Advertisement
Published: January 23rd 2007
Edit Blog Post
Before I left, my dear friend Farhad kept trying to subtly hint about India not really being paradise. I was blathering on about grass huts the beach and peaceful oceans. I was starting to believe him after 6 weeks in the noise and pollution of Bangalore, but then I went to Kerala. More specifically I went to Varkala.
I finished my exams on Friday and was on a plane Saturday afternoon to Thiruvanathapuram. A large group of us from school met up that night in the beach side town of Varkala with the intention of staying one night and then going to explore the rest of the state. It is Tuesday and I still haven't left! Dear God this place is wonderful!
It is a backpacker gathering place for certain, but without all of the bad connotations that go with that. The town is safe and quiet, no all night parties and drunken stupidity. The first thing that strikes you is the smell and sound of the sea. I arrived after dark, so didn't see that beautiful beach until the next day. But even that first hint of what was out there is so soothing. As you walk along
the edge of the cliff by the restaurants, there are fresh fish on display for you to choose from your supper. In the distance you can see the lights of the boats of the fishermen.
The second thing that you notice that almost all the shops are Tibetan. Apparently the Tibetans from northern India and Tibet come to Varkala for half the year during the tourist season and set up stores and restaurants and then return to the mountains for the summer months. It is silver jewelry, hand woven bags, pashmina (not sure how authentic), and other tourist items as far as the eye can see. There are also at least half a dozen tailors who will sew you whatever you want. I had some lovely loose fitting cotton clothes made since the weather is rather warm and humid. One day is all it takes to get a new wardrobe here!
And then there is the ocean. It is actually the Lakshadweep Sea, in between the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. The water is warm and clear, and the sand soft and free of rocks. The water is far too rough for gentle swimming. Body surfing is
good though, and if you get out past where the waves break it is beautifully calm. There is a very strong undertow though so unless you can swim you have to be careful.
Actually the whole town seems to have some sort of undertow. Every time I think of leaving, there is this very strong pull to stay. I have talked to so many people here who came for a day and have stayed for a week, a month, years! The people are happiness itself. There is very little poverty here compared to in the city. Kerala is a communist state and also a very rich state, so most people have both employment and education. And they have the brightest smiles. The Tibetans are also so incredibly happy and peaceful to be around. Between the people and the place you just can't help to feel a very deep sense of contentment.
The first day we were here there was a festival in the neighboring town. The temple elephants are taken out in full ceremonial decoration and go through the town once per year. It was amazing, yes the elephants, but also the people. So many people crowded into
one little area. One of the locals told us there were around 20,000 people in the main intersection to watch the elephants and parade. And there we were in the middle of it! It was a long wait though and my friend Therese and I left the main crowd and went and sat on some steps. Earlier on the steps I had met three teenage boys, two of them named Anise and I can't remember the third one's name, so I just called them Anise Ech, Anise Do and Anise Teen (Hindi for one, two and three). They taught me how to eat sugar cane. How fun!
And then the elephants came. The lead elephant is believed to be the largest in the state, and is of significant holy significance. They are all carrying coconut leaves in their mouths and wear these beautiful decorations on their heads. There were about 50 elephants of all sizes. The babies were so cute. The only bad part was a group of teenagers (not my friends Ech,Do and Teen) who took advantage of the crowd and activity to grab at the girls. Other in the crowd apologized for their rudeness and was very
kind. I guess that will happen where there is so much sexual repression. It didn't spoil the day anyway. One gentleman was so apologetic and drunk that he invited all ten of us exchange students to stay at his house that night with him and his family! We politely declined. Did I mention that the people here are very friendly???
Everywhere you go in Varkala there are signs for yoga classes, meditation, massage, aryuvedic (a mixture of homeopathy, massage and yoga) treatments. People here know how to take care of themselves. I slept funny my first night and had a crick in my back. I was also feeling tired and very unpretty. So I booked myself a henna treatment, and while my hair was dying I had a relaxing back massage and a pedicure. It turns out the lady who runs the salon is the same age as me and also divorced. She has remarried and is very happy. Once we found out we had so much in common we were gabbing like sisters and I heard a lot of the town gossip. What fun! Another lady from England cam in and we brought her into the conversation and
she said it was like a girls party. And then another lady came in and another. All of us were foreigners and strangers, but the conversation was fantastic, as if we were all traveling companions.
Later that day I was still stiff so I decided to go for a traditional massage. First you see a "doctor" who looks at you, asks what the problem is, and decides who will massage you. I had a few hours to kill so I sat in an "Italian" Cafe on the cliff and ate chocolate mousse (this was a really good day). And then massage time. My masseuse, who only came up to my chin, met me at the door and greeted me with the biggest smile and namaste. I trusted her completely on site. Which is a good thing because she takes you into to little room and has you strip down to ...nothing! She said a brief blessing on me. Then she oiled me up and rubbed me down... everywhere! No place for shy in an aryuvedic massage room. That woman had magic in her hands. And then afterwards she takes you in the bathroom and washes all the oil off.
She handed me a bar of soap and says, "you do front and I do back." After she turns me around and tisks at me, and rewashes the front. Apparently I hadn't done a good enough job! Ha! I was exhausted after, like I had run a marathon and had to sleep for a few hours. And woke up feeling brand new.
That night we ate at a roof top Tibetan restaurant under the stars. There was beautiful Tibetan music, the sound of the sea, flapping prayer flags, and the best momo's I have ever eaten in my life. There are moments where you feel at peace and let me tell you, I was so relaxed and happy at that very moment in time that I never wanted it to end. We decided to stay another day.
Another day of moving slowly in town and we decided that if we didn't make a plan to get out of Varkala we would likely not get out until it was time to go back to class. So I spoke to a travel agent here who I have made friends with and we booked a house boat to take us through
the backwaters in Alleppey. None of the other students wanted to come with us, and some others had already left town. So now Therese and I have booked a houseboat for just the two of us, and we will be leaving Varkala on Wednesday morning. Just this morning on the beach we were discussing if it was a good idea to leave. Boy this place can really suck you in.
Hopefully the next entry will be from someplace else, but a part of me hopes that I will still be in Varkala.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.076s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 7; qc: 55; dbt: 0.0461s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
deleted_31070
deleted_31070
Happy people
I like the sound of Varkala - count me in. Only four more weeks and counting down. The Taj Mahal is overrated and too many tourists. I heard about the massages...aparently really nice when there are two messuses. They'll have to massage me with a rock or summat, I'm too tense. Plan on going back there. Jilane