A Wild(ing) Time in Kerala

[This is Brian writing because Rebecca doesn't want to right now.] The Wildings (Rebecca's parents) arrived in Trivandrum - their first time ever in a locale as exotic/chaotic as India. We were their "guides" for nine days (and left them to fend for themselves during the last five days of their trip). In a nutshell, our voyage together:

Varkala Beach was the first port of call. A bit touristy (for India anyway), but extremely picturesque: a long, clean (!) beach backed by a dramatic clifftop lined with shops, guesthouses, and restaurants. Then, a train journey to Alleppey, where we spent a night in the city before heading into the Backwaters of Kerala by public ferry. We stayed a pair of nights in a local home - way back in the boondocks, stranded on a small island of rice paddies. No shops here - just simple homes, swaying palms, little canals and footbridges, and the color green. After this relative peace and quiet, a longish, busy day on boats and buses carried us a mile up into the Nilgiri Hills, to Munnar. I led us on an impromptu tour of the area's tea plantations in the steep, terraced land above the village. On Day Nine, Rebecca and I descended to the coast, leaving Ann and Dave to fend for themselves.

They'll be fine. I was amazed at their energy and adventurousness. In Varkala, each morning we walked a mile-plus from the beach into the village proper, escaping the tourists for real Indian breakfasts and to stock up on fresh fruits. Later, we traveled by local train, local bus, and local ferry - taxis, no thanks- once stopping for a half hour on a random roadside before getting wedged into a not-so-comfortable bus. Days were filled with bazaars and walks and cards (and occasionally, a Kingfisher beer - thanks, Dave!) Most meals were at Indian diners, wonderful (and cheap) meals eaten with hands. They left me to order, and happily devoured whatever appeared on the table. Impressive! The four of us had a fantastic time together.

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Since then (four days ago), Rebecca and I crossed from the state of Kerala into Tamil Nadu, having caught an overnight train to Tiruchirappalli (thankfully nicknamed Trichy - a bit more manageable).

Our first day in our new surrounds was way more busy than is healthy in India - Trichy's Rock Fort (a temple/fort built atop a massive knob of rock protruding from the plain) and a big temple with a long name, then a train to nearby Thanjavor to explore its Royal Palace and a kick-ass Hindu temple (also called Brihadishwara). If all that means not too much, then just imagine that it was a hell of a lot of chasing around in really hot weather without a cloud in the sky, on incredibly crowded buses and the like, and that we ended (collapsed) in a grotty-ish hotel room and pretty much went into respective comas until the next day. FN: it was all worthwhile, mainly due to a mind-blowing cashewnut rava dosa for breakfast (oh, so crispy and wonderful!) and the temples full of pilgrims and elephants and statues and monkeys and smoke and a nice little prasad stand (selling sweeties to the Hindu visitors).

Then, a long bus day onwards to Puducherry (aka Pondicherry), the former French enclave where we exist at the moment. We can see the Bay of Bengal from our hotel, we have a nice garden, there's French colonial architecture, and even peace and quiet (if you look hard), yet all else that India has to offer is just a short distance away. We love it here.

We also love idiappam and idli (Rebecca not so much) and chana masala from a place called Kaarthik and lassis and puttu with bananas and coconut milk - and the aforementioned cashewnut rava dosa which is one of mankind's greatest achievements.

I do wonder how it is generally so lush and green here, and there has been precisely ONE rainfall in the month we've now been in this country.

We are having a lot of fun.