Welcome back to my reunion series of blog posts.
After a disastrous but memorable first night in Bangalore, it was time to prepare for our upcoming Reunion.
25 years is a special milestone, and the organisers of our batch's 25th reunion had charted out a list of dress codes for different activities, which we were planning to buy in Bangalore. That's why we had dedicated our second day only to shopping.
Stephen, Tlawmlova, Azuala and Hminga were still deep in slumber, but my farmer instinct kicked in and I was up by sunrise. It took me a while to realise there were no pigs to feed or vegetation to water nearby. :P
The street outside our hotel was eerily quiet, peaceful and deserted, save for a lone sweeper taking a phone break, probably talking to his girlfriend and telling her about how I don't have a girlfriend. :P
I then headed up to the dining area for the complimentary breakfast buffet, excited at the thought of stuffing my face with unlimited food first thing in the morning. But my enthusiasm took a slight detour when I saw the signboard… in Comic Sans font.
Comic. Freaking. Sans.
As someone from an advertising and design background, I will never not find this font hilarious. I mean, how am I supposed to take a place seriously when their signage looks like it was made by a preschooler using Microsoft Word in 2003? But hey, if bad typography was the price to pay for a good meal, I was willing to overlook this crime against design.
The buffet hall was nearly empty—much like my bank account after paying for all the flight tickets and hotel accommodations. :P
I started my course with a good cup of filter coffee, the elixir of South India, brewed to perfection. As I sat in the empty dining hall, cradling my filter coffee like a philosopher in deep thought, I stared at the vacant chair across from me. A metaphor, perhaps? Was the filter coffee filtering out a life partner for me too? Or was I just overthinking on an empty stomach? Lolz.
Soon it was time to eat. I decided to go full South Indian—crispy medu vada, soft uttapam, and pillowy idli, all perfectly paired with sambar and chutneys that ranged from soothing to fiery.
I demolished the plate like a man on a mission. But the battle wasn’t over.
Round two. This time, I went for some light, fluffy poha, spicy pongal rice and a classic masala omelette with a side of fresh salad to make myself feel like I was eating healthy. :P
The waiter came and told me that their chef could make any dosa of my choosing, but by then I was completely full and regretfully declined.
I waddled back to my room like a bloated balloon, kicked open the door (okay, not really, but that’s what it felt like), and woke the others. Stephen, still half-asleep, groggily dragged himself to the buffet. Tlawmlova and Azuala, on the other hand, decided to order breakfast straight to their room.
Once we were all happily stuffed, we headed to our shopping destination—The Galleria Mall, just a quick 5-minute ride from our hotel, where Hminga was waiting for us.
The Galleria Mall was a massive modern shopping haven filled with an endless array of stores. We strolled through its brightly lit corridors, hunting for the perfect ensemble to match our reunion’s strict dress code—Blue blazer, Cream pants, and Smart shoes. Because apparently, after 25 years, we needed to remind our teachers that we had, in fact, grown up. Well, at least in appearance. :P
I bought these really comfy stretchable cream pants from Max, which is a go-to brand for trendy yet affordable fashion. For the blue blazer, I decided to splurge a little and bought an expensive suit from Van Heusen. And finally, for the formal shoes, I bought these ridiculously comfortable slip-ons from Hush Puppies with extremely soft cushioned soles.
Aaaand with that we were all done with our shopping in less than an hour, lolz. That's how boys roll, ladies. :D
We headed up to The Irish House for lunch, where we immediately ordered chilled mugs of Hoegaarden draught beer to quench our thirst.
This was followed by many dillu starters like Bacon-wrapped Cheese-stuffed Sausages, Fiery Ghostpepper Glazed Chicken Wings, Whacko Pesto Chicken Tacos, Grilled Baby Potatoes with Peri-peri Prawns, and Mediterranean Fish Slider Twist. Yummmm!
Hminga's sister Peki also joined us and we had a nostalgic time talking about the good old Bangalore days when the weather was perfect, Brigade Road had a unique charm, and traffic was just a rare inconvenience rather than a daily life crisis.
We kept the good vibes flowing with a couple more rounds of ice-cold Hoegaarden draught beer, each sip crisp and refreshing, the perfect antidote to Bangalore’s afternoon heat.
Here's Hminga's absolute masterskill in pouring beer from a pitcher. After all, who doesn't love 50% froth? :D
We tried a couple of their cocktails too, like the Cosmopolitan, Irish Coffee, and an Autumn Buzz made from vodka, absinthe, fresh carrot juice, elderflower and ginger ale (see, I went for carrot because I believe in drinking healthy).
The Irish House, like all other Irish pub franchises, had their usual quirky and funny signboards too.
We stuck to just appetisers and skipped the main course since it was already evening, and we had a big seafood feast planned at The Fisherman’s Wharf later that night. Our bill came to more than 15K, lolz. But it was worth it, after all, it's our Bro-cationnnn.
After we headed down to the mall, we shopped for a bit more, and I even bought a pair of smart glasses from Fastrack (that's why you should not shop when you're tipsy, kids, lolz). Now, these weren't as good as Meta's Ray-Ban glasses with photo and video recording capability, but they could answer phone calls as well as play music.
I received a worrisome message during that time, that our flight from Bangalore to Salem the next day had been delayed by four hours. So we would reach school only by 6 PM'ish, which was way too late. And given that it was Alliance Air, there's no guarantee it would be delayed further or even cancelled!
We hurried back to our hotel, took out my laptop and frantically looked for alternate flights. There was an early morning Indigo flight from Bangalore to Salem which we had rejected during our initial planning because we thought it was too early.
Our batchmates Ujjal (from Arunachal) and Bei (from Thailand), along with his fiancée, her brother, and Sam (our legendary senior, also from Thailand), had all booked that same flight, and it was a very tiny aeroplane, 16-seater ish, so there was no way there would be available seats less than 15 hours from departure.
We decided to try our luck anyway, and wonder of wonders, there were exactly FIVE seats remaining, lolzzzzz.
Without wasting a second, I bought the tickets immediately while laughing and crying at the same time. We laughed because it was so surreal there were exactly 5 seats left, and we also cried because it cost me a wallet-crushing 22 grand! But hey, it was better to be safe than stranded. Crisis averted.
After that, we all got ready and headed out to The Fisherman's Wharf. Finally, lolz.
Tlawmlova insisted that he was going to treat all of us to dinner. I usually paid for every expense we racked up (hotel, food, travel etc) and then split them and sent the others the amount, which they gpayed me back individually, but for this dinner, Tlawmlova was adamant it was going to be entirely his treat! Niceee.
As soon as we told the hostess we were planning to have giant lobsters and crabs, the staff brought out their finest selections for us to choose from. The lobsters were massive, almost the size of a baby crocodile (okay, slight exaggeration), with their long antennae twitching as if sensing their fate. Their shell gleamed under the restaurant lights, a deep reddish-green hue, just waiting to be transformed into something delicious.
Next up, the crabs. These weren’t just any crabs; they were chunky, heavyweight champions of the sea, with massive claws that looked like they could snap a chopstick in half with ease. Tlawmlova selected the two biggest and meanest-looking ones.
While our giant lobsters and crabs were transported back to the kitchen for preparation, we focussed on the starters. As recommended by Hminga and Peki, we ordered delicious appetisers like Prawn Racheado, Calamari Tempura and Mutton Xacuti, along with some buttery soft naans.
For the drinks, Tlawmlova ordered an entire bottle of Black Label! Considering the prices at a premium restaurant like this, that must have cost a bomb. I felt slightly guilty so I decided to drink only cocktails. While cocktails might seem expensive, if you calculate the duration it takes to finish one compared to the number of premium whisky refills you pour within that same period, cocktails are actually cheaper in the long run. Trust me, I actually did my research on this when I was in Pune! True story.
I went for the Bloody Mary, Long Island Ice Tea and Mojito. hic!
Meanwhile, the ambience was absolutely perfect. The restaurant had vast open-air seating, a refreshing breeze rolling in, and a soft glow from ambient lighting, while colourful streamers fluttered above at the nearby shacks, adding to the vibrant charm.
There was just the right level of background music—lively but not loud enough to drown out our laughter and conversations. After the madness of Bangalore traffic and our previous night’s "great food hunt", this was exactly the vibe we needed.
We video-called our classmate Paul too, as he was also planning to come with us on our trip but had to cancel due to an ongoing medical treatment. We shamelessly showed him all the food and drinks he was missing out on, lolz.
And then, the moment we were waiting for. Our Herbs and Garlic Lobsters and Lemon Butter Crabs arrived, looking like something straight out of a five-star cooking show.
Cooked to perfection, smothered in a fragrant herb-infused butter, drenched in creamy lemon-butter sauce, yum yum yummmmmm.
Between cracking shells, butter dripping down our fingers, and everyone fighting for the last juicy bite, we had an absolute blast. The jokes got louder, the conversations got funnier, and we were probably the liveliest table in the entire restaurant.
To end the magnificent feast, we ordered Bebinca, a traditional Goan layered cake served with vanilla ice cream. It was warm, slightly caramelised on top, soft in the middle, and paired perfectly with the cold, creamy ice cream. Soooo good. The perfect ending to a legendary meal.
We all thanked Tlawmlova (and Hminga who chipped in a bit too) for the awesome dinner as we slowly walked back to our hotel, where we hung out for a few more minutes in our room.
Soon it was time to call it a night as we had to get up the next day at 5 AM to catch our (super expensive) Salem flight. So hoping to see you here when we finally get to visit our school again after 25 long years. Until then, cheers.
