Blogs from Varkala, Kerala, India, Asia

The BBC in this instance, does not stand for British Broadcasting Corporation nor does it stand for something dirty. In this case, it stands for the three things that I was looking forward to about Kerala, the reasons why it tops many a traveller's list of Indian highlights; beaches, backwaters and culture. Supposedly so different from the north and other parts of India, I was excited about seeing yet another different side to this endlessly fascinating country. But first, I had to get there. Already not enamoured by Mysore, my opinion of the place definitely didn't change after a less-than-great last day there. The "best dosa in town" gave me the shits and I should've known better than to drink the water served at the restaurant. But I was thirsty! I also should've asked for another ... read more

Geo: 8.73, 76.72I feel like a humpback whale, feeding on huge amounts of plankton and krill (in the form of information), filtering it through my baleen...receiving all, trying to keep that which works for me, filtering out that which doesn't, and inevitably other stuff gets in. India is, well, overwhelmingly full of information - sights, smells, sounds, that enliven, shock, scare and bring joy. We have travelled to many countries and India is the country that offers the most...if you can handle it. Here in the south, the people are friendly and laid back, well sort of. I realize why this population is so spiritual; they need to find peace somewhere as, most certainly, it is not found in the environment around them.Highlights:1) Colour - I love colour and this is a place where colour is ... read more

Geo: 8.73, 76.72As the New Year arrives, I reflect on my annual theme. I usually make a theme that is broad enough to be a guide and is not a goal. In 2016, I acknowledged my theme was a disguised goal or, really, a New Year's resolution (which I didn't accomplish), thus the reason I don't do resolutions. They just don't work for me. My 2016 theme of '500 hours of joyful writing' manifested as '50 hours of far-from-joyful writing'. Ah, but, it is often the themes that don't work so well that segue into more inspired themes for the following year. My theme for 2017 is peaceful ease. Like how I feel right now sitting amongst the chaos and buzz of the Coffee Temple in Varkala, writing blissfully as I switch back and forth from ... read more

The time has arrived … to disembark from the houseboat on completion of a romantic overnight stay onboard ….. at Kanjipadam Jetty off Alappuzha. It is already 10:30 and the atmosphere has started warming rapidly. We must gear up for the journey of about 3-hours to Varkala …. The beach destination. What was the least anticipated …. the chauffer was missing from the parking lot. Wish we had called him earlier to inform him of our scheduled arrival. The cellular network has been quite strong throughout the waterway. There was neither a call-drop nor loosing stable data-signals. The waiting for the chauffer was inevitable. We were left with no alternative but to take a small walk around to kill some time. The small roadside eateries, with large flex banners & paintings depicting fish varieties, were yet ... read more

On Friday evening we attended a 3 hour demonstration Kathakali (google it) performance, which included watching the make-up and costuming. We found it to be very interesting and informative, but this was a performance geared specifically to tourists. We spoke to the owner of our guest house who told us of a real, all night Kathakali performance at a nearby temple. This performance is to celebrate an anniversary of something I haven't quite figured out yet. We went (we were the only tourists there) but only stayed for any few hours. The whole performance has many bizzare characters and involves a lot of drumming and chanting. This celebration will last for the day today finishing up tonight with an elephant parade and a temple blessing. I will post pictures of that later.... read more