The Trend Of The Cafes

Whenever someone imagines a café the first image to come to mind is that of a quaint little establishment in Paris, against the backdrop of generation’s old buildings, and soft music playing from a wayward musician. The whole setting just begs to relax and lose themselves in the aroma of coffee, some pastries and forget about anything else.

And that is one reason why cafes in general are so popular across the world. They are much more relaxed compared to the formal vibe from proper dining places, be it for lunch or dinner. Even economically, there is much growth in the business of cafes as opposed to other establishments.

Delhi is a hub of many things, culture, heritage, arts, a glorious mix of modern and history. And one can find multiple activities to do here, from the cinema lovers or the crafts enthusiasts, or the health nuts; there are gyms clubs in Saket, Malviya Nagar and other places too and malls and other recreational activities one can take advantage of.

One thing that Delhi has a lot of is cafes, and they are rising in popularity, especially amongst the younger crowd. Cafes are excellent places, where people can go to spend a few hours, relax and have some light snacks at affordable prices.

Cafes are essentially great places for people who do not really want to consume a heavy meal, yet would like to have something filling, without shelling out a lot of money. Cafes in Delhi cover a wide span of themes, from hippy to calm, to cheerful. And they are exquisitely decorated too; nothing very expensive, but more in terms of creativity and many also display any type of arts created by the patrons there.

The first choice these days for people is going to a café, since they are more compact, and are nowadays offering very unique choices in terms of food and beverages too.

To Delhi, With Love

It feels great to be back to the city where you spent your college life. After all it stands as a witness to all those madness and crazy days! Who doesn’t like to reminisce those honey colored days? Well I am fortunate enough to be back in Delhi shortly after my marriage and me and my husband plan to settle here for a while. After a stay in our hometown (we belong to the same hometown) for about a couple of years, fate brought us back to place we first met that too within a month of our marriage! Needless to say we both love this city and we chose to stay in Saket which would not only be close to our workplaces but because it’s a familiar place to both of us.

We were classmates and our common hang out place was PVR Saket complex. We have uncountable memories here! The walks, the movies the gossip sessions and the crazy photo sessions! Ah we revisit those days each and every time we pay a visit to PVR Saket.

The interesting fact is, we are still regular visitor to a café in Delhi which is close and we love it as much as we loved it back then, in fact this is the place where my husband once confessed his feelings for me. This café remains a special for both of us! What’s funny the manager still recognizes us!

Apart from all these, we have reunited with a lot of friends here who we missed badly during our exile from Delhi. Although life has taken a different turn and would do so eventually, these are the things which help us connect to our innocent carefree days which no other memory can beat. It is like first love, no one really forget it!

My Love For Shoes

Gone are the days when people gave no thought to the choice of their footwear. The importance of wearing the right kind of shoes cannot be overemphasized. It is practically impossible to go on with our lives with a single pair of footwear in this day and age. Can you imagine wearing the same pair at home, to work, to the market, or to any other event/party/marriage? I am sure you just shook your head.

My sister and I have an entire cabinet dedicated to the storage of our shoes, sandals, slippers, and all kinds of footwear. We recently visited one of the well-known shopping malls in India. The purpose of our visit was to shop for apparel-office and casual both (since we both are working). But we just could not stop ourselves from entering the inviting shoe stores. Men can never understand the love for shoes we women have. And to be very honest, even though we have so many pairs of footwear, we still don’t have enough. I forgot to mention before that half of them are old, worn out, or uncomfortable. My sister and I have almost the same shoe size, so we do have many common pairs. But there is something very wrong in the way she naturally walks (she knows that). All of her footwear become bootless within a few days.  And there is so much variety of shoes in Delhi. When we go to a mall or a market, we simply can’t avoid staring at all the lovely pairs. And we can’t just stare; we have to buy too, right?

Now that I have started talking about shoes, I would tell you about a funny incident that happened in my life. My mother, my sister, and I had gone to a local market near our house.  Our mother wanted to buy vegetables and we had just accompanied her. While she was bargaining, my sister and I suddenly spotted a newly opened shoe shop. We promised ourselves that we would just ‘peek through’ and come back. But old habits die hard. We went in and scanned all shelves, and came out with 2 bags full of shoes. I would never forget the expression on my mother’s face when she saw us with the bags. That day that amazing shoe store became our favourite shop. It has always been of great help in emergency situations (for instance, cousin’s wedding tonight and we forgot to buy matching footwear).

By now you must have comprehended the depth of our love for shoes. If not, you must see us shopping once!

Why Is Buying Perfume So Difficult?

Headed to buy a perfume for a loved one? We would advise that you reconsidered the choice of gift. While it still remains a mystery for us that why buying scents for someone else remains the toughest job on earth, scientists have unravelled the thread. But sadly, that doesn’t make perfume shopping at India’s best shopping malls any easier. However, it still is some intriguing piece of news.

Do you think you know how cheese smells? Or Smoke? We are sure you can discern one from the other even in your dream. True you can. But did you know, your sense of smell would be all boggled up if either your nose or brain were to be swiped with someone else. You might easily take shit for face powder if blindfolded!

Fortunately, some hypothetical questions are absurd enough to be laughed at, but the answer nonetheless remains the same. Scientists have discovered that every individual experiences odour quite differently. A paper published in Nature Neuroscience journal reveals that every individual has a unique map of smell receptors each one of which functions differently. On an average, almost 30% of smell receptors differ between any two people. This can make quite a difference in how one person perceives a smell from the other, considering every single receptor picks up scent in its own unique way.

Talking numbers, the human nose contains almost 400 different olfactory receptors, and scientists found that changing any one could bring dramatic difference in the smell. Now think 30%. So, this difference is clearly not just perceptive but substantial.

This kills the claim that there remain any sense of good or foul smell so how do you know the expensive little thing you picked up at the best perfume shops in Delhi doesn’t smell like rotten tomatoes to others.

Well if this may add some relief, any perfume freak would know that most scents are developed as undercurrents of some familiar flavours. For instance, if you have a fetish for woody scents, it will still smell like wood to others, though how they take wood is quite another matter. But anyway you will still lie in safe zone that majority will be able to connect to your choice if not appreciate it.

Hope that’s some good news! :-)    

‘Delhi-Meri Jaan’

Shopping- it’s a rejuvenation dose to me. I can vouch on it that it’s not only me indeed every girl is crazy for shopping. This is a pacifier against daily-woes. Be it an upset day at work, stress or any other problem, shopping in Delhi is a tide-changer and mood-swinger for all.

I am certainly not against the men folk, who are equally crazy over shopping, but then yes, there’s something to it that makes us tagged as shopaholics. I absolutely don’t mind being one. Why not? Yes, we shop and this is an apt term for the same. There have been ample times, when with no specific reason while driving back to home from work, I end up parking my car bang opposite to the market, better known as Central market.

I am from Mumbai, but from the last five years have been working with an auto-mobile based company in New Delhi. To be honest, when I migrated to the city, I was a bit pessimistic and though apart from my hometown, I just cannot adept with surrounding of other places.  I love my Mumbai, so as everyone does and I’m a bit biased.

But over the years, I have made so many friends that I have had never thought of. All I was aiming at prior to travel, will go and if in any case, I like the place, will extend the stay. I had a clear funda that I just won’t be friends with anyone and everyone. But Delhi is so damn cool that no matter which region you are from, what age bracket you are in or what aims and targets you have had in your mind, Delhi whole heartedly embrace you, fulfilling all your aspirations.

Now when I recall, I realize how wrong I was, people here are so damn cool, you feel like taking to them. No two people are same and have traits of their own. Be it a café in Delhi or ever-crowded markets, there’s a celebration all over and which makes me say ‘Deli-meri-jaan’.

To all those friends who have been planning to shift to this magical land, do not think twice. There’s an array of things lined up awaiting...