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Solar Café
Cycling along the red earth path, the wheels are skirting sandy ruts and stones. Sunlight plays on the lime green foliage of low growing trees. This is Auroville-an international community in South India and I am on my way to Solar Cafe (situated above Solar Kitchen, the community restaurant that prepares 900 lunches a day). It is not entirely solar powered,as reality lags behind the intention,also true of the spiritual aspirations of the township. It was founded in 1968 as a city of the future, but is more like a spread out village, though great work has been done in re-afforesting the land.
Padlock the bike, climb the spiral staircase, step out onto an expanse of tiled roof and one is at the level of the tree tops. The seating area is canopied by a firmly anchored roof (since the previous one blew away in a hurricane), but is open to the air at the sides. I head for the counter and ask Mouthu, the presiding genius, for a milk coffee which is languidly ladled into a small cup by one of the Tamil girls. Helping myself to a cookie from the jar, I remember to sign the duplicate pad with name and guest number-a credit system to replace the use of coins and notes. I head for a space at one of the marble topped tables with their uncomfortable wooden chairs.
Intent conversations take place in a variety of languages, or maybe it is a quiet moment and there is just a lone newspaper reader, a diary writer, a hippy meditator leaning against a wall or a dozing sunbather stretched out on the wide parapet, catching the breeze; a breeze that sets all the notices flapping on the board with their announcements of courses, workshops, exhibitions, films, music and dance. Adjacent is the entrance to the internet browsing centre,the number of sandals discarded at the entrance giving an indication of how busy it is: Auronet, beloved of Aurovillians who need to keep up with proliferating committees designed to improve and regulate community life and of guests, like me, to whom e.mail provides a reassurance of their continuing identity.
