Chai: the Indian beverage staple. The average Indian will take his chai strong, milky and sweet. I have chai every morning at home, and at school, it is served at least once per day. There is a chai stall at the end of the street at the Khar school, and whenever we miss our train coming back from Nallasopara, we kill time waiting for the next train by going for chai. Sometimes, I think the boys who guide me to and from school intentionally time our travels so we miss that train. And if that detour weren’t enough, we can also get chai at the station. In the evenings before going to bed, the volunteers (just me for the last month), go across the back alley to Tania’s where we sit in her courtyard, sip chai and share stories. Rats scuttle along the sides of the fence, and fat lizards race across the walls of the building. Sadly, my chai intake has to stop well before bed because I am too sensitive to caffeine. One day, my morning chai was so strong that I was high as a kite all morning, shaking and vibrating while I taught my kids their daily English lesson. But even though my chai has to be limited to morning hours, I’ve learned one thing while I’ve been in India: it’s always time for chai.
Have you ever had Indian-style chai? Was it out of a super sketchy, dirty cup?
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