SHRI MAHALAKSHMI

Tinned Tuna, Smoked Oysters, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Green Olives, Black Olives, Milk Powder, Artichokes, Pasta from Italy, Marmalade, Peanut Butter, L'oreal shampoo, Conditioner, Toilet Paper - these were only some of the special treats available in Ismail's small, cramped, shop on R.C. Dutt Road, a mecca for all foreigners living in Vadodara.  But the most prized item, in my view, was on the top shelf, near the checkout counter.......a small dark jar of .....MARMITE !  Now that was the real treasure of this shop.  This little item, will cost you five times what you would pay for it in the West, but what it represents, is beyond the price of rubies.  Unscrewing the cap, instantly one is transported to one's childhood, timelessness,  memories of home, security and all that is known and understood, of giving and receiving.....now here was the ultimate 'comfort food'  !  'Roses are Red, Violets are Blue,  Marmite you're brown....And I love you'! x