The other day, while coming back up the mountain, my bus got hit by a jeep. The crash was quick and left only minor damage (a broken headlight and dented frame). This little accident, however, quickly turned into quite the scene. After only a few moments a crowd of about thirty men appeared from who knows where to ‘take care of the situation’. Ahem, determine who was at fault. Abruptly, a cloud of smoke, lungis, and Tamil profanities appeared in the middle of the one-lane mountain road. Since my understanding of Tamil is clean and simple, there was nothing to do but wait. And wait we did.
Every once and awhile, the driver and his team would get back on the bus ready to get on the road. Then, one of his team member’s anger reignited and they all ran back out to fight a little more. An hour later, after hundreds of Tamil words had been uttered and 1000 rupees exchanged, we merrily got on our way. Here's to another typical South Indian day!
Last week I had the chance to leave the Princess of the Hill Stations for a weekend to meet its Queen. In my mind, I’d pictured a similar quaint little mountain village, perhaps also complete with a man-made lake and Mickey Mouse paddle boats. Unfortunately, I saw no lake, but I did get to see another Kodai. Well, something akin to Kodai as I stumbled upon Kodaikanal on steroids. In many ways, Ooty had the same charm as Kodai, along with quadruple the amount or tourists as well as purchasable amenities. It was kind of surreal seeing something so familiar and yet so different at the same time. After getting my fill of Western sweets at the import store, wandering around for a few hours (not possible in Kodai), and heading back down a mountain, across the plains, and back up mine, I still cannot decide which I prefer. Bustling city or quaint mountain life, how can one ever choose? Maybe I shall go meet the King!
For reasons unbeknownst to me, Asia has been clumped into a region of consistencies. This stereotyping however could not be further from the truth. I mistakenly imagined Thailand to contain many similarities of India. Perhaps a little less Hindu and a little more beach but more or less consistently ‘South Asian’. Touts always giving you the “best price, madam”, animals in the street, English speakers all around, and an occasional temple to keep the spirituality alive. I could not have been more wrong.
Sifting your toes through the sand on an amazingly white beach may feel very similar anywhere you go. Yet, in Thailand, the view of the horizon on the glistening ocean is somehow different. I think this may have something to do with that fact that in Thailand, ocean equals life.
Sitting at a local dive (parking lot by day, street food restaurant by night), it is basically impossible to get even the local pad thai specialty prepared without the two most important ingredients: prawns and oyster sauce. Despite the Buddhism so uniquely integrated in everyone’s life, being Vegetarian excludes fish, as in Thailand, they are a necessity, along with rice and hot sauce.
Thinking back on Thailand, though, in a way does conjure up some familiarly Indian feelings. That is, just like after the first time I visited India, I felt completely overwhelmed by the unique beauty of this place. It’s these feelings that perhaps for me help connect the dots of what is ‘Asia’, ‘South Asia’, or whatever else you want to call it. For now I guess, let’s just say it’s a crazy wonderful place to be.
The boisterous nature of Bombay (Mumbai if you will) brought out the frugal in me. Lucky for me, in India, the Salvation Army is a chain of guesthouses rather than clothing swaps. Stepping into this humble abode, the man behind the desk seized an opportunity with his fair new customers. Thus, the next morning, along with 500 Rs. apiece, me, Luke, and two other guests were ushered into a taxi and driven 2 1/2 hours to a Bollywood film studio. Upon arrival, we were immediately rushed into hair and makeup and I sat wide-eyed for an hour while two women combed, straightened, and pinned my locks while two men contemplated what to do with my unusually red complexion. After I had a glamorous up-do and eyes to kill, I was ushered into wardrobe where I was slipped into a black ballgown, some faux jewelry and strappy silver heels. Needless to say, the whole experience left me pretty disoriented.
Helping me back into reality, a small Indian man ushered me onto the movie set and I stepped into an exquisite rendition of an Indian wedding scene. Then, the four of us, having been reunited again, spent the next six hours standing as guests of the wedding in multiple positions, holding drinks (mixed with gasoline so we wouldn't drink them), and 'starring' in the upcoming Bollywood movie "No Problem" with the former Ms.Universe. Not bad for a day's work.
This whirlwind Bombay experience goes to show you that the totally unexpected can actually happen with just the blink of an eye. And, even a teacher like me can go from 'dirty backpacker' by day to movie star by night. Voila!
Arriving in Hampi feels almost like you've entered the twilight zone back to the paleolithic era when there was nothing standing in the way of your prey except, well, you and a massive boulder. The landscape there is so awe-stikingly bizarre that it seems to have simply emerged out of a dream, where you feel like anything can happen. In this 15th century Hindu temple complex, roaming around neverending ruins I felt something akin to Indiana Jones, about to unlock the hidden secrets of ancient pasts. Climbing up to the little temples at the tops of mountains of boulders makes you really aware of how close you can actually get to the edge while also being insanely jealous of the climbing powers of monkeys.
Probably my favorite thing that happened while in Hampi, however, was getting blessed in a temple by an actual living godess. Laxmi, a large Indian elephant kindly accepts rupee coins for a quick blessing. She collects the money with her trunk, passes it to her attendent, and then swings her trunk back around to rub you on the head. Simply amazing. Her magical blessing in this magical land far far away in the heart of India made me wonder if normal 'modern' life still exists. For now, however, I don't mind waiting a bit longer for it to reappear.
Every once and awhile there arises that need for, well, a vacation! Luckily for me, being on India time and all, after five long months of break-free school time, I have a nice long six weeks to sit back relax and finally travel. So far, I’ve had the pleasure of visiting a few places along the Indian West coast in the state of Kerala. Think hot, jungly climate, friendly and often too friendly people, sprinkled with a white sandy beach. Oh yeah, and yummy black coffee too!
Being in Varkala, for the first time in a long while, I felt peace. There are no car horns constantly beeping the Airtel cell-phone tune and people actually say hello. Not the, “Yes, hello Madam, would you like to come into my shop, looking free, buying no problem?!”, but the smiley kind only beach life can conjure up with an actual, “good morning.” The Arabian Sea is beautiful and life seems pretty easy there.
Moving upward along the coast to Kollam only to catch a ferry onto Kerala’s bread and butter: the backwaters. On this amazingly beautiful (sorry, no other way to describe it), I finally got to see the Romantic version of tropical India. And yes, it’s as good as it seems. Slowly skimming along the water that houses fish, ducks, watery plants, and the local community, you can feel the immense power water has over our lives. Seeing people bathe and brush their teeth in water that most people would never even dare to dip their little toe into is something that will always continue to astound me. After getting to Allepey on the ferry, not having had quite enough of the backwaters yet, the tourist route led me to spend a night on a houseboat. Again, all at once utterly peaceful and astoundingly beautiful, I am beginning to see why Kerala has been dubbed “God’s own country”.
After fighting past persistent small stout elderly Indian women to get on another ferry in the scorching city of Ernakulum, I now find myself on the little island of Fort Cochin. Full of Portugese and Dutch influences alike, I can’t help feeling like I’m in a little country town in Europe. This is actually almost disconcerting. Yet, the subtle reminders in the forms of overly friendly shopkeepers, unforgiving rickshaw-walas, and the occasional cow peeing in the middle of an intersection keep me in check. Thus, for now, I think I’ll just enjoy celebrating the Dutch holiday Sinterklaas in a formerly Dutch colony while nibbling on some yummy Western food.
It’s funny though how despite almost racing down the mountain at the sound of the last school bell just seven days ago, as soon as you’ve felt the harsh coastal rays for even just a few hours, you’re almost ready to climb back up those hills even for just a quick breath of cool fresh air. However, having been down elevation-wise for even just a short week, I have noticed the effect seeing the sea has on the spirit. Whether it awakens or extinguishes it I’m not quite sure, but the leisurely West coast feeling definitely sweats itself under your skin. I guess for now I’ll just keep on soaking it all in.
Just about three days ago, all of Tamil Nadu was hit by a cyclone. What exactly does that mean for Kodaikanal? Well, along with the bout of rain that’s been lasting for two straight weeks, there has now also been torrential downpour for seventy-two continuous hours. Most of the power lines have been cut, which means not only the fact that there is no hot water, but more importantly that nothing, absolutely nothing, is choosing to be even slightly dry. The road up the mountain has been blocked off by a landslide, apparently caused by what I hear was a very large boulder that decided to plummet down the ghat.
So, how do Kodai residents deal with this winter cyclone exactly (as apparently this happens every year)? Well, the answer to that lies in two simple words: Christmas music. Thus, while I’m stranded on this very soggy mountaintop in early November, rest assured that all the way up here, I’m full of good cheer at the thought that St. Nicholas will soon be here.
So, in my damsel-like state of desperation (and for a few laughs?), I’ve included a link to a very inappropriate (but also, in a way, quite appropriate) Indianish Christmas song. Enjoy.
