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Published: March 1st 2013
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Notes from a Dug: The Beaches of Kovalam End of journey. Yesterday saw Deb and Janice leave the magic of our final Indian residence, the Surya Samudra in Kovalam. Situated about 100 feet up a rock face, our side by side cabins look out over the never-ending breakers that stretch forever to the West. This thirty cabin property on about 30 ocean front acres is yet another retreat from the never-ending waves of people and the forever mysteries of micro-commerce and subsistence living that form the ever-undulating backbone of this country.
Much like the departure of Lisa & Anna, there is the sadness of separation that each leaving of our friends brings to both Terry and me. We are now the last of the original six still in India. With only another seven days left, we need to get down to the business of loose ends. For Doug, this means trying on the garb of a medical tourist and, working through the connections of Dr. Devika, the on-call physician for the resort, he has himself booked into a scan clinic for a series of four MRIs. Terry comes along for the ride but just for the heart/lung combo special
Beach Cottage South
Deb & Janice were in Beach Cottage North. A perfect coupling right to the end. that combines medical fact-finding with the now urgent need for an extra suitcase and the last minute shopping that is always one heartbeat away from completion. Doug, in the meantime, joins the MRI queue and waits for; first, a brain scan of his barely functioning cerebrum; second, a lower back scan of his aging discs; third, a scan of his deteriorating left ankle and, fourth, the heart/lung combo that will help him determine the strength of his mortal coil.
The start to end service is quick, almost warp speed. In Canada, we'd first have to book an appointment with a physician to get a referral. Then we'd need to either get in line and wait or pay for a private clinic. Over here, we placed a call from the comfort of our beach front cabin to Dr. Devika, the on-call physician. A charming and delightful person with a magnetic sense of humour who works out of what is apparently the best hospital in Kerala, she asks a few questions and says she will coordinate the process from her end. We ask for an appointment just after the time that Deb & Janice are to leave in two days. "That
Inside Beach "Cottage" South
And, wouldn't cha know it, there's an outdoor shower in the trees shouldn't be a problem", she says. Batta-bing, batta-boom, we're in, we're scanned, we're out. Cost in Canada, about $4,500. Cost in India, about $750.
Sure, the waiting room looked like a war zone but that's not where the money is made (to most locals, it just feels like the inside of their homes). Sure, the MRI machine may be first generation (magnetic field strength of 1.5 Teslas) versus second generation (magnetic field strength of 3.0 Teslas) but the results should show enough detail to indicate any potential issues, which can then be dealt with once we are back in Canada. Yes, we will need to get the results interpreted. Dr. Devika said she will look at them and, if she has no concerns, "Have a great day, enjoy the rest of your trip, and come back to our country whenever you can." If she has any concerns, she will come to our resort and talk with us there. Holy-moly, that wouldn't be happening in the land of our birth.
We're now back at Surya Samudra to live out the seven days of magic remaining to us. There's an almost mystical spa here that will soon see my aged
body wheeled into place for more knick-knack, patty-whack, give the Dug a smack treatment. The Ayuvedic physician on staff has already prescribed some homeopathic remedies for Deb, Janice and Doug that will be stuffed, somehow into the bowels of Doug's apparent, Hercules transport plane, bottomless pit of a duffel bag.
We're good to go. We're sad to go. It's time to go.
Wait ...... One last thing. There's a tailor up the road working out of a concrete bunker the size of a small Canadian storage locker. He has a few articles of clothing in the process of being altered or freshly minted for Ms. Terry. He may even have a bolt or two of fabric that Mr. Dug could be enticed into transforming. That part of being here is never done. Never done, as well, is the need for more room in our suitcases (Janice left having separated the zipper from the fabric of her carry-on and her pounded-on, jumped-on suitcase, one baggage handler toss away from exploding).
And ..... Lisa & Anna & Deb & Janice, we will see Bobby, our north India driver, who will ferry us around Delhi one more time
A squat toilet of the 1500's
Comes with a training manual. as we spend our last twenty-four hours in the home of the Indira Gandhi International Airport waiting, long-faced and droopy dog tired for our 3 AM departure back to Canada.
P.P.P.P.S. This should be, really must be, our last post from a land of deep breaths, profound transitions and unending traditions unless, of course, ....................
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Mal Brown
non-member comment
photos were great
safely home? How did Lisa enjoy it? No doubt your memories are full.