Escaping the Pacific Northwest’s wettest week in June wasn’t really in the plan, that’s just how it happened.

Escaping to beautiful Hawaii, on the other hand, was very much part of the plan – one that spent years in limbo, then erupted in a flurry of activity, not unlike one of those islands’ famous volcanoes.

Flying in to Oahu, armed with lots of recommendations on places of interest and food (of course), from friends who know the place well, we hit the ground..er..walking. From the minute you step off the aircraft, things take on a gentle, island gait. No one’s in a hurry. Even the birds seem more inclined to walk about, rather than make any effort to fly.

My first feeling on the ground was one of déjà vu. Lightly overcast skies, a gentle breeze, frangipani, gulmohur, and rain trees, mynas sauntering about the parking lot..it took me back to arriving in Bangalore airport in the early 1970’s. And again, being greeted by our hotel shuttle’s escort with a warm “Aloha!‘, and a welcoming “lei” flower garland was also a scene so familiar from film, TV, books, even comic books, that it’s taken on a life of its own, in my mind!

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How long does it take to “make” a tradition? A  generation? Two?  More?  I’ll leave others to debate that, and confidently declare baking to be an established  tradition in Coorg!

Of course, we have traditional preparations which are cooked in embers – a form of baking, as it were. But the baking I’m referring to here is the kind which involves the making of cakes, biscuits and the like. The ladies (perhaps some gentlemen too) of Coorg have a great fondness, and a definite talent, for baking. Cakes, meringues, pies, tarts, scones – you name it, they love to bake it! For as long as I can remember, it’s been almost de rigueur for this baking talent to be showcased at family events – engagements, weddings, naming ceremonies, and even at wakes. Some enterprising ladies have found profitable outlets for their talent by supplying delicious homemade chocolate cakes to local stores in Coorg.

In Pune, not long ago, I got to indulge in a host of tasty treats from some of the city’s excellent bakeries, many of which are run by Iranis, who brought their baking traditions with them when they migrated from Persia. Baking and patisserie have woven themselves into the culinary landscape in India through a medley of cultural influences – Persian, Portuguese, French, Dutch, Italian, and, of course, British.

In Coorg, the influence was mainly British, though some of the most outstanding commercially produced baked goods that my grandparents and parents generations enjoyed came in to Coorg from the bakeries of Mangalore, and also from Tellicherry and Kannur (Cannanore) in Kerala, where the influences are more mixed.

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Cloudy, grey, soggy. That, for the most part, was June in Vancouver. This Province isn’t named  British Columbia for nothing, you know.

Well, come July, and it’s an Indian Summer to the rescue!

Back for the second successive year, the Indian Summer Festival 2012 brought back the sunshine and lots of fun in the form of food, film, literature, music, dance, and more. We headed downtown to the opening event, hosted by celebrity chef Vikram Vij. In my haste, I left my faithful camera behind, but by happy chance, the festival venue – the Simon Fraser University  Woodward’s Centre for the Contemporary Arts, just happened to be right beside a branch of London Drugs. Very handy! Ten minutes to choose a cheap point and shoot, and I was set to join the merry crowd, to eat, drink, and people watch. My apologies for the grainy images, but hopefully, you”ll get the picture ;–)

Glimpses of the opening event of the Indian Summer Festival on the fifth of July.

Overall, a most engaging evening, with tasty food and drink provided by Vij’s, Atithi, Saravanaa Bhavan, and W2 Media Café.

It finally feels like summer!