Yesterday we spent the whole day with our dear friends Usha and Rangaraj and what fun it was !!! Usha and I met over a phone call in 2002 when we were colleagues at Wipro Spectramind. Strangely enough (for normal people) we became fast friends even before we met. These were the days before social media made its advent and cellphones were a luxury few could afford.
Usha and my phone friendship turned into a lifelong close friendship with lots of common interests and a very similar outlook to life. We discovered common friends and ofcourse a very important common interest – to nag and irritate Ashwin :). That Ashwin is married and a responsible husband now to Samiha is something that’s still sinking in. I only remember the discussion we had about Bey Blades and how for a few months I gained a fan in Ashwin way back in 2002.
Since the Uzhavar Sandhai is also Usha and Rangaraj’s favourite place, Krishnan and I went to pick up some fresh vegetables and fruits to take with us. Being a Sunday, the Uzhavar Sandhai was teeming with people.
From the Uzhavar Sandhai, we went to pick up Amma from my cousin Rohini’s place and we then started out to Kinathu Kadavu where Usha and Rangaraj are staying temporarily. Google Maps had a field day with us and took us through every tiny bylane possible before connecting to the awesome NH 948 and NH 83. It still took us just an hour but maybe we could have driven down in about 45 minutes.
As we took a turn towards Vedaanta Brindhavanam Villas the noise started to recede, the air got even more fresher and ofcourse we were happy that we would meet our friends after nearly 3 years. Rangaraj’s elder brother and his wife were visiting as well and soon we occupied all the rooms in our own smaller circles – Usha and I sat in one room, the young men sat together and Amma and Usha’s Manni got together in another room.
What a lovely place Kinathu Kadavu is !!! You can hear yourself breathe … after Mongolia, this is the first time we were in such a place.
We had an early lunch at the canteen and delicious food was served. So friends for company, birdsong, delicious food, greenery and clear air – all boxes got ticked.
Our plan was to get back to Coimbatore and just laze around. Then Usha said they will come with us and show us a fantastic restaurant. So all of us drove back and first had a round of my special coffee. While we continued chatting we discovered that Rangaraj’s brother had studied at the same school as Krishnan. They even found a couple of common teachers :):).
Usha, Rangaraj, their brother and sister-in-law then made a short detour to the Dhanvantri temple and Amma went with them. Krishnan and I reached this quaint old style restaurant by the name Sri Krishna Tiffin Room. Since we wanted to try a few items, we went in and got us a table rather than waiting up for our friends :):).
I gobbled up two sweet modaks and they were really tasty. Usha was spot on about how tasty the food was at this place. The service was even better. Our servers were smiling and happy to suggest items that we should try.
They don’t serve lunch, only breakfast and dinner. Those in Coimbatore MUST visit and those who visit Coimbatore must visit this restaurant. The food is truly outstanding. A lot of choice for those like me who like Malayali food – Puttu, Kadala Curry, Idiappam etc.
What a lovely day … spent with friends who mean the world to us. Also my liking for Coimbatore seems to increase day by day :).
p.s – We didn’t get a single picture with all of us together 😔. The thought didn’t even occur to us. Hmmm.
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