The Kunzum Travel Cafe

Here is the latest from your travel friends at Kunzum: we now have a Travel Cafe. A place to bum around, meet travellers, share travel stories, use free WiFi, enjoy fresh coffees and teas with cookies (you pay what you like), read travel books, check out books and photographic art curated by Kunzum and more. You could hang around all day and be under no obligation to buy anything. Like the idea? Read more about it here – and come over. We would love to talk travel with you.

Address: T-49, GF, Hauz Khas Village, New Delh 110016, India. Tel: +91.9650 702 777, +91.11.26513949
Timings: Tuesday – Sunday, 11 am – 7.30 pm

One of the many excellent cafes in Pokhara in Nepal

What do I miss most (perhaps the only thing actually) is a good Americano and a cake or muffin to go with it. You can only imagine my delight when signs of Illy and Lavazza greeted me as I drove into Pokhara on Day 8 of The Great Himalayan Drive. Just what I needed to recharge my batteries for the long journey ahead.

Not only did I get good coffee (these guys sure have invested in the right things despite tourism being down in Nepal), the brownies and cakes matched it for taste and freshness. I sure was spoilt for choice.

The icing on the cake? Wood fired oven thin crust pizzas with high quality toppings – a more than welcome detour from days of eating daal bhaat (the Nepali favourite of lentil and rice which they can eat three times a day – with some veggies, meats etc.). With many more cuisines including Chinese, north Indian tandoori and other Italian dishes to savour if one chose to.

And guess what? Most of these cafes and eateries offer free high speed Wi-Fi internet. But who had the time to be on the net when Pokhara had so much to enjoy. Hence the delay in these postings.

Inaobi Singh behind the counter at Desert Rain in Leh

How many coffee bars do you know of where you are invited to sit around, read books kept on the shelves, even sleep off if you want to and not be obliged to even order anything? Can’t think of any, other than Desert Rain in Leh town serving the best coffee in the whole of the Ladakh in the Indian Himalayas.

Set up by the Moravian Church in Leh, according to the café’s manager Gogi Singh, Desert Rain was designed as a place for students to hang out and read books – and order some coffee and snacks but only if they wished to. The idea was mooted by an American lady who also donated the coffee machine – serving coffee freshly brewed using Arabica beans. It was the only place in the whole of Ladakh where I managed to get coffee other than made by mixing instant Nescafe powder in water and milk. For the coffee lover, this was Nirvana.

The offerings are as creatively worded as they are tempting. You have a choice of Snow Cap Cappuccino, Lama-yuru tea, Shangri-La Apple tea, Lasi Shake and other hot and cold beverages. Eats include pancakes, eggs to order and sandwiches. All extremely reasonably priced: a double shot espresso comes for Rs. 30 (US$ 0.75) and a large mug of Americano for Rs. 35. By any standards, the fare was something you would want to order again and again. I did. (Check out the images of the menu at the end of this post)

Gogi told me to be free to come over anytime and spend time here as I liked, including reading books from their well stocked shelves. They even screen movies on Saturday evenings. If you want to bump into acquaintances, hang around here long enough and chances are you will like I did with a friend I had not met in 15 years. The relaxed atmosphere makes it conducive to even strike up conversations with strangers. Free wi-fi is expected soon.

You have comfortable sofas and chairs to relax on, and low rise platform covered with carpets if you want to spread your legs or even lie down. They have even installed heating units, and may be the only place you can get yourself a coffee when the harsh Ladakhi winters – going down to 30 degrees Celsius below zero – set in.

Desert Rain is located in a building owned by the church itself, the rest of it given on lease to generate resources for the church according to Inaobi Singh, another person who manages the café along with Gogi. Both of them come from Manipur; their last names suggest they are Hindus or Punjabis, but Inaobi said their respective families converted to Christianity about 9-10 years ago.

The café is located on the first floor in the main bazaar of Leh town. You may call 01982-256426 for directions. They are closed on Sundays though; after all, church runs the café.

Click on any of the images below to see them in bigger size.