A Winter Evening and a Cup of Kahwa

Kashmiri winters are long, and the valley has a way of dealing with them. The kangri under the pheran. The samovar that is never quite empty. And Kahwa, poured small and often.

You do not need a Kashmiri winter to make the ritual work. You need a kettle, a glass cup if you have one, and a few minutes you are willing to give up. Place the bag in the cup. Add hot water. Watch the colour come through, first pale and then gold. Add a little sweetener if you like, and a few chopped almonds.

Then sit down for it. Kahwa is not a tea for drinking on the way somewhere. It asks for a chair, a window, and someone to talk to, or nobody at all.