south india and us

out into the world from our little goa haven...

Back into the traffic, the trash and the poverty- but still within the incredible beauty of the south.. we left goa and our friend Fawni after a last candlelit dinner overlooking the entire beach. The cashewnut curry was an incredible experience and we toasted to our time there. I think Teddy and Gregg were itching to move on, as was I- Although I did feel a small ache for the sound of the waves, the soft brush of the mosquito net in the wind blowing through the cracks in our beach mat shack, our breakfast spot on the beach with juice that was safe to drink (the cafe- High Fidelity- was owned by a lovely Austrian woman who promised that everything, including the ice cubes, was made with mineral water), and the simplicity of life. Also the infrequent stares. A blond woman hardly matters when there were hardcore Eurogirls going topless on the beach.

We were off to Kerala to meet Jules and have an adventure with her.. This has been so great to have people we love show up in different spots on our journey- I hope more of you get over here..

We arrived in Ernaculum so early in the morning that the sun hadn't risen- sort of strange time to arrive in any train station. It seems that in India the train stations are used as homes so that if you arrive in the early morning it is as if you are visiting a family a little too early. People are still sleeping in curled bundles of cloth and while others are brushing their teeth, washing their bodies or simply looking dazed. There is an uncomfortable feeling that you are intruding as you try to step over their bodies. We were able to get a rickshaw to the hotel for a good price and the driver turned out to be very helpful since the first place we went was boarded and silent, so he took us to Homestay Geo Maria- a little pricey but super clean, nice after a night train. Fort Cochin was where we landed- a pretty little island connected by bridge and ferry to the more standard & busy Ernaculum. Fort Cochin is slightly European, small winding streets and lots of churches & temples and even a Synagogue in "Jew Town." In fact, as we rode in on the rickshaw in the dark through the twisting streets, we would suddenly come upon a glowing temple blaring music and packed with people already. A surreal vision in a strange city.

We found a small cafe with an East Village vibe- packed with tourists but serving the first cafe au lait that I've found and a breakfast that wasn't gooey and spicy. Not that I don't love gooey and spicy, but I've been craving some of the simpler foods like omlettes and toast. Sometimes I look at a menu of complete mystery foods and wish I knew what I was ordering, and after I've ordered, what I was eating. Everything is such a rich delicious novelty, but I find myself excited over the simple naan that goes with the meal. Just bread. This must sound strange- but after a month of 3 mystery meals a day, one craves the familiar.

We met Jules before a Kathakali show to which Bala, Bina's sweet father, treated us. I was very excited about seeing this since I studied the dancing, gesturing form theatre in Paris for a while. Bala said it was a simpler, less spectacular show than the ones he was used to- but I was entranced by the complexity of the eye movements and gestures that are put together to tell the story. Also the makeup is an intricate performance-like preshow. The performers are covered with bright symbolic colors and I felt badly about complaining about my constant silver paint in my last show.. Imagine a lifetime of being green, red and black!

That night we dined at a fancy restaurant with Bina, Jules, Bala and Doug. Gregg and I both agreed that we felt dizzy and strange- we think it was because we were unused to being normal. Or having to use a fork. Or making conversation. Whatever it was I think we tasted a little bit of what a shock it might be to go back into the real world, even after only 3 weeks.

Having Jules with us was such a treat. We kidnapped her from the high life and showed her our gritty ways.. not sure if she preferred them, but we had a wonderful time together. We continued south into Kerala and rented a boat for the night- if we could get it together and post some pictures you could see what they look like.. but they are these really cool looking creations out of bamboo that have an open end with a table and a lying area at the bow and then 2 or 3 bedrooms. We stayed the night before in the hotel of a burgeoning rock star who forced our exhausted bodies to dance to several of his songs repeatedly- in fact we still have them in our head. He was charming though- sunglasses on at night, explaining all of the lyrics and the instruments in detail. It was a wild night at the Wild Orchid.

The boat was a lazy day and night on a stunning backwater maze. We passed people washing and doing laundry, fishing and just going about their lives. The boat guide took us on a tour of his village and we met his entire extended family. They all live on one little island among many little islands of families. It seems a sort of idyllic life. They were very happy to chat and gesture with us for a while before we returned to the boat to eat little piles of food off banana leaves. Delicious but slightly worrisome since we couldn't really tell what was cooked- we are still being super careful to avoid Delhi belly... We did all feel a little ill the next day, but nothing substantial- maybe just all that roughage.. The only terrifying part of the night was the very large sounding creature that seemed to be trying to get in through our ceiling.. Gregg went back to snoring, but I kept my headlamp pointed at the potential point of arrival for whatever it could be... It never arrived, but I was very tired the next day.. We sadly saw Jules off and headed back north toward the mountains..

We are very behind, but I'll post this now (and get to the elephants from today later)- I can't seem to get on my email at the moment, so sorry to anyone I am leaving unanswered..