CBC meets at Zha Cafe & an anniversary

11111 And finally it was 24th February. The day! What was so special or significant? Well, I was looking forward to attending the Chennai Bloggers meet [that also included a book exchange/sale] We had all been sharing book titles, reserving books, chatting away and generally creating a lot of buzz about the meet. It was my 1st time at the CBC meet, though i'd met quite a few during the Indiblogger meet and subsequently for the Evam Stand up show as well. The meet was happening at Zha Cafe, Adyar. 

This was my 2nd or 3rd visit to Zha Cafe in Adyar.. Well, technically 2nd since the actual 2nd visit turned out to be "oops, the place is shut, let us go sit in CCD" meet. You can read about the place here.

Would you believe it? The last time I was here at Zha cafe was on Feb 24th 2012, Friday and this year I was back there on Feb 24th, Saturday!! So, this is the anniversary post :D

I walked in around 3.10pm only to see the room at the far end filled with people, all standing yapping away. I looked around for a familiar face to make sure I was at the right event.  Ah, there was Kalyan, and then I spotted Bragadeesh, Aravind, Jothi and few others... Saying Hi Hello I finally met Susan Deborah [one of the admins and a pen pal of sorts.. we had been exchanging letters/postcards for a while and this was the 1st time we were meeting] 

Soon it was time to settle down and behave.. lol... Making sure there was a tiny pathway for the staff to walk around, we squatted wherever there was a square inch, or more. A round of introductions, some leg pulling, chocolates from Singapore courtesy Prashant and the meet was well underway. Arasi of Zha cafe kept sending out drinks, sandwiches, vada, smoothies and we were all in high spirits through the evening. A special mention to the vada- they were sinfully hot & good.. 

The book exchange section was fun, it was an opportunity to not only meet fellow book worms but come across rare books, authors I hadnt read and to learn of different tastes. It was also an evening where I learnt how some are looking at doing more than just meeting and blogging. Mahesh, Sashi & Venkat spoke about using CBC to make a difference to the society. Spend a few hours every week, help those in need, share the knowledge and change a few lives... make them better!!

The backyard [if I may call it that] at Zha cafe is just as beautiful as the front or interiors. There were a few stone benches, stones made of paper mache lit up, and green picket fences of sorts all around. 

The postcard I chose..

The postbox 

As the evening drew to a close, I looked forward to the postcard that Zha cafe is famous for. They have postcards that you can pick up, write a message and a To address on and drop into the Postbox in the main hall. They stamp it, post it and it is a cool endeavor to keep the tradition going! I for one Love this concept and hope they continue it for as long as they can!! 

One of the other rooms

This is a place where one can chill with a book and a cup of kaapi or kadala mittai, or maybe just enjoy a game of snakes and ladders or pallankuzhi. It is a cafe with a difference, there are no speakers blaring loud music, nor is there a TV showcasing cricket match or some random news channel. It is a space that allows you to do what you want to do. The rooms are all done up in different themes - kerala style with a boat, rajasthani style with jharokas and puppets, movie theme with chairs labelled Director, actor and shelves lined with movie posters, or the room with a life size snakes & ladder game board. 

So, next time you are looking for a place that is different or curious about Tamizh and traditional games, head over to Zha cafe.. They have an outlet in Porur as well :-) 

Where is Zha Cafe?

Kamaraj Avenue 2nd St, Rukmani Nagar, 
Adyar 
Chennai -600020
Ph- 044 4211 6027

and 


10, Shakthi Nagar,
Mount Poonamallee Road,
Porur,Chennai -600166.
Phone : 044-30064810.
(Behind ICIC bank and next to Shell Petrol Bunk)

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