One of the things I crave my first morning waking up back in India is a good, strong cup of chai tea. I haven’t been able to reproduce this Indian drink at home as I can find in India. Finding this hot drink, a holdover from the British era now steeped in the Indian culture, can sometimes be a cat and mouse game depending on my location.

Any hotel of India or guest house you stay at can provide the tea. If they don’t have a kitchen on site, the staff will run out into the market and bring what they found up to your guest room. Most mornings I wake up before the hotel staff so ordering and getting tea can prove futile. This past trip was especially difficult as the guest houses I found myself in were small, mom and pop type properties. The staff works late taking in guests and sleeps until 8 or 9 A.M. since most of the guests don’t stir before then. In this case I just run out into the market myself.

Chai stalls are a documentary to be made unto themselves. Each one is unique, the taste from each varies so widely but the interest for me is the owner and the location. You can always find the latest scoop for the area you’re traveling from the chai wallah. Stalls start opening by 6 A.M. The earliest I have seen, and heard opening, was a stall across from my room in Mandi at 4:30 A.M. He was serious about grabbing the early worm.

The stalls…well, you just have to look the other way sometimes. Few if any would pass US health codes so forget your perfectly sanitary idea of Starbucks. The milk is usually left sitting out all day in a metal pot, sometimes covered or else open with flies circling. Obviously the milk is boiled during the tea making process which is why it’s safe to stop at virtually any stall. There are times when I will move on after entering and looking around, maybe it’s exceptionally dirty or they use powered milk instead of buffalo milk.

Expect to pay anywhere from Rs 4 to Rs 8 for a single cup of chai (also referred to as masala tea) on the street. Hotels, restaurants and cafes will charge Rs 15 and up. Skip those places and get a better cup in the market or on the road.

Fortunately Rakesh shares my same addiction to chai and helps to scout out a tea stop at just the right time each day. When either of us is ready we just say T & P. Stop for tea and take a pee. The efficient way of travel in India.