At home, I don't drink all that much chai. In the US, I'm more about coffee, or espresso-based Americanos. I don't like Americanized chai, more often an over sweet spiced-up milk. But I'm truly fueled by chain in India. Boiled up on stoves, the milk and Assam combo is rich and extremely satisfying. It too can be very sweet, which I don't seem to mind in this format (you can ask for no sugar & wait a little extra as they boil you up a pot). Chai here most often comes in little, or larger (Indian 'large' very different than American large) glasses. Real glasses. Without handles, too hot to handle really, but you hold them by the tops and sip at it anyhow. Usually, there aren't many chairs at the chaiwallas, and you drink your chai standing up. My first time here, I was afraid to go to the stand up chai stalls, feeling oh-too-American. This trip, my favorite chai stop is about half a block from where I'm living. I often ask the servers to pour two glassfuls into my American-sized mug and take it home with me. I feel even more American... but we're all kind of used to it now.
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