Kala Ghoda Festival and More

Went to the Kala Ghoda festival this year.Found it to have a more energetic vibe than last year.More exhibits,more colour and more people.The extra thing this year was the focus on food.There was a foodwriting workshop by Rushina like last year but there were also cooking demos at 5 All Day by various chefs including Alex Sanchez of the Californian cuisine restaurant The Table and Pooja Dhingra of Le 15 Patisserie who made French Macarons famous in Mumbai

One of the stars of the show was a 3D picture.What moved me the most was the exhibit of fish hanging with trash inside...yes,our pollution is killing them.That's the best part of the Kala Ghoda Festival...it carries a social message.This is a festival attended by people of all ages,different economic and social background,all with smiles on their faces.

I bought a painting for my parents from the stall by Mumbai Police that had paintings and photographs...how talented they are! The baby bird looked absolutely angelic amongst the leaves in the masterpiece the policeman had painted.

I liked the exhibit on noise pollution....a green ear trying to shut out noise from two orange loud speakers.

The CRY stall focused on fighting undernourishment little by little.Commendable!! Realistic goals! Malnutrition includes undernutrition and overnutrition.Kids from urban areas have to be careful about not just eating enough but about eating the right stuff.Eating junk food instead of healthy home food is detrimental to health.

What I missed attending was the lecture on dining establishments in Mumbai and Irani cafes.There was also a walk that followed but work timings clashed with it.

My cousin Archie (seen in picture above) and I stopped to have street food...Joss' Chargrilled Korean Chicken and Khauwsuey...both delightful

Then we walked down to Fort as Archie hadn't come to this side of town in 20 years.We walked past stalls of books and electronics and found the bookshop I had read about....dream of a place,done up in wood and with ornate pillars...Kitab Khana.Picked up a book on fish.

It had a cafe called Food For Thought,a vegetarian cafe which served a range of dishes from Moroccan Salad,Tomato Crepe,BahnMi Wrap to Poha and had impeccable service from Lawrence

I settled for the Hot Apple Tea that transported me straight to Ladakh and its mountains,bells,little flags,yaks and pink cheeked smiling children.Hot and refreshing,perfect for the unusual cold weather we are encountering

Archie had cappucino and ordered a warm pear and walnut cake slice served with icecream.She also had a flavoursome multigrain panini with sundried tomatoes,rocket leaves and olives

It was a lovely afternoon....just didn't realise how time flew.