Cha-ching!

MY GREATEST EXPENSE

Not rent, as you may suppose...which, in Koregaon Park, is not cheap: $330 U.S. for the month, just for the room in my present guest house (plus kitchen access and usage.) When everyone is in residence,  it is home to 4 guests, 2 young hosts (plus their baby), housekeeper and--during the weekdays--2 employees who work at my host's home office. Yes, I do think I am overpaying. Problem is, places to stay in Covid Days are slim pickings. Most apartment complexes--AKA "societies"--won't allow any visitors or guests at all. So, for the ones that CAN accept guests, this is the going market rate. My hosts' guest rooms are never vacant!

No, dear readers, despite rent being a huge chunk of my monthly budget, in fact my greatest expense is...FOOD! 

Yes, "food, glorious food"... as I expounded upon, once before, when still at the ashram. 

But while the wonderful ashram food was included in my monthly room and board--and as such, was quite a good deal--eating "back in the world", as it were, has not been cheap at all. My food bill runs close to $400 monthly! 

My receipt from Nature's Basket, shopping haven for the well-to-do of Pune. They have some organic products, though these are very limited. Mostly, they are known for specialty items, most of which are imported.
I circled the first two items because I was stunned at the expense after I checked out. The third--the chocolate coffee bar--was circled because I returned it. It was expensive chocolate and positively awful! 

WHY is food SUCH an expense for me here? Because I both fortunately AND unfortunately have access to the sort of elitist markets that the millionaires and billionaires shop at. (Well, and us weak-willed foreigners who are NOT by any means millionaires!) While the very wealthy here spare no expense--having infinite amounts of expendable cash--I, most sadly, do not. 

Even so, I am lured into such shops as the Pride Market and Nature's Basket; both boasting of imported delicacies and other such rare food items for sale. 

The common folk wouldn't dream of buying anything from these markets.

But here's the crazy part of the whole scene: many of these so-called "delicacies" are none other than common--if not dirt cheap--items when purchased back in the U.S. 

Here are some examples:

Kellogg's Muesli, manufactured in India: while not cheap, it is a third of the price of Bob's Red Mill (imported) Muesli. The 2 pound bag by Kellogg's costs about $4.00. The Bob's Red Mill, gluten-free variety? You won't believe it: $12.00 U.S. for a one pound bag!!! I was horrified when I got to the check-out and saw the amount, but was too embarrassed to put it back. Oats, you see, are a seemingly rare item in India. Indians don't eat them as a rule; only foreigners, by and large. Thus, the oat--while a very cheap and common item in the U.S.--is considered a delicacy here! I allow myself many edible extravagances, to be sure. But this exorbitant purchase is simply not justifiable and I will NOT buy Bob's again!!!  (Note: The Kellogg's brand is relatively cheap not just because it is not imported, but also because it only contains about 40% oats. The rest is filler, made from rice, wheat and corn.)

While India does manufacture it's own chocolate--Amul's being the most prolific brand--the quality of it leaves much to be desired. Even though not cheap--100 rupees, or about $1.10 for a bar--it is still FAR cheaper than the imported brands. This Lindt bar was a whopping 300 rupees! This is about $4.00. It only costs about half that in the U.S.... less, when I could find it on sale. AND I don't even consider it the best quality--many brands I used to buy in the U.S. were far superior, including Trader Joe's own "Pound Plus" dark chocolate bar. That was the bargain of the century... ohhh, how I MISS my Trader Joe's!!!

Another crazy indulgence: chocolate hazelnut birthday cake--about $20 for one kg.! (The size of the cake in the top of the photo.)  The bottom one, tiramisu, was a gift to me on my birthday (and made by a famous local Italian baker, no less! Surely not inexpensive, either!) 

Cheap, cheap, cheap in the U.S., right? Maybe $4.00 total for the bag of fusilli  pasta and Ragu sauce? Not so in India. Again, being imported, these items are a fortune here:  400 rupees, or about $5.50, for the small bag of pasta alone. The pasta sauce? Even MORE expensive: 500 rupees, or almost $7.00 U.S.!!! So... for a dinner of pasta and sauce, $12.50. Definitely an extravagance for me on my meager budget! But the worst is yet to come... 

...the cheese! ANY cheese is a small fortune here. This incredibly small slab of parmigiana cheese, weighing only about three ounces, cost 342 rupees, or $4.75. Crazy, eh!??!

Only about a centimetre thick, this meager slab will suffice for one to two meals of pasta, max!

Just a final, honorable mention: imported oils: This sesame oil, coming from China, cost 350 rupees, or $5.00, for a small bottle--about 6 ounces.  Still...silly me, just had to have it for my tofu stir fry! (Note: interestingly, India DOES manufacture its own tofu. Granted, NOT organic, NOT GMO-free, most unfortunately. it is about 45 rupees for a decent chunk. Imported tofu from China, on the other hand, is about eight times that much. Needless to say, I ingest--though not often--the "bad" but cheaper Indian variety!)

Do I HAVE to eat expensive and/or imported food items? 

I do not. I could eat like the average Indian does, at a fraction of the cost. 

But here's the thing: in these semi-locked down, Covid Days, food is my greatest pleasure. 

Can you relate?!? 

Can I truly skimp on the one consistent enjoyment that I have going for me these days? 

Sorry, but I simply cannot! 

Fortunately, I have few other expenses, which include: my small storage fee for some items still stored back in the U.S.; my ridiculously cheap Indian cell phone service (about $7.00 per month....such a deal, especially since it grants me 1.5 gigs of data per day!!!); misc. items like toiletries; my periodic rickshaw ride (the "luxury" Uber auto--or rickshaw--costs a mere $2.00 for about a 30 minute trip!) 

Since all of the above is so very affordable, I can justify splurging on my food. I try not to go too crazy, but mostly because my midriff is ever-expanding!  

Still, one does what one must, and, dear reader, I simply MUST have my edible pleasures in life!   Such as it is.