The 2-Minute Story

Just like any other average IT guy from Bangalore, during the initial decade of the Millennium year 2000, I was super excited with my first ever onsite trip as part of my project. That too to the dream land of US! The double bonanza in my case was that it was going to be my first flight in my life as well.

I only had a few days before the three months visit. Being single at that time, there wasn’t too much to pack in any case. Nevertheless I got myself a few stuff that I thought will be required during my stay in Atlanta. While the preparations was on, Anjana my cousin sister, who was in Bangalore at that time, was concerned about my food there. As customary for most of the single Indians then, she advised me to take a few packs of Maggi Noodles. She said it’ll come handy in case of any difficulties there. Maggi at that time was only Rs 10/- per pack.

Though it was going to be my first international travel, I rated myself above average when it came to travelling in general. I took special pride in the fact that I could adjust myself to any situation, especially food. With the confidence of a seasoned traveller, I rejected her idea as quite trivial and responded to her with a cliché statement, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”. Little did I know that I was in for a big surprise when I crossed the border of India!

I reached Atlanta on a pleasantly warm summer afternoon in the first week of June. It was a 16 hour long transit flight via Paris and I was naturally tired. I hit the bed as soon as I got into the rented apartment. I slept like a log and by the time I woke up it was eight o’ clock in the evening. I got out of the bed and the first signal my brain sent was of hunger. It was a studio apartment which had a well equipped kitchen. But what’s the point in having a great kitchen if there is nothing to cook?!

Since the place we stayed didn’t have a restaurant, I decided to take a walk to a gas station I had earlier spotted near our residence. The fridge at the store there had a few frozen food items and I opted for a Lasagne which was one thing I felt I could try. I brought it back home and heated it up and had a good feeling about a pretty filling dinner. The next thing I did was to message my sister and let her know that I started my life very well as a Roman! All what she said was, “Wait and watch”. I brushed that comment aside and hit the bed again since I had to start with the office early morning the next day.

A couple of days went by. I was enjoying the change of place and appreciating the difference in food unlike what I used to have in Bangalore. It wasn’t too long before reality hit hard. The breakfast served at the residence was quite a monotonous menu as it was the same food every day. The junk food I could get at the office cafeteria was making me feel bored to the core. I really longed for some ‘real food’. Somehow my sister’s face started appearing in my dreams with her classic smirk saying, “Didn’t I tell you?”

Days were going past and the frustration of not able to have anything that suited by taste buds haunted me big time. One day a colleague suggested visiting the nearest Indian store. I had no interest as I never bothered to cook. Nevertheless I tagged along and reached Shivam, the Indian store where you could buy lot of things from India. I was browsing through the shelves of the store without any interest what-so-ever while my friends were busy buying groceries.

As I was about to turn back at the end of an alley, my eyes got stuck on a familiar bright yellow pack. The words Maggi Noodles appeared on the pack which seemed to beckon me. I almost ran to the shelf and was about to grab the pack when I looked at the price tag displayed. It said $ 3 per pack. Considering the currency exchange rate, it was close to twenty times the price in India!

I could see my sister laughing at me from the face of the pack. I tried to hide my face and took a few packs paying a handsome amount from my allowance. The price you pay for not listening to your sister!

Tail End: Dedicated to my loving sister and all brothers like me who never listened to their sisters and ended up in deep trouble.