Kerala Backwaters; Last day in India

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Friday morning at 6:30am we traveled to the Kerala backwaters, the one attraction of Kerala I had been dying to see. I had seen photos before coming on the trip and they looked absolutely beautiful but even more beautiful seeing them with my own two eyes. A young boy Thomas had stayed with us at Loyola for a few days and came with us to the backwaters. We stopped at his summer home on the way to the backwaters for snacks. They had a beautiful home and we ate some fried bananas, dried jackfruit, coconuts, and chai tea. We finally arrived to our boat on the backwaters. It had two bedrooms and was very spacious. We had a delicious lunch of fish, shrimp, and other Indian dishes. It was so relaxing being on the boat for 3 hours. I even got to steer the boat at one point. The day had been overcast but the sun came out for a little bit and shined on the backwaters and the African lily pads. We stayed a beautiful resort that night which was located on the Arabian sea. We finally got to go swimming. The pool overlooked the water and was just the right temperature. It was a perfect end to the day. Yesterday we traveled back to Trivandrum and went to Mani's house. He's our bus driver. Every person here is so welcoming. I can't say this enough. They feed you and even if there is a language barrier, they are genuine people who just want to make you happy. I will really miss him and his family. Everyone here asks for e-mail addresses to keep in touch. Today is our final day. I am going to lunch with Brittany and the Ayurvedic doctor Gouri. This is all so bittersweet. But of course it's not goodbye, it's I'll see you later. 😊

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