Half of the gorgeousness of Lahore-i Monsoon is the spontaneity of it all. One moment you’ll be looking at overcast skies that have maintained their status quo for over 24 hours, the next second they will be pouring down so hard that a few seconds out there will have you drenched from head to toe.
We stepped out for brunch and on our way back home, it all came pouring down. My baby was awestruck. The face she made at water falling outside the window as soon as she woke up from very stubborn slumber was priceless. “How did my bath time get out there?”
A true Paki at heart as soon as she was exposed to the gorgeous rain, she immediately needed to be fed. Makes me think. What’s the connection between food and rain? It no doubt, very much exists. I remember rains from our childhood. It always reminds me of the food that came wheeling out of the kitchen soon after the first drops of rain would hit the ground.
Pakoray (gram flour fritters) of varying kinds, with potatoes, onions, baby spinach, green chilli ones for the daring, gulgulay (semolina, flour fritters of the sweet kind), bataashay (sugar crackers), Rooh Afza(has no English equivalent. Absolutely none.) with lemon juice and Tukhm Baalangan (Basil seeds), chilled Mangoes of endless varieties in large tubs of ice. Chutneys of al sorts. Of Mangoes ripe, raw, Tamarind, green chillies, mint, coriander, dri d pomegranate seeds. Rain Food is a cuisine in itself. So underrated. It isn’t street food, it isn’t main course. It is a variant of purpose built snacks.
It is hat makes me think when Facebook celebrates a sunny day and warns us begrudgingly on a rainy day. They really ought to look up cultural connotations of weather in different parts of the world owing to their geographical placement. We hate the sun. Love the rain! Get with the program.
My baby’s first drive through torrential rain. And yes. We bought ice cream too. Go figure!