The Apple Cake

Possibly this is the first blog in which I am writing about an incident that did not happen to me, but to my friend, Ritesh Jain, who at this very moment is at Turkey and its his birthday today.So, happy birthday Ritesh. And just because, this is my blog,I will make it a point to include something about me. The common thing between Ritesh and me, is that we both celebrated the latest birthday, and possibly the only one, away from home. I celebrated my birthday at Pune during my first days at Infosys and because I was not assigned to any project then, celebrations were missing. The only person who remebered my birthday in my company was Sandeep Hegde and he does that for everyone, I clarify. Not that I wanted to be wished, but then I have to put on a stark contrast when I describe Ritesh's birthday celebs away from home.
Talking about Ritesh, he is a staunch vegetarian. I remember him thanking me profusely at St. Francis' canteen when I pointed out to him that meat was being served over there. So strict he is that he thought a thousand times before sipping water at my home, lest it be mixed with beef. So, eating a cake and trusting that it does not contain egg and that too in a country like Turkey, where I am sure that finding a pure veg restaurant is quite a task, was going to be difficult for Ritesh. And I am sure, it was no easy task for the employees at BOTAS finding a veg birthday cake for the birthday boy. And they didnt want to let the occasion go by, without a cake being cut. So, a vegetarian cake was cut. It was an apple with a candle on the top. It indeed is going to be one of the most cherished birthday in Ritesh's life.