Wrap it up to go, please

We are SO DONE with India! Leaving tomorrow is not soon enough. Delhi SUCKS. The air today is not so bad as 2 weeks ago, but the traffic and noise are unbelievable. Traffic here is as close to chaos as it could possibly be. I cannot imagine anywhere could be any worse. Red lights, lanes, right of way, even driving on the proper side of a major street or freeway are all merest suggestions. Driving across a major intersection against a red light, through heavy cross traffic, dodging pedestrians and bikes, without so much as a glance left or right, all with a friendly cop looking on is business as usual. I have had a handful of personal harrowing driving experiences during my entire driving career. One hour on the road here produces more horrors than I have had in my entire life! Amazingly there is not even any evidence of road rage. The drivers just complacently carry on from one moment to the next. I read in the paper today that one of the local bus lines in Delhi just killed its 109th victim of the year. A young woman got off a local bus after her classes at college. A couple guys on a motor bike buzzed her, doing what they call eveteasing. She fell into the path of another bus and was run over. She lie in the crowded urban street crushed for over an hour before anyone bothered to call for help. Life is very, very cheap here. I cannot express how appalling it is to witness this attitude first hand in countless ways. So was it a good trip to India? Yes, it was. Way back I read someone saying it was the closest one could get to visiting another planet. One month and I am convinced that is no exaggeration.

 

We had a strange lunchtime diversion here in Delhi this afternoon. We ate at McDonald's. We NEVER eat at McDonald's, but curiosity about how they translated Big Mac to Hindi had to be satisfied. A sign in the lobby proudly proclaimed "This restaurant does NOT serve beef or any beef products." There are burgers on the menu, Veggie Macs, or something like that. There are also curries and other Indian fast food staples compressed into easy to cook and serve portions. We had a veggie Mac and a Salsa Paneer, as well as some of the best coffee we have had in a month. The burger patty was basically mushed up potato and vegetable patty deep fried. It was bland and not so good. Paneer is a pervasive fresh cheese served in many Indian dishes. McD deep fried it, of course, and put it into a chapati (tortilla) with some salad greens and salsa. It was actually quite spicy, hot and tasty, much more to my liking than expected.

 

On the way to this internet shop we found a rare liquor store. Liquor is surprisingly uncommon in India. We bought a small bottle of local rum to entertain us when we return to the hotel to while away a few last hours. As mentioned before, we have had it as tourists. After we get back to the hotel we might go out again for some dinner, but maybe not. It is just too damn insane here and unpleasant as hell to be out and about. Booze and music TV in Hindi are our final aspirations for India.


Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

Hi from Delhi

It seems like it has been quite a while since I have last written to everyone. It is not that I haven't been thinking of you all, just have not had the time, and sometimes when I have had the time, I have just been too tired!!

I am in a rather dark Internet cafe without my glasses, and I can hardly see what I am typing.

We arrived by in Delhi this morning, after an overnight train from Pushkar, where the camel fair was. That was a lot of fun, and riding the camel was a lot of fun too. Much more fun then the elephant riding was. Getting up and down on the camel was quite scary, but after doing it once it was fine. It was (is) a long way up there. We rode out into the desert, and through the fair, and had some great Masala Chai, my new favorite tea. We are going to bring some home.

Delhi is as awful as we left it. I really dislike it here in Delhi. It is so polluted, and the traffic is so bad. There must be some good things about this place, but I have yet to find them. This evening we will have a beer, and bed early.

We went to McDonald's for lunch! We just had to taste their vegi burgers. They were OK, and the coffee was good. Mike was taking pictures, and they told him not to. He did anyway. Can't figure out why they did not want us to. Won't go in there again, but just had to try it.

I am very glad to be coming home now. I am ready, and so is Mike.

This has been an experience I will not soon forget. I am glad that I got the chance to come and see where (and to some degree how) 1.2 billion people live. I could never live here. I have not felt reallycleansince being here, and can't wait to feel so again. At least my hair is not falling out!

I have tons of mozzie bites, so glad that I am taking anti malarial drugs.

I really want a warm shower, not out of a bucket. I know all these things will come soon.

We traveled with a nice group of people. I wish I could say the same for our guide. What a looser she was. After our great guide in the South, it was really a disappointment.

Even tucked away in this tiny dark room with a few computers I can here the horns. All the time, and loud. The sidewalks are not for walking on, so we walk in the streets like everyone else, and at times I fear for our lives. There have been over 100 people killed so far, this year, by one bus line. I know that bus line! They are big and scary. I think there is a lot of scary stuff here, like this little cafe for instance. I just saw a couple of roaches playing in a corner. Yikes.

Seeing the multitude of beggars is so sad. Some of them have been mutilated on purpose. Their legs and arms bent. And so many little kids, holding babies, filthy kids, pointing to their mouths for food.

It is really hard to be here at times. There is nothing we can do. We have been warned over and over, not to give anything to them, and so we don't, (mostly). Coming in to the hotel this morning, the sidewalk for blocks, and blocks were covered with sleeping bodies. So this is India.

I think this will be the last post from me, from India. We may go to the airport early tomorrow, to hang out, as we have to be out of our room by 12.

Ok then, hope everyone is well.... see some of you soon...

Susan




 

Pushkar Ketchup

We are on our last tour day in India, in Pushkar where the camel festival reigns. The fragrance of dust, diesel, incense, patchouli, and dung. The sounds of Indian pop music, finger cymbals, motorbikes, horns, drums, and touts selling every kind of ware not needed by anyone in their proper senses. Paisley, henna tattoos, tie die t-shirts, sandals, batik, and even bell bottom jeans. Pushkar is northern India hippie paradise. Almost the entire route around the lake, about 2 miles, is packed with sights, sounds, and scents of the Haight Ashbury of old in a very third world manifestation.

Last night was a celebration of something unknown to me. The entire lake was circled with tiny oil lamps. Musicians and drummers competed in every nearby street. The crowds swirled and surged in time to the beat. The puja touts push flowers into any open hand expecting payment for the derived blessings. The henna touts stamp brown inked designs on bare skin the demand payment for their services. Beggars with warped and abbreviated limbs slither on bellies, balanced on caster boards, shaking metal bowls of coins with a tiny hope for two more - one for them and one for the beggar master who rules the lane. The air pounded with aerial explosions. Fireworks burst into the night sky with a fantastic display of amazing duration. A supreme finale.

 

Tonight we board the overnight sleeper train for Delhi. We don't look forward to 36 hours of thick brown smog. Only one more night there, then a day to catchup any last minute items before the 5 hour in advance trip to the airport.

 

This may be my last email from India to all of you. There will be one more in a week or two or three with pictures. Until then, Namaste!

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

Pushkar

Very briefly... We are at one recently rare internet shop and the group is having tea. I cannot keep them too long.

 

We had a traveler's nightmare with our travel guide/agency a few days ago. We were subjected to what was virtually extortion where several hundred dollars were demanded or we would be abandoned in a very remote village. After contacting the US State department we were advised to call the local police and report the extortion attempt. Upon informing the  guide, her manager, and the corporate offices of this very large well known tour company that police action and possible detention of their guide for questioning, they relented. We have now been delivered all that we contracted and paid for without paying any more money. The tour company is one of the  world's largest of its type.  They have not heard the last of this. I will be reporting all the details to whatever agencies concerned after our safe return home.  Needless to say we did not expect "adventure travel" to take such an ugly turn!

 

Today we are in Pushkar at the time of one of India's largest fairs, the Camel Festival! It is one heck of a sight! It is a bit like being in the middle of the Lawrence of Arabia set. It is primeval. It is absolutely fascinating. Thousands of camels, horses, cattle. Every kind of animal pulled transportation. Hundreds of stalls selling the worldly goods needed by a camel trader. Sadhus, snake charmers, beggars, jewelers, dancing horses, acrobats, tea wallas, camel taxis, and more. Our "deluxe" camp that we were to pay the premium for is a few steps above the miserable camps of the beggars, but well below even the most rudimentary hotel room. Its assets are comfortable cots and inside toilets. The city surrounds a small and beautiful lake that is India's main worship site for the god Brahma. Several of the group went down the steps to the water where priests gave them blessings. They were then subjected to high pressure to pay huge sums of money. Amazingly, a couple of our group did so and immediately regretted it.

 

We have one more night in camp and another day to wander Pushkar and the fair. Tomorrow night we travel by sleeper train back to Delhi for our final 36 hours in India. All in all it has been a very interesting trip, but not one I would repeat or even recommend. No matter, we have no regrets. It has just been a bit more and different "adventure" than we expected or wanted.

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

not much

Today is a dull, hot day in Jaipur. I am not sure why we are here for 2 nights. Last night we were entertained by a troop of musicians and dancers doing traditional Rajastan dances. They were quite entertaining. Otherwise it has not been interesting here. This is, in part, due to my having something of a cold with sneezing, sore throat, and lack of energy. The hotel is drab. The room like a cell. The food served here is overcooked and unseasoned. Last night I ordered a curry HOT for my sore throat. It was about as hot as campbell's tomato soup. I asked for some chili sauce to heat it up and was delivered a tepid bowl of yogurt and mint. I asked the guide to translate my request and was delivered a bowl of something resembling ketchup. This morning we were taken to a presentation of a homeless children's school and workshop. It was a tear jerker charity informercial in the real world. Very sad that these 60 kids get something resembling help and millions of others get nothing. When traffic stands still sometimes small thin kids dressed in rags filter out among the cars and tap windows for a handout. Some are aggressive and try to pry open closed windows. When traffic takes off again they are left standing in the midst of it.

 

Onward...

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

out of Delhi - hooray!

This is a difficult catchup. We have been scurrying all over NW India like rats fleeing the exterminator. The exit from Delhi was via train on the day before Diwali. Diwali is the number one holiday in India where all transportation is flooded. The train station was packed. The train arrived and the crowd literally fought to get into the cheap seats. I did not see fists flying, but the melee suggested it. As members of the upper castes we had a classy and comfortable car without a crowd once leaving the station. There were even two security men at each end to keep the rabble from impinging on our cool comfort. It was almost like Amtrak, that is like an Amtrak car from 1960 that has been cleaned a few times, but not in the toilets. Yuck. The route was heavy with brown smog. It did not look like a good day to visit the Taj Mahal, but that was where we were headed. (Forgive the mixed tenses! I have a cold coming on and my mind is not clear.)

 

Agra is the city of the Taj, but our first stop was the Red Fort - the first of too many forts. An impressive structure of over 400 years age. It once imprisoned the king (?) whose wife was buried in the Taj. The king had the Taj built as a memorial to his wife, but was never to set foot in it. He was imprisoned where he could only see it for the rest of his life.

 

The Taj Mahal is said to be the most beautiful building in the world. I have no doubts about that claim being true. It is spectacular. Even in the hazy skies the first viewing literally brings gasps of Oh my God! It is over 400 years old and looks nearly new. It has been very well taken care of by the generations. In the scope of sites we have seen it is right up there with Machu Piccu for sheer spectacle. We walked up to it in a teasing round about way, taking pictures as we went. We circled around the exterior with some stops for soaking it into greater awareness. Finally we queued up to see inside. It was dusk when we went inside and so the light was poor with only one small bulb providing light. The interior is one large space with two tombs in the middle. It was not terribly interesting. The Taj is on many lists as one place everyone should see in their lifetime. This is good advice.

 

We left Agra the next morning headed toward Bharatpur on Diwali day. There we walked about another 400 year old red fort. This one uncrowded and quite interesting in that the walls enclose an entire ancient city that has never been sacked and is still in remarkably good condition. We left the fort and walked through the very old market street of Bharatpur. Lunch was in a small cafe where we all had the only item on the menu - Thali. (This is my favorite Indian food! It is a sampler plate somewhat like mezza. You can't go wrong with thali.) Upon entering the cafe we encountered a remarkable sight, a pennyfarthing bicycle - an old "big wheel" bike. It's rider was unloading his gear and did not mind a chat. It turned out this fellow is rather famous. He is Joff Summerfield, an Englishman who is riding his big bike around the entire world! Meeting him was a bit like meeting Steve Fosset in a remote village. You can see some of his story here: http://pennyfarthingworldtour.com/. He is writing a book about his adventure as he goes. Maybe we will be in it! (Just kidding...) Later in the afternoon we rode rickshaws through a wildlife sanctuary where 100's of species are commonly seen, except this year. In this part of India the monsoons did not arrive and the area is parched bone dry. The wetlands vital to the sanctuary are dry and the many birds that would have been there were not. We spent Diwali evening at a very nice country inn where the wildlife had not abandoned their pursuit of prey - us. The room was buzzing with hundreds of mosquitoes. They were so bad we had to ask the staff to spray our room with god's knows what kind of toxic mists. The mozzie population took a hit and we had only dozens afterward. Diwali evening is celebrated by a brief religious worship, fireworks, and plenty of free booze. We watched the ceremony with curiosity, then drank Indian whisky and rum with reckless abandon. Not really. The inn was a small family business and it was like being in a stranger's home for Christmas Day, but with 4th of July fireworks and weather.

 

Yesterday morning we continued the journey west in a public bus of dubious safety. Riding Indian buses is a bit like riding a fast power farming implement. It is a hard, rough ride with a lot of dirt. Two of our group became sick - one with intestinal flux that caused him to hang his head out the window and send gifts to the wind, the other with a sore throat and fever - what I am fearing that may be coming my way now. The night was spent in an old small fort on top of a rocky bluff surrounded by a very primitive village. The family that was once the lords of the area still owns and lives there, renting out rooms a few times a month to pay the bills. It was a very lovely place in a rustic way. We walked around the village for a couple hours with a local guide. We were shown various local crafts and the way of life. It was, in a rough sort of way, an idyllic sort of place. School was out for the holiday much to our grief. Every turn brought us into contact with screaming children who begged to have their photos taken. It was cute for about 100 times, then it became onerous as they quickly put themselves into the foreground of every shot taken. Dinner was followed by a silly dress up in local costumes session. The folks who had more beer enjoyed it the most. Stewart had the best costume that looked great until someone pointed out that with his big red turban and red clothing he looked a lot like Ronald McDonald.

 

This morning we took to two cars for the short trip to Jaipur. Above Jaipur is yet another immense red fort. The many forts are interesting, but the enjoyment is curtailed by the Indian guides who drone on and on and on in unintelligibly accented English. The forts become a task of difficult concentration on the guides instead of a viewing of an ancient artifact. "The queen had 3 bedrooms. Summer, winter, and blah blah blah. The king's bed is very big. Blah blah blah. The garden is here. Blah blah blah. Old Jaipur there. 1000 years old. New Jaipur there. Blah blah blah. Rose scented bath water. Blah blah blah. Only 'natural' eunuchs serve the concubines. Blah blah blah." Repeat this 20 more times.

 

Now we are settled into our Jaipur hotel for 2 night's stay. It is a dingy dinky room in an otherwise grand looking grounds. Tonight we are going to try out a Bollywood movie. From what I have seen looking at them on TV, they are all very corny B-grade musicals where the Indian lassies look sultry and the laddies prove that only one population on earth are worse dancers than white boys.

 

Tomorrow, if I am not overtaken by a cold, I am going out to seek my coveted souvenir, a set of tabla.

 

PS - I just found that Joff has some good Taj Mahal pictures here: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=rzyi&page_id=65768&v=Y

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

Hello from Jaipur

Hello everyone,

It has been a while since I have written. I think the last time I had a chance was in Delhi, or maybe not. We are on the move so much I cannot remember.

Anyway, we are here, in Jaipur. Which is in the state of Rajasthan which is west of Delhi a bit.

It is in the desert, it is hot and dry, and there are a lot of camels. There are a lot of cows roaming around too, with the dogs, and beggars. It is not so bad in this town, I don't think. We just got here a little while ago. Had a good lunch, put our bags in the room and here we are typing. We are here for two days, yah.. Since we have started four or so days ago, we have moved on after one night. It is exhausting. We are covering a lot of territory. Getting to and from places by bus, (local), train, jeep, and car, not to mention auto rickshaws, and walking through crowded markets you would not believe. It is all very interesting, and exhausting. I am glad to stay here for two nights.

This evening we are going to go to a four hour long Bollywood film. In the grandest theater in all of India. It we get too sick of it, we will leave. This seems like a pretty nice place. We will do more exploring tomorrow, as it is a "free" half day.

On our way here we stopped at the Amber Palace. We have seen many of them, and they are all pretty impressive. But the same. I think we have seen our last fort. But maybe not.

Last night we actually stayed in a fort that is a hotel now, for Intrepid travelers, and one other tour group only. We had to dress up in local dress, and dance the local dances. The hotel, our room was amazing. Absolutely gorgeous. There was no hot water, so they brought it to us in a bucket, or two. And it was hot, much hotter then the showers have been. It was a good shower. The bed was as hard as a rock. Neither of us slept too well, sometimes we do, and sometimes we don't. We had breakfast over looking the village below, and a bunch of monkeys playing. It was really relaxing. The previous day, after we had arrived, and had lunch, and a bit of a snooze, we walked through the local village. It was very interesting. Hundreds of kids, wanting their pictures taken  and then given 1 rupee. They were following us everywhere, and it becomes quite annoying. They did not pester me too much because I did not have a camera. It was a fun day.

 

The day before that was spent in Bharatpur. That was mosquito city. We opened our bedroom door, and were greeted by many, many mosquitoes, buzzing all over the place, and just waiting to drink our blood. Fortunately, we were on our way out, to a bird sanctuary, so they sprayed our room. The bird sanctuary was very pretty, and relatively quiet. We traveled by bicycle rickshaw. We had a great guide, and saw a few birds. this area has been having a draught for some years now, so the number of birds has decreased drastically. That evening was the first big day of "Dawali a huge festival here. So the owner treated us all to free cocktail after dinner. I tasted tasted the local rum, and whiskey. Both pretty good. That night there were no mosquitoes in our room.

 

The day before that we spent in Agra. The home of the Taj Mahal. That place is hard to describe. It was absolutely stunning. We only got an hour and a half there, and that was not nearly enough time. We could have spent all day there. Everyone in our group was disappointed the small amount of time we were allocated. It was (is) so beautiful, words can't really describe it. The first time we saw it was from the roof top of our hotel, about a mile away, through the haze. And even that was stunning. Then when you see it up close, OMG. I just wanted to sit and look at it, which we did for a while.

It was fun getting into the Taj though. The women stand in one line, the men in another. The men's line was very short, the women's line very long. There was so much pushing and shoving by the women to get a couple of paces ahead that it was insane. After I got pushed twice, I started my own pushing, just to keep the place I had. We were all having to push just to keep our places. It was worth it though, once we got inside.

 

So here we are for two nights. Next stop is Ranthambhore National Park, where we are sure to see some Bengal tigers. Yeah right. Our guide did say though that last time she was here, she saw one, and the time before that too. So who knows, we may.

 

Speaking of our guide. She is not so great. Very hard to understand, does not speak up, and is rather cold. She does not "brief" us though we have asked her to. She is warming up a bit, but she does not compare to Pravin, our Southern India guide. She will not get such a nice tip!

 

It is four fifteen. I am going to the room to do some laundry, and maybe read a bit. We meet at 5:45 for the film, and then dinner.

 

That is all for now....

Namaste.

Susan

 

Thick brown stew

The air in Delhi is terrible. Incredibly terrible. It smells like diesel and smoke. It is a thick brown haze that obscures light a block away. Buildings 5-6 blocks away disappear entirely. Terrible.

 

This insanity of humanity is beyond understanding how it could be this bad. How much further it can go? It feels like the edge of destruction, the border of hell on earth.

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

Delhi

What a time the past day and a half has been. Mind boggling in every way. Impossible to express. Like an Indiana Jones adventure, but 100% real.

 

Our flight to Delhi yesterday was uneventful. Arrival was complicated by our hotel transport not showing up at the airport. A taxi was used instead. Delhi is an immense city. As big as Los Angeles, maybe more. Like LA, but like LA timewarped back 200 or more years.

 

We arrived just before meeting up with our tour group. We were stunned by being told we needed to pay $400 more than we had agreed and planned. They said our travel agent was notified 2 months ago. I told them I was not going to pay it. Period. It was not in the amount we contracted to pay for the tour and their last minute ajustments for unforseen costs are not our problem. Today it was finally agreed with the tour company that we could continue without paying now and we could settle the issue with our travel agency in Portland when we return.

 

The hotel put us into a tiny miserble room with a telephone booth bathroom. I found the door lock damaged from previous break ins. The manager argued with me about it until I pulled out a credit card and jimmied it open in seconds. We got a better room with a working lock.

 

This morning we rode a crowded city bus. Packed with sweaty and fragrant human mass. Every surface varnished with dirt shined by human oils. What we do for "adventure travel!" A stop at India's largest mosque. Built in the 1600's. A living antique, but not terribly interesting. From there we walked into a couple hour's of urban time travel. Back, way back. Streets packed wall to wall with surging bodies busy doing the tasks life in India. Vegetable sellers. Nuts. Perfumes. Hardware. Brought in and out on huge wooden carts, on human backs or balanced on heads. Buildings that were most grand 200 years ago, now decrepit, but still very much in use. Shacks built of debris on rooftops. The vast scope of the experiece a most fantastic vivid dreamscape, a science fiction apocolypse, and so real. A ride on rickshaw. This is not a tourist's ride.This is the way of life here, still. The cycle coolie straining with every turn of the pedals to pull us along. Never complaining. A final walk with a turn into a modern building, past guards and full body scanners, a look through every package for... a bomb? "No photos!" Another world yet again! 21st century. Delhi's Metro subway system is below the city 100 meters, down many cascades escalators to the tunnels below. A train fresh and clean of all traces of Indian grime swishes in with a beep. This is the India that graduates 250,000 IT trainees a year (or so I am told). Packed. Push to all pack in for a short ride.

 

Shopping commences in Conought (?) Circle. This is Delhi's modern downtown. Still gritty, but newer and less crowded. Growling stomachs drive us toward lunch. A search past the tourist eats (McDonalds!!!) and a brimming full Indian restaurant beacons with all brown faces. $5 each buys the most fantastic Indian meal - thali. A feast of colors and spice, rich and strong, sweet, salty, sour, hot. Served with rice and chappati (think tortilla) and eaten with hands. Appetites appeased we seek a music shop from the Lonely Planet guide. My India obsession is to buy a set of tabla, the traditional Indian hand drums commonly heard playing with sitar and harmonium. One shop has moved far away. One shop is near and it is found. A very professional shop. No tourist pressure or haggling. It is best to buy before we leave, at the last minute, and carry them home as luggage. Tempting.

 

Tomorry we take the train to Agra, the city near the Taj Mahal. The most beautiful building in the world, perhaps.

 

Good night from India.

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

Full circle

We left Thekkady in two cars. A fine ride down twisting mountain roads. Pitted hairpin turns and wasted pavement. Beautiful scenery. Jungle, bananas, tea, rice. A stop for tea a biscuits at a cliff hanging shop. The front at street level, the rear a hundred feet above the jungle below. A pair of beautiful birds, one orange and one yellow just out of camera range. Down, down, down, winding and twisting. Passing on the right, passing on the left. Never fast enough.

 

A few hours later we arrive at the bottom. The very bottom, of the sub-continent of India, and 6 feet below sea level in the backwaters of the state of Karela. The bus stops at the riverside of a rural village. We transfer luggage to large canoes to ferry us across the river. The river is about 100 yards across and still. The canoe is 2 feet wide, 30 feet long, and like all canoes it feels remarkably unstable and unsafe. I don't swim. I have no life jacket. I am wearing a backpack. Two thoughts fight for dominance: I am going to drown. The camera will be ruined. Will it be possible to hold the camera out of water as I sink so that someone can see what is inside?

 

Our night's stay is in the home of a local farmer's sister who now lives in England. He and his family welcome us as wonderfully as if meeting long lost cousins. We are served a welcome mango juice and listen to our host's quiet voice introduce his home and family. There are no cars, no motorbikes, no horns. An occasional motorboat cruises by. The river is just outside the home, just across the foot path. We find rooms we like and settle into various quiet activities - reading, cards, chatting. I take a walk down the foot path along the river with the water on my left and small tropical homes on the right. The path is shaded by coconut palms and many beautiful flowers. Children walk along. Hello! Where you from? Many smiling brown faces. More smiles than seen anywhere else. Bright white teeth with perfect orthodontia, and many have never seen a dentist. A beautiful Catholic church glows in the sunset with soft natural colors. Paradise.

 

Dinner is adequate. Family style rice and curry. Chapati, or what we would call tortillas to sop the gravy. In darkness we board canoes for a night ride. I insist on a life vest, but why on earth did I bring the camera. It will certainly be destroyed when we capsize. Instead of terror, it is blissful. The canoe is gently paddled by our host and brother. Fireflies twinkle in the palm trees with early Christmas sparkle. Meetup with another canoe from another house. The silent paddling is broken with song as our hosts sing several choruses of ancient peasant songs, punctuated with rhythmic drumming on the bottom of the canoes. One song is begun with an amazing long note sung without end, almost impossible. What a wonderful thing, to live along this river and hear this song from your riverside home.

 

This mornng was up early for a group walkabout. We walked for almost 3 hours. A stop for tea. The shop a primitive wooden bench of boards and branches supporting a burner and a few ingredients. The glasses washed by hand, only a rinse with river water. Sweet, hot, flavorful. The path circles around and by many small houses of farmers, mud diggers, doti tappers, mussel fishers, carpenters. Rice farmers work 6 months of the year and rest the other 6. Doti tappers climb coconut palms twice a day to collect sap drained from wounded palm flowers. They beat the flowers with a bone with a wonderful music to encourage them. Mud diggers dive in the river bringing up buckets of mud used to maintain the dikes. Life is similar to how it has been for a long time. There is not much to change in this tropical paradise. Or is there?

 

Too many mosquitoes. Too many ants. Too many strange flying and crawling beast in close cohabitation inside and out. The monsoons bring floods to this lowland every 2 or 3 years. The water in the house rises to knee deep. Our host tells that as a child he used to fish in the kitchen while sitting on the table. His mother would then fry up the catch.

 

The backwaters of Kerala are home to some of the oldest continuous human settlements on the planet. Some of the words pre-date human language. The greeting is "awk." I notice it is exactly the same word crows here and home use to greet each other. A monkey like whoop calls over a passing boat when a ride is needed to the other shore.

 

It is hot. Tropical steam. A morning nap under a spinning fan. Very calm and restful. And too soon time to leave. A motor boat picks us up and transports us through river, canals, and lakes to a small town. The bus awaits us to carry us back to where we started - Kochin. The bus is an Indian intercity bus driven by a man who craves a Nascar competition. The bus is oversold and we are the last to board. Some sit. Some stand amongst piles of hastily stowed luggage. The bus careens and screeches and roars and beeps for a very long 1 1/2 hours. A quick tuk-tuk ride finishes the journey to the hotel where we started.

 

Kochin did not change. Or did it? It is not quite as hostile and grimy as it was 2 weeks ago. Crossing the street is an easy game of dodge-em. A beep of the horn does not mean "watch out!" but "Don't worry, I see you."

 

Tomorrow the second adventure begins with a morning flight to Delhi.

 

Namaste!

Thekkady

Writing you all is very difficult! The last two transcribed journal entries took 3 or 4 trips to the internet shop. The power is very unreliable here and fails perhaps 30 minutes of every couple hours. The first time it happened I gasped in annoyance with my lost efforts. No one else uttered a sound. Now I have learned to save frequently and go with the flow.

 

Yesterday half of our group opted out of taking the public bus from Madurai to Thekkady. It was just too hot and I did not feel like competing with baskets of live chickens for a place to stow my duffel. It was a nice comfortable ride of about 4 hours with air conditioning and frequent stops for photos, quick field trips to view local industries, and an interesting lunch. We arrived in Thekkady to find it a pleasant mountain plateau city with relatively clean streets and the best hotel we have stayed in. (It even featured about 5 minutes of hot water in the shower before turning cold!)

 

We had time to look about town on foot and buy a few snacks for an early trekking breakfast. A very bumpy tuk-tuk ride took us to a local family home for dinner. We first toured around the garden and were introduced to the myriad of spices grown in the region - clove, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, pepper, vanilla, coriander, mace, nutmeg... I can't recall more. The garden was lovely, but we arrived just before sunset and half of our viewing was by flashlight. The garden was filmed by the BBC recently and will be one of it's Around The World In 80 Gardens series, appearing this coming March. Dinner was a fine halal, Muslim Indian feast. We ate in the local style. Food was served family style onto banana leaves and eaten with the right hand. (The left hand is not proper at all, but it was a faux paux overlooked by our host.)

 

This morning we woke early, too early, after a night made restless by the vivid dreaming brought on by the anti-malarial medicine Malarone. We left the hotel at 6 and rode tuk-tuk to the Periyar National Park to hunt for tigers. The trek of 3 hours or so in the rain soaked tropical forest did not reveal any tigers. We did see a couple wild pigs. The tropical rain forest is remarkably similar to our Oregon temperate rain forest! The plants and animals are different, but the overall look and feel is similar. One important difference is we don't have leeches in Oregon, or at least not like they do here. All of us wore protective socks covered with tobacco dust, but it was not quite enough. The leeches sized from 1/2 an inch to 3 inches long inch-wormed with amazing speed to our feet. Standing still for a minute would bring many of the disgusting beasts creeping all over our shoes trying to find a way to flesh. We only suffered a few bites amongst us. I had one on my chest from one that managed to creep up that far. It had its dinner without causing me any sensation, leaving only a small bleeding wound.

 

This afternoon Susan and I each had amazing Aruvedek (?) massages. The massage was not like any I have had before. It was a bit like having music played on my skin from head to toe with great waves, and subtle nudges, all soaked in herb scented oil. The massage was followed by a steam bath in an old fashioned steam box where your head pokes out the top.

 

Tomorrow we are heading into the Keralan backwaters where we will be staying in a villager's home for the night. There will be no internet. There may be no electricity or plumbing, too.

 

Namaste! (BTW - someone asked what does that mean. Namaste is the Hindi word used for hello or goodbye. It literally translates to "the divine in me recognizes the divine in you." That is a nice alternative to "S'up homes.")

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

Hello from Thekkady

named after thekku, teak trees. There are a lot of them around, and of course more of them have been cut down.

Today has been a lovely day, as our young Brit women would say. After a good nights sleep, we got up at five thirty, and headed for the Periyar Tiger Reserve, for about a three hour walk through the rain forest. It was very pretty, but I think we are spoiled by living in Oregon. We did not ooooo and ahhh... except over the lovely leeches, that were squirming all over out boots, and legs. What ugly little things. We had to wear special "socks" so they would not get into our shoes. They are very fast. The socks looked like gators. We had to make sure our shirts were tucked in, and there were no flapping parts. As it was, Mike did get bitten, once, on the stomach. I seemed to not get bitten. The spread tobacco power over them to kill them. The walk was pleasant, when I could ignore those ugly worms. I had my keens on which have absolutely no traction, and it was extremely wet and muddy. (The monsoon is still going on). I had one very good slip, right down this hill. My main concern was that I was leech free. We came home, had a warm shower, did our laundry, which is still drying in our room, and had breakfast, around 11am. After that we set out to do e mail. Got and bit done and the power failed. So we decided to go get our Ayurvedic messages. Oh ... were they nice. For 90 minutes, it was pure bliss. For about 15 dollars, or less. It was so nice, I could do it again, but probably won't. Then we came down for e mail again, as the power came back on, we sat down did it for about half and hour, and then wham.. the power is off. Left, went and had some lovely Masala tea, and chocolate, and read a bit. Now that the power is back on, we are back here. Hopefully we can finish now.

 

Last night we went to a spice plantation. It was almost dark, but what we saw and heard was very interesting. The guy that owns it, is going to be on a BBC special sometime soon. We then went into his home and had a delicious Kerala (South Indian State, where we are) dinner. There was not silverware, and it was fun eating with our hands, as is the custom here. They have a sink right in the dining room. Very handy.

we will meet the group for dinner around seven. We have one more night of the tour, after this one. In some ways, I am sorry to see this part of the tour end, in other ways, I am anxious to move on to Northern India. It won't be so hot or so rainy there, I hope.

 

We had another long train ride the day before yesterday. About seven and a half hours. This time I noticed tons of roaches crawling everywhere! I tried to ignore them, but no matter where I moved, they moved along with me. Yuck. We were on our way to  Madurai, spelling is probably wrong. It was another big dirty smelly noisy city. The second largest temple in India is there, that is why we st oped there. We went in the evening, and observed many people "praying" to various incarnations of Shiva. Interesting, but way to confusing to remember any of it. My feet are getting this brown grime, that I can't seem to get rid of. To much walking barefoot through temples. (You can not wear your shoes inside). That evening we had a very nice dinner, on a roof top restaurant, there was a cool breeze, good food, and I even managed to get a beer. It was a nice evening too, except for the long train ride to get us there.

 

To get here, Thekkady, the four Spanish women, the Australian, Mike and I hired a private jeep. It was less then 15$ each. We decided to do this because we did not want to hassle with the public transport, the others took. All of our luggage would of had to stay with us, and the buses are more often then not very crowded, so we went the easy way. It was just fine.

 

So, this brings us up to date, more or less. I do know that tomorrow night we will be staying with a family on one of the islands in the "backwaters." Exactly how we get there, I don't know. I am not sure how far it is, though I do know that we are at least a few hours away from the coast. the trains are quick, and pretty clean, and more room then our little mini bus we usually get,but i don't like the roaches. I don't want to bring any home either!

 

After tomorrow night, which will be Sunday, as I write this on Saturday, I know we get back to our starting place, on Monday afternoon. We have that evening in Cochin, and then we have a 10 o'clock flight out of Cochin to Delhi. It is about a five or six hour trip. Then we meet up with our next tour group on Tuesday, and start all over again......

Till next time..

Susan


 

The Train

Written 11-2-07 4:45 PM

On the train from near Pondicherry (Puducherry), en route to Madurai.

The train:

 

Hard blue seats. Windows with bars. No glass. Two minute stops for a quick walk outside. The train rolls out with only a second's warning on the horn, or in silence. Pravin, Andrew, Gemma, and Cloie play games and laugh. The young English women are enchanted wtih the Aussie and the Indian guide. Susan and I are invisible to Cloie. Chai. Chai. Tea. Tea. The vendor pours a hot paper cup full for 5 rupees. Sweet, hot, milky tea. Briyani. Chicken. Chilis. Bananas. Piles of orange, battered, greasy fried food sered up with dirty hands. The chilis are good, cheesy, like chili rellanos. Coffee. Coffee. Do all these people train to produce their deeply resonant chants calling appetites to their wares? Drink. Pee. The toilet is horrid and I am adjusting. Just go and leave. A quick rinse of hands in questionable water. No soap. No towel. Cockroach eating a crumb of dropped croissant. Another crawls up the window frame towards our luggage stowed above. Don't take this rascal home! Open doors. Very dangerous on a speeding train. Nice view and wind. Sitting or standing in the door is splendid. Trash from soda and snacks and no trash bin. A fast dash to the bin at the station. Back to the train. Climb aboard just as it moves out. Vendors all dressing red and blue plaid. Marching the train end to end. Bananas! Fried bananas! Susan is out of her seat and a vendor is resting there, watching me write. Greasy fingers are wiped on pants. No problem. A filthy beggar boy, an urchin about 10 crawls down the aisle on hands and knees. He stops by feet and swabs the floor with a filthy wet rag. He is begging for money. We arrive in Madurai.

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com

Puducherry experience

Written 11-2-07 4:45 PM

On the train from near Pondicherry (Puducherry), en route to Madurai.

Ponicherry:

Sizzling, seething humanity. Hot, wet, stinking. Colored lights flashing, gleaming. Beggars at every step. Dirty forms sleeping amongst piles of trash and garbage, inches from open sewers. Flash of fire below grills covered with round flat breads, eggs frying, piles of steaming meats. Tiny storefronts, a counter on the sidewalk stuffed with goods - candies, drink bottles, cookies, nuts - bags of chips hanging from above framing a smiling brown face. Behind more goods to choose. Hurry! A queue is waiting and pushing for service. Street sides lined with bicycles, motorbikes, trash, broken pavement. Micro merchants touting sunglasses, mini chess games, flutes, flowers, postcards. A pull on the elbow. A pitiful beggar woman carrying a small child in swaddling. Her hand out. Her eyes brimming with tears. The stink of food, sweat, spice, shit, rotten garbage, incense, flowers, black clouds of diesel exhaust. A group of police in odd French uniforms carry wooden sticks used to hold off traffic to allows others to cross. A failed effort shrugged off. Rickshaws with drivers ringing bells and shouting for a customer. Others filled with riders, too full, the thin driver's muscle strings straining mightily, for a few cents. Hot and thirsty. A cold Sprite, a sweating bottle, supremely delicious. Quickly pressing my bladder for long sought relief. There are  no toilets. The side of a building in a dark alley is fine as citizens pass uncaring a whit. How far is the hotel? I think I know. The vendor looks at my sweaty damp map, wobbles his head in the inscrutable Indian way and points across the street. Where? There? Women in shop laugh. Crazy tourists! Shopkeeper locates on the map. Six blocks to the hotel. Recording a video as we walk and navigate the melee. Fantastic! Impossible to experience this second hand. Every step is dangerous. Bicycles and buses ring-a-ling and trumpet tremendous blasts. All in motion. In every direction at once. A miracle every second as no one is killed, and rarely even bumped. All senses on full alert. Girls in school uniforms with white blouses and purple scarves folded and carefully draped navigate bicycles with calm demeanor. Little boys with book bags on their backs cycle on, waving goodbye to their friends as tuk-tuks skitter about them. Do their parents worry? Susan is seriously distressed. I am in a state of hyper alertness. I wish she could share my exhilaration. Excitement and madness are close kin here. Return to the hotel soon. A loud band is playing drums and nadaswaram (Indian oboe). Friendly fellows wave us in for a listen. Just 4 guys playing. Rehearsing. Have to return to the hotel. Can't stay. The hotel room brings relief. I head back out for more. Need to find new sunglasses. How? Where? An Indian supermarket packed with citizens. No sunglasses. Ha! The optical shop has $5 (200 rupee) nice ones. Another cold drink. Delicious. A cook at a grill on the sidewalk quickly pills out batter into a crepe, a doisa, tops it with an egg and spice. Mmm. 10 rupees and it is mine, along with a bag of curry gravy. Susan opens the door. She feels much better now. My street food is eaten over the bathroom sink. Delicious. A shit and the stink tell me my gut has adjusted. It smells like India.

--
Michael & Susan Kuhn
Trip email: indiaadventure2007@gmail.com
Trip blog: www.indiaadventure2007.blogspot.com