Last night In Varkala

Our last night in Varkala was October 31st: Halloween in the US, UK and New Zealand and the first of the Mexican dias de los muertos (Days of the Dead). Separate conversations with the Levitt-Campbells, with Rocio y Carlos, and with the Funky Art Cafe staff got me all excited, and we organised a party.

 

 

Rocio got hold of flowers, candles and coloured paper to build an altar de los muertos, on which we put food, drinks, sweets, even cigarettes that our dear departed would like. I added coffee and fish curry for mi abuelo Howard and my grandmother Biddy to share - Heather got a cup of tea and a fag for her nan Fran. We chatted, telling each other a little about those we'd lost - it was warm and personal, but upbeat and not at all maudlin. A great tradition, I think!

Later, the local children shared food from the altar, and sweets our young ones gave out:

 

After a while, Carlos (who should have won a fancy dress prize for his Igor), started playing a borrowed drum, I played some guitar, and we let off the fireworks that Max, Myra, Melissa and Rosa had gone into town to buy the day before (on their own!). Then we hauled hard on a big rope dangling off the edge of the cliff, and pulled up a giant palm-frond fish to dance with.

 

Tied to the belly of the fish we found more sweets, and children and adults alike scrambled for them. It was a great party.

- Mark

Making friends by the sea

After the SB Regency, we stayed in the Hill Palace Hotel:

 

We met lots of good people in Varkala while we stayed there. Syam, an economics graduate, works at the Caffe Italiano, bakes great brownies and took us on a trip to Golden Island one evening.

 

 

Further north, past our hotel, there is an Ayurvedic Centre, where Anil performs marvels with his feet (called "Chavutti", I think), behind the Funky Art Cafe where Gopal works.

  

The Funky Art Cafe was also where we met Rocio and Carlos

Carry on walking past all the tourist stuff and you come to a Muslim fishing village: this young man was keen to make friends:

 

Early in our stay we met Susa, down from Karnataka for a few weeks to help her sister-in-law by selling stuff along the clifftop (when she could dodge the tourist police, enforcing child labour laws). Later on, we got to know the Levitt-Campbells, on a ten week trip having sold up in California and on their way to a new life in the southernmost city in New Zealand: returning home for Paul, and back to where Lisa had spent part of her childhood, but a new chapter in Max and Myra's lives.

 

 

 

 

Finally, here's an example of a kind of Communist 'shrine' that we saw a number of places in Kerala, and the mother of the puppy Rosa's all gooey over, above.

 

- Mark

How to call us in India

We now have an Indian SIM card in Mark's mobile phone (so his old number doesn't work very often, except when he switches SIMs to pick up text messages ...)

It's a mobile phone, so sometimes we're not in an area of good reception: so try again later if you don't get through. Here's how to ring us (from the UK):

• Pick a good time (India's 5hrs 30mins ahead of GMT)
• Dial 091 150 11 150 (to get 15p/min rate)
• Dial 00 91 989 566 7475

We've put up some more photos - scroll down for posts from Rosa, about our first few days in Varkala, and about our cookery lesson ...

Sick and tired (but happy)

Just a quickie - Mark and I have been SICK (and I mean everything came out both ends!), Mark's lasted all night and he rested and felt cruddy the next day but is fine now, mine the same but seems to be going on longer, still really achey and weak. Luckily we took it in turns and the girls have been fine - so far....It's so much nicer to be ill here than at home nonetheless, and I didn't feel homesick at all - which is a good sign.

Before that we all had a cookery lesson and found out that we are eating so much butter, ghee and cream - and we thought we were detoxing!!! Today we had lunch, and swam in the swimming pool of the only really posh hotel in Varkala - it was a really nice way to convalesce for me - until it started raining that is - not that it is cold but I couldn't lie out on the lounger anymore, we all caught the sun, Mark and I got a bit burned and I was literally only out in the direct sun for about 10 minutes!

We've met a nice family with kids - they are US/New Zealanders - taking a couple of months to travel between moving from California to New Zealand. They have a girl of 11 and a boy of 13 and the kids all get along really well and we adults do too, so we've being doing stuff together which is great.

There's lots more news but I guess Mark will put a blog on with photos soon [see below - Mark] as he's uploading as we speak and I'm feeling very weak and need to go home and lie down - hope you are all well and keep in touch - we like comments on the blog and emails from home too - hint hint

Heather

hey every one!

hey! India is wicked! We've found this cool place to eat called the Funky Art Cafe! It does mango shakes and juice! Nowhere else does!

 

 

The beach is cool too but its as annoying as any beach! You know the whole sand and salt-water thing!

 

any way i gotta go!

Luv yall!

roza xxx

A Cookery Lesson

The Funky Art Cafe were happy to arrange a cookery lesson for us.

 

 

We produced fish, chicken and aubergine curries, chocolate and coconut pancakes, vegetable and chicken pakoras, and dal fry.

 

 

 

Finally, only finishing touches remained

 

 

- Mark