Watch from 5:00
Jun 072010
You bet we did. 
After an odious meal at an Indian restaurant in Long Island the other day, we were in such a foul temper that we stopped at the Ganesh Temple in Flushing, New York for some benediction.
Oh no, not divine benediction for the soul but for a palliative for our miserable stomach.
You see, while we are not so enamored of Ganesh’s spiritual prowess we’re more than heartened by his gargantuan appetite.
Is it any surprise then that inside the Flushing temple canteen a statue of the Ganesh, yes, he with the swollen belly, has been installed directly facing the kitchen.
In a gluttonous mood, we ejaculated a stream of snack orders to the lady at the counter: Jangir, Laddu, Mixture, Muruku, Ribbon Pakoda, Pulihora Paste, Mysore Pak, Mango Lassi, Idli Miligai Podi, Rasmalai and Badushah.
Some snacks like the Mango Lassi, Rasmalai and Laddu we consumed at the temple, others like the Ribbon Pakoda in the car and Mixture, Badusha et al at home. (Hey, why are Nityananda Kamananda’s books still floating around inside the temple?)
Overlooking the Temple Kitchen
(File Photo)
If you ignore the not-so-cold but still decent Mango Lassi and the rude counter-clerk (yes, the dark-skinned mami with the nose-stud), you can’t beat the Flushing Temple Canteen for snacks.
It’s truly non pareil. In a city littered with crappy Indian restaurants, the dingy, self-serve Flushing Ganesh Temple Canteen stands tall.
Mixture – Fine Companion for Booze
In a long life, you can bet we’ve tried a variety of snacks with our preprandial and postprandial drinks.
But nothing – not even Chicken 65 – comes anywhere near the Ganesh Temple Mixture (the $1 packet lasts for two booze sessions). A spicy delight, we tell ya, it goes very well with Gin and Dev D (the movie). Hey, Paro (Mahie Gill) and Chanda (Koel Koechlin) in Dev D sure look as hot and spicy as the Ganesh Temple Mixture.
The Mixture is followed closely by the Ribbon Pakoda and the Muruku.
We also purchased a box each of Tamarind Paste and Idli Miligai Powder for $3 a piece.
After tasting a spoon of the yummilicious Pulihora (made by mixing the Tamarind paste with hot rice), we cursed ourselves for not visiting the temple in the last few years.
Slightly sweetish-sour and spicy at the same time, and containing peanuts the Pulihora was truly out of the world. Continue reading »
Jun 042010
Desi girl Anamika Veeramani is the 2010 Spelling Bee champion.
Anamika’s winning word at the 2010 Spelling Bee finals held at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Washington DC this evening was stromuhr.
(And we predicted the winner this morning. No kidding, folks. Read our comments and posts from earlier today.)
The 14-year-old girl is an 8th grade student at the Incarnate Word Academy in North Royalton, Ohio.
Even in victory, this seemingly-mature-for-her-age girl was a picture of composure none of the excitement showing on her face even though she must have felt thrilled inside.
Tamil Girl
Anamika Veeramani is most certainly of Tamil origin if you go by her last name and her parents’ names.
Anamika’s father Alagaiya Veeramani is a civil engineer and her mother Malar a Vice President at a bank.
She has a younger brother Ashwin, who was also on TV Friday.
In the 2009 Scripps National Spelling Bee, Anamika tied for fifth place.
Three Times in a Row
This marks the third year in a row that Indian-American kids have won the Spelling Bee.
In 2009, the winner was Kavya Shivashankar and in 2008 the champion was Sameer Mishra.
Anamika Veeramani
2010 Spelling Bee Champ
(Image: Bee web site)
The Bee web site counts among Anamika’s passions reading, writing, photography and painting.
The Tamil girl is said to take private lessons in Indian classical dance and golf and studying Indian classical music for eight years.
Wait, there’s more to this bright girl.
This high-octane kid has played the violin for six years, is a member of her school’s orchestra and also enjoys swimming.
With a keen interest in science, Anamika aspires to become a cardiovascular surgeon, an author and a screenwriter.
Who knows, Anamika might perform a quadruple bypass on one of our U.S. readers in the future.
Bravo Anamika.
Related Stories:
Anamika Veeramani Out of 2009 Spelling Bee
Kavya Shivashankar is 2009 Spelling Bee Champion
Desi lad Shantanu Srivatsa is out of the 2010 Spelling Bee championship.
Unless, Anamika Veeramani also misses her word in this round. In which case, Shantanu will be back in the race.
By the way, Shantanu was tripped by the word Ochidore.
The 13-year-old boy is an 8th grade student at the Cheney Middle School in West Fargo, North Dakota.
Here’s Shantanu’s bio from the Bee web site:
Shantanu’s raison d’etre is to excel in everything he tries. However, he learned early on that, while winning is enjoyable, participation is even more satisfying. This is Shantanu’s third consecutive appearance at the Bee, and his second time representing the state of North Dakota. His favorite subject is math, and has represented his school at regional and state mathematics competitions. Shantanu has played piano for six years. Some of his hobbies include collecting ancient coins to add to his coin collection, swimming and playing tennis.
What a great day for Indian Americans.
Two desi kids Anamika Veeramani and Shantanu Srivatsa are now dueling for the prestigious 2010 Spelling Bee championship.
Two others have (almost) been eliminated in earlier rounds.
If the desi kids miss their words, then two of the earlier losers will be back in the race.
Jun 042010
Desi kid Aditya Chemudupaty is out of the 2010 Spelling Bee.
Aditya was tripped by engysseismology.
The 13-year-old is an 8th grader at Nolan Ryan Junior High School in Pearland, Texas.
Oh, well. there are two more desi kids in the fray: Anamika Veeramani and Shantanu Srivatsa.
Here’s Aditya’s bio from the Bee web site:
Aditya credits his “reading habit” for his excellent spelling skills; this is his second appearance at the national bee. His idea of a pleasant afternoon might include watching the movie Avatar, or reading his favorite novel, The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. Aditya’s favorite sport is football and he really likes Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys. A flutist in his school’s wind ensemble, Aditya is also learning Indian classical music and studying violin. His life ambition is to either play flute professionally or become a marine biologist. Aditya tied for 12th place in the 2009 Scripps National Spelling Bee.
May 312010
Recent Comments