Wonderful, Wonderful Varkala

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I had been biding my time before finally deciding to go to Kerala. I knew that I had to go at some point, because the state is renowned for its beautiful coconut tree landscapes and lazy backwater canals. But the problem is that the southwest monsoon is in full swing right now. I looked at the Rough Guide and found that the average rainfall in Kerala throughout July is something like 750 cm, or some absurd amount like that. Anyways, I discovered that the monsoon doesn't end until September, so frankly I figured it doesn't really matter when I go since I'll get dumped on one way or the other. I decided to go for 5 days since Henri has been off on a trip in Europe, meeting with funders and then attending a conference in Geneva. I checked the weather forecast in Trivandrum, Kerala's capital, before leaving, and found that there was a 100% chance of rain every day for as far as the forecast could see...dang. I bought my tickets anyways, planning to go to Varkala first, a spot that was highly recommended to me by friends in Madurai, then to Alleppey, a town that doesn't get rave reviews but that provides the best backwaters tours.

I wish I could provide more background on Kerala, but I'm not terribly knowledgeable about South India. One reason that it's a really interesting state is that it's one of two Indian states (along with West Bengal) run by the Communist Party of India. Not only that, but it's renowned for being the most developed of all the states, with the best education, highest literacy rate for women, etc. Unfortunately, as I've learned by way of the torture project, that doesn't make it immune from all of the issues that afflict the other states. One plus is that they don't suffer from any major communal violence or internal strife. But apparently the new government was voted into power on the platform of reducing police corruption, and immediately thereafter there was a spat of 15 custodial deaths (prisoners mysteriously dying in prison after being apprehended by the police). So, all is not well.

But that's not the side of Kerala that I experienced. Early in the morning the train arrived in Trivandrum and a huge rainstorm hit. It was quite lovely from my train seat where the rain couldn't get to me. We pulled out of the station headed for Varkala, and the whole scene perfectly conformed to my notions of Kerala. The rain came pouring down in sheets as we passed thick coconut groves, and children in uniform walked to school through ankle-deep puddles (with umbrellas, fortunately). At last we arrived in Varkala, and just like that the rain stopped. I grabbed a cab ride to the beach area and was of course taken to the wrong place. Although I'll never know the extent of it, there seem to be pretty complex networks whereby a cabbie helps out a hotel owner by taking any and all tourists to his place, regardless of where they request to go, and then taking some commission. There's no way that the guy thought I said "Bamboo House" when I said "Blue Marine Hotel". Anyways, I ended up at the right place, which had been recommended by a friend in Madurai. The narrow alleyways cutting through the forest opened up to a panoramic of the Arabian sea violently pounding against steep red cliffs. I was able to get a room with a personal patio looking out over the ocean for a fairly modest Rs. 300 a night (roughly $8). I discovered that a huge storm had hit the previous night, and most of Varkala was in disarray. Many of the restaurants were closed or temporarily abandoned. They are all intentionally open-air restaurants looking out over the sea, so they got hit pretty hard by the storm. One place that managed to stay open was the famed Funky Art Cafe, which I had heard so much about already. They had put up some tarps to protect the inside of the restaurant. I stopped there for a quick breakfast and met Babu (the self-proclaimed "Afro Hair Man"), who runs the place. He's a really nice and chilled out guy, although he and his employees spend much of their time trying to get white women into bed. I got a delicious breakfast and hot lemon ginger honey juice, which hit the spot, and at that point I figured I'd be spending a lot of time there.

I then went for a walk along a path that hugs the edge of the cliffs and overlooks the sea. I walked down to the water so I could say that I had been in the Arabian Sea, and then I headed back up. I was looking for a book when a guy called to me, "Do you need help?" I ignored him. Then he said, "Do you need a book?" At that point I thought maybe I should give him the benefit of the doubt, so I said yes, and he said, "Come with me." He had a big German shepherd with him also. So I walked with him about 5 minutes inland into the jungle and past small homes. We ended up at his house, where I met his Swedish/American fiancee Malin (his name turned out to be Manoj). He pulled out a box of books and told me to pick any one that I wanted. I picked "The Moor's Last Sigh" by Salman Rushdie. They invited me to hang around for a while, so I did. There was also an Indian/American woman named Satya. We ended up hanging out all afternoon, and they were the coolest people. They live together in Varkala and run a guest house called the Cliff Lounge Guest House. I left their place later in the evening and hoped that I would run into them again. I headed back to Funky Art Cafe, where I met a Danish woman named Yenny (sp?) and an Irish guy named Gary, who had an uncanny skill for mispronouncing everything (VARkala became varKALa, KERala became kerALa, and Yenny became Yanni). We all had dinner together and had absolutely fantastic tuna. The fish are caught fresh out of the ocean every day, and they serve them wrapped inside a banana leaf. It was so nice to have something other than the usual dosa, idly, sambar, etc.

By that point I had decided not to go to Alleppey. The odds of getting a sunny day were too slim, and Alleppey didn't sound appealing aside from the backwaters tours. Besides, Babu had informed me that I could do a backwaters tour form Varkala if the weather improved. The next day, miraculously, the skies cleared and we got a sunny day. I immediately did a backwaters tour with Gary the Irishman. It was pretty good, although I suspect it would have been better from elsewhere. I got really sunburned also.

Anyways, the next four days were heavenly. The sun stayed out the entire time, and I spent my days chilling out at Funky Art Cafe, swaying in a hammock and trying to get through the Rushdie book, which I had to return before leaving. I ended up getting 3/4 of the way through it, but what I read was really good. Great writing and a lot of interesting tidbits about South Indian history. I ate great food, sipped on cold beers and listened to reggae music. It felt so nice to spontaneously meet new people, something that rarely if ever happens for me in Madurai. And the guest houses and restaurants really had a good sense of how to make the stay comfortable, in stark contrast to the tourist scene around Meenakshi Temple here. I rarely go there these days because it's too much of a hassle. Last time I went there, with my buddy Andrew, was to buy a book, and we had roughly this same conversation five times:

Tailor: Hello sir!
Us: Hi
Tailor: Which country?
Us: America.
Tailor: America!!!! Very fine country!!!
Us: Thanks.
Tailor: I have brother in America...No, really!!!
Us: (feigning surprise) Really?
Tailor: You know, I am tailor, my shop right over there. My father was tailor too...No, really!!!
Us: Oh?
Tailor: You come to my shop, I make you very fine shirt. This shirt (fingering one of our shirts) very poor quality. I have finest silks, cottons, everything!!! I make you very nice pant.
Us: No thanks.
Tailor: Okay, I give you best price, no problem!
Us: No really, it's okay.
Tailor: You come back tomorrow then?
Us: Yes.
Tailor: Okay, you remember me!
Us: See you.

That's pretty much how it goes, except usually much longer. We had one guy show us to a restaurant and then wait outside the restaurant while we ate so that he could take us to his shop. He was none too happy when he realized that we weren't going to go.

So back to Varkala. This place came with little of the hassle I described above. Everybody was completely laid back and friendly. I had the good fortune of running into Manoj and Malin again on the beach. I gave them some DVDs and CDs to copy, and they invited me over for dinner. I ended up having dinner with them twice. They invited me to go back to Varkala when I get the chance, and I'm thinking about going back some time in the next month.

So that's my story of getting stuck in Varkala. It was a great and refreshing vacation, and now I'm bearing down for another month of work before heading north.

In personal news, I've decided to apply for the JD/MBA program at NYU, so I'm now studying for the GMAT exam. The work here is going well but slowly. There's still not enough information in for me to start writing my paper.

I hope everyone is doing well.

-Aaron

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Photos

Trivandrum Station
I took this pic from the train when the rain started coming down in Trivandrum

Woman Sleeping on Train
Medium: Digital Photography;
The woman's sari symbolizes the permanence of tradition, contrasted against the transient nature of a train ride.
Price: $5,000

The Path
This is the main path in Varkala, with Funky Art Cafe on the left.

The Path 2
Looking in the other direction.

The Beach
Apparently the beach is much bigger when it's not monsoon season. The ocean was too dangerous to swim in, unfortunately.

The Stairs
A shot of the stairway leading down to the beach.

Backwaters
This was taken during our backwaters tour.

Backwaters 2
Villagers and tourists wait for a boat.

Not Such a Bad Life
Our boat captain pushed the boat along by plunging this long stick into the riverbottom. I couldn't help but notice how slow and relaxed his movements were.

Sun Sets over the Arabian Sea
I'll miss this scene sorely.

Sun Sets on Varkala
Varkala basks in the sunset's warm glowing warming glow.

Santa Claus Resort
In keeping with the tradition of conveying funny signs (all credit for the idea goes to Chas Fisher; I am merely a pawn), enjoy this bizarre delight.

Statue
I came across this interesting statue on my walk down to the ocean.

Inland
I failed to take many pictures inland, but this should give some idea of what it looked like.

Fishing
A guy casts his line. Some people were actually fishing from the clifftop with nothing but a line (no pole).