and we're off...

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hey all... so we are now in agonda, as michael has written. i forgot my usb thing to get pix out of my camera, so no pix this time. it has been amazing here. so peaceful so wonderful. our hut on the beach feels like a campground in the tropics. we are constantly warding off little ants and thank god we brought the bug spray... more importantly... the afterbite. but it is not really a disturbance. its just a part of being here. the other part of being here is a lazy little costal town where even just after 2 days here we are seeing familiar indian and non-indian faces. we have had ongoing conversations with one guy from england - he is intriguing to me. i really loved watching him (upon arrival) just stare at the ocean for what seemed at least a couple of hours. we ate-he was staring, came back to our hut-he was staring. i am... well, struggling to describe the kind of peace it brought me to be witness to his love affair with the ocean. i remember reading something once that claimed that westerners don't know how to do nothing anymore. we always fill our time with THINGS to help us RELAX, instead of relaxing. sitting on the beach and relaxing. doing NOTHING. this is the goa i imagined in my mind. i am glad we found it after three beaches. it is the perfect cap on this part of our travels.

speaking of total relaxation.... i am suprised at how hard it has been to "go with the flow" when it comes to organizing travel. kim, you would go crazy here with trying to check things off your list. for the past three days, i have tried to book flights online. the first day i spent an hour on the internet trying to change a flight i had booked originally. fine. yesterday, 2 hours, trying to change a flight and book another. no luck. so the booking lingers in my mind... something on my list i cannot check off.... OK, i think to myself, tomorrow, i will try again. go with the flow adrianne. its ok. you don't have to think about the list. just relax. but the truth is, it is making me CRAZY. then i get frustrated with my frustration. things just don't work like the do in america. but the whole system here is designed to accomodate for this lifestyle. i am just not used to it. so after a minor spaz, we decide that because we did not anticipate spending SO MUCH TIME trying to figure out travel, we will not book the train tickets ourselves, we will try to gain the aid of the travel agent who has been helping us. right now, i think that i am a little dissapointed about it, since it is such a huge part of the experience here... but i am sure, after we had tried it (and who know maybe we still will) i might describe a whole new level of frustration. i feel really fortunate that we are able to get the help of the agent, Prashant.

everyone here is SO kind. just amazing. the kind of hospitality and community i adore. Prashant... OUR TRAVEL AGENT, has invited us to go to dinner at his home once we get to margoa, to catch our train. he said he would drop us at the station. what? unheard of in america. i am very excited to have a connection beyond the very basic with someone here. to be invited into someone's home.

driving. we saw our first accident. two big trucks trying to drive over a bridge that was narrower than they were side by side. everyone was fine. i have to say, driving here is really different. i hate honking most of the time. the reason i hate it is because the horn is used in place of yelling at someone and i think its lame. here, the horn is a communication tool.... i am coming behind you, i am coming around a corner, move over, don't move over... i haven't seen blinkers, but lots of hand gestures. and not a lot of speeding. the cars are so small. they can't really go that fast. but they don't anyway, because then that is when the accidents happen, as it was explained to us by "sylvester, you know like sylvester stalone", the taxi driver who drove us around to the spice plantations, some temples, the national "forest" (jungle), and then to the beautiful agonda beach.

i am totally intrigued by this place. i only wish i knew hindi... most people here speak english so far, but there is something about being able to speak with the rest of the people here who just live and aren't relying on tourism.

i am also becoming aware of what i would like to call heighened awareness, but maybe is closer to paranoia that pops its head everyonce in a while. but perhaps it is justifyed... and better this waythat not aware at all. the fist day we were here in agonda, i became really nervous that someone would steal my shoes of the blanket. we had been here about 2 hours. and had been told 3 times-2x by the hotel, and once by the guy staring at the ocean i mentioned earlier-to make sure our bags were locked up. so, we pac-safed the shit out of our bags-and i gave my passport and money to the hotel safe. but on the beach... i kept looking from the water to the towel. geez. now it seems absurd, but i was nervous. now for those of you that know michael AT ALL, you will find the humor in the fact that HE was telling ME to NOT WORRY ABOUT IT.

at night we walked along the beach to a restaurant and had some food. the electricity kept going out - along the whole strech of beach. it was awesome. and funny. it happens daily. last night too.

agonda is without a doubt a place i would adore returning to for a couple of weeks. besides the plane ticket, you could stay here for 2 weeks, in a hut, for about 60$ and eat for about the same if not less. you'd be eating like royalty, camping on the beach with shower and bathroom really close, for about 200$ for 2 weeks. i love it here.

now we're off to see kerala. the lonely planet warns that kerala is so amazing it might offset plans to see the rest of india. we'll see. i am hell-bent on checking out the mountains...

lots o love to everyone... pictures next time.. ihave some great ones of michael...

xoxox

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Comments

[Kim]

Oh I miss you guys, but the funny thing to me is envisioning you in the middle of no where on a computer and uploading photos as well. I didn't think you would have that kind of access but I love it. I mean are there internet cafes beach or hut side? crazy. Every day I say to Merced... "merced, did you get an email notification? where are they? what are they doing" and then I get home late from well, drinking and here you guys are!!!!! xoxoxoxo

[tanya d]

don't worry, be happy
ade- when we were in india, someone actually stole money out of luggage in our hotel room that wasn't locked up. it was't "much" to us, but it translated into a lot of money for the thief. the friend whose money it was decided that whoever took it clearly needed it more than she did and that was that. so, that being said, certainly you have reason to suspect that someone might steal something of yours (you look rock star rich to most folks) but is there anything so valuable that the world would halt if it was stolen? are your shoes irreplaceable? sure it would be a pain, but that is part of the adventure! (and then you'd have an excuse to do some shoe shopping!) so breathe and have a hell of a good time. you and michael might never make it back to india. i can't wait to hear about dinner with the travel agent. if he is hindu and offers, have him take you to a ganesha temple before you get on the train so lord ganesha can help you with your travels. love you both so much, wish i was there with you!!!!! looking forward to the next installment of your adventures--my folks are also reading the blog, my dad says when he gets rich he'll publish your stuff in his literary travel magazine!

[Julian]

spinning the tale
You guys write a wonderful journal. I look forward to every installment. Mike, loved the picture of Addy's profile set against the sunset at the beach. Frankly I love all the pictures. They give us a great sense of being there with you. Most of all I love hearing that you two are. not only safe but having a wonderful adventure. Like everyone else, I wish I was there with you guys, but I'm just as glad that we are not. This is a great time in your life to savour as a couple. Believe me a couple sharing great adventures and places make for vastly better memories. Take care of my heart Addy. Love to you both.

[anup]

hey plannin to agonda
hi, bumped into ur article through google. actually planning on a ne year trip to somehere nice, so narrwed it down to here. so howz the accomadation here? do they have enough beach shacks? where did you'll stay? is it on the beach? we planning to spend the new year's eve on the beach. is it possible?