When I asked my rick driver, "How much?" and he replied, "Well, it's Christmas..." my cynical side expected him to say the price would be double. Instead he said, "...so pay me whatever you like"!!! I love that this country subverts all your assumptions just when you least expect it.
After more chai and dosa at a bakery opposite the ferry dock, care of a sweet Italian called Daniel, we headed out across the backwaters to Kottayam. I sat up the back amidst a gaggle of giggling ladies who were very sweet. When a big group of young men insisted on filming and pointing and staring and doing 'the usual' they got quite protective. I loved it when a gorgeous purple sari-ed mother and her divine little daughter sat down next to me.
On arrival in Kottayam I sourced a Chrissie cake (should have gone with the chocolate one dammit as 7 year-old Anouska didn't like the rum one I chose) and checked into my hotel. I then wandered the rather empty streets looking for wrapping paper and flowers. After finally sourcing the first, I entered the haven of a sweet smelling flower shop. I must have looked very hot as a man motioned for me to sit down and said "Wait 5 mins" as he walked out. I thought he was going to get the owner who spoke English, so I just sat there and sat there and watched them all working, trying not to get in the way. Finally after about 15 minutes, I went up to a guy and said, "Can someone help me or should I keep waiting?" to which he looked rather surprised and responded, "Wait for what? Just take!". When I said, "Oh, that man told me to wait" he said, "He's my neighbour, nothing to do with this shop". I love that I'd just been sitting there and noone had minded to tell me to move or asked me what the hell I thought I was doing.
So, after getting a bunch of flowers, which involved everyone in the shop and the customers helping, I made it back to my hotel room in time to wrap gifts and ready myself. Alex arrived as I chatted to Hame on the Murray River where he's camping with Sof and their dogs, so I rang off and we went to a bottle-o that I'd been inside not 5 minutes before buying Goan port.
On arrival at Alex's mother's (Molly) place, I was greeted warmly and found there a lovely Irish woman called Deirdre and her English friend Marie-Therese. They both live in Dublin and had met Molly in her antiques shop the day before. Alex's daughter Anouska completed the party and we all sat down to a huge pile of prawns, chicken, fish, vegetables and so much more. I mixed a bunch of vodka/mango/soda/fresh lime combos and we had a lovely lunch. Molly's sister then arrived, Elizabeth, who is battling a brain tumour but was full of positive energy. She told us incredible stories about being fired from JP Morgan because she refused to approve a huge write-off linked to a dodgy bank in Bavaria where a load of bad debt from Enron had been stored. Then I heard the story of Sandy Weill and his protoge Jamie Dimon and it sounds like a film story to be made there.
As the day wore on, I broke out my playing cards and we played a bastardised version of Old Maid and then I ended up having huge a Snap Championship with Anouska. She beat me and with delight kept saying "I'm not going easy on you this time!!". Was such fun.As the doorbell went and more family arrived, us foreigners took off up the street and went back to our hotels. I had just had a shower when Alex rang and said that he and his friend Skariah were coming to take us to a club. We drove through the night as Skariah told us all about his family and the region, and we ended up on the edge of Vembanad Lake at the Kottayam Annexe Club. This was my first dose of Indian club life and we sat under a canopy being served illegal liquor and green lobster (very rare, but green due to the algae they eat with makes them pure with no cholesterol) in the most beautifully kept surroundings. Apparently the area, Kumarakom, is third of the list of must see places in the world by National Geographic and there are a host of exclusive resorts. It was a blissful end to Chrissie day and we drove home slowly through the dead quiet streets blaring The Eagles.
Now I must decide where I'm travelling on to tomorrow and get on with my day. I managed to drop my camera at Keraleeyam but Deidre is a professional photographer and has promised to send me Chrissie photos and today I bought a crap little thing to see me through to Trivandrum where I'll get mine fixed. Sorry, that's rather boring but funny how small little things become huge when you're travelling and I want to share all these wonderful sights with you.
I have to thank Alex, his family and Skariah for taking such amazing care of me here. We had such fascinating conversations and I am constantly humbled by the depth of knowledge about the world that I keep finding in almost everyone I meet here. Alex said that the awful attacks in Mumbai really brought home to so many Indians that they are Hindustani before anything else, everyone celebrates all religious holidays here - the culture is all embracing.
Clearly there are all sorts of problems in India, but there is so much to be inspired by. The literacy rates in Kerala are above 80% and the natural resources are abounding = not only rice, fish and coconuts but nutmeg, pepper, tumeric, cardamom, tea, coffee, not to mention rubber. In fact, I found out that Christopher Columbus discovered America by mistake when he was in fact looking for black pepper in Kerala!! This truly is, as so many signs seem to say here, God's Own Country.
No idea where I'll be writing to you next but hope you had a very merry Chrissie and that you've got lovely new year plans.
Peace, love and all things nicely spicy,
Lxxxxx
1 comment:
loving the whole story and also the pictures but still waiting to see you in your rainbow coccoon. We all salute you from down under and wish you well on your further adventures which we cannot wait to read about
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