to the toddy shop was when Pookster saw us both drinking the toddy and thought it was milk. She started reaching for it, and when we wouldn’t give to to her, she had a bit of a melt down. Having her alongside us on this trip has definitely made this India visit completely different (and in some ways, more exciting and more of an adventure) than back in June-July 2018 when we first went as a family of two. It’s been exhausting, but I keep telling myself that all these moments will pass us, so we have to enjoy her at every stage for what and who she is. And it’s moments like this, when she confuses toddy for milk, when I really smile and think, wow, it feels so good to be here with her and know that she’s our sweet, rambunctious baby.

Once upon a time, I had no idea airport lounges even existed. I thought everyone lugged themselves into airports and sat either at the food court or the gate, waiting for their flight to take off. Then, I got access to the United lounge in LA, and I thought it was pretty underwhelming. Other than getting access to the lounge Wi-Fi, having outlets, and maybe some of their subpar trail and nut mixes and snacks, I didn’t understand why anyone would pay to get access to the United lounge (eww). But what finally did me in was when Chris first took me into the British Airways lounge at JFK on my first flight headed to Australia, and I was sold: a huge fountain awaited me as I entered, and the food and drink was ridiculous. It was like being in a true “lounge” where you had access to endless food, booze, and comfort.

I have since been in a number of incredible lounges run by Qantas, Japan Airlines, and Cathay Pacific. But nothing could really prepare me for the vastness that was the Al Mourjan Business Lounge (South) at Hamad International Airport during our layover in Doha en route to Kochi. First, there was a north side AND a south side lounge. Second, the space was just endless: a smoking/cigar room; a massive business center; a children’s playroom with huge bouncy castles and endless toys; multiple dedicated baby changing rooms that were HUGE and pristine, cleaned after each use – they even supply diapers, diaper cream, baby lotion, and wipes on request; a family center where you could spend time with your family and not worry about making other people mad due to children’s noise; quiet rooms that can be reserved for up to six hours at a time, essentially mini hotel rooms, to sleep in total silence and privacy; full bathrooms and showers that can be booked and will be cleaned before and after each use. And as for food options, there is also full-service dining and a buffet, multiple baristas for freshly made coffee beverages; a made-to-order sushi and sandwich counter, and endless rotating desserts, both western and Middle Eastern style.

And that still doesn’t cover everything if you can believe it! Right now, a Dior spa is in construction for the north side lounge, and a gym is also in progress so that you can fit in a workout ahead of your flight. There’s also a pay-per-item Louis Vuitton restaurant inside the north lounge. A number of different seats, couches, and lounge arrangements were everywhere. Kaia really loved all the different water fixtures, especially the fountain that had jumping water. She also loved that she could run around freely on a wide, open floor plan.

I think what really stood out to me was how family friendly the entire place was. Here, you’d never have to worry about your children being taken care of and not having them seen as a nuisance or annoyance. Here, children are accepted as part of the overall energy and life of the lounge; they aren’t inconveniences. There are endless places to change your baby’s diapers and ensure your own comfort as a parent. People even go out of their way to ask if your baby is comfortable or needs anything else. In fact, on the Qatar flights, Kaia always was treated like a VIP passenger; the flight attendants always asked if I needed anything additional, whether it was food or drink or blankets or bottles, for her. Kaia even got a diaper/change kit that was reusable with Qatar Airways’ branding. Qatar always has baby food (pouches) on all flights, unlike on American Airlines, where you have to specifically request baby food, and then follow up a number of times to ensure that it even got onto your plane. Honestly, that AA experience was just laughable in comparison, especially given then, we also flew business class and they wanted to starve my baby. If only the U.S. could be a bit more like this was.