The other day, a big row erupted between two aunts in my family. The quarrel arose when the daughter of one of the aunts living in Chennai decided to visit another aunt’s daughter, who is in New York. These days, many seem to be earning enough money to splurge and cousin Meera from Chennai wanted to go to New York, because she thought her cousin Gita, who was settled there, would bear her boarding, lodging and local transport expenses.
Meera and her family of four flew via Dubai and landed at JFK airport in New York after a 24-hour journey. After passing through immigration and collecting their baggage, they found that there was no reception committee waiting to receive them. Meera called Gita and asked her whereabouts. Gita asked Meera to take the subway and get down at the station closest to her apartment. Gita explained that train was faster compared to other modes of travel. Meera was disheartened that they were made to fend for themselves in an alien land. She recalled the plight of the heroine in the movie English Vinglish. They took the train and reached the apartment of Gita, which was on the 21st floor.
They were served bread, butter, jam, pasta and tea. Meera yearned for idli or dosa. Gita said she did not have idli batter in the fridge and it had to be procured from a distant Indian store.
When Meera’s family was relaxing after tea, Gita said, “This apartment is meant to accommodate only four members. We cannot take another four guests. It is against the rules.” Meera asked, “What is the way out?” Gita said, “I will put you in a budget hotel.” Thus Meera and family landed in a hotel room and got to eat bread, waffles, pizza and pasta for the next few days. They moved around by suburban train for sightseeing since Gita had to go to work.
As soon as she came back to India, Meera narrated her woes to her mother. Her impulsive mother called her sister and upbraided her for the poor hospitality extended by Gita at the Big Apple. Her sister defended her daughter by saying that New York was not Chennai and people should understand the difficulties of others and banged the phone down. The sisters are not on talking terms after that. Family members who heard about the unsavoury episode were at a loss to decide who was at fault.
P Subramanian
Email: mailpsubramanian@gmail.com