Christmas in Thailand - at the Bangkok airport on December 22nd
Getting dressed up by Xavier's mom in a saree.
All set for Christmas Eve mass. Me, Kuttss, Xavier, and Matty.
Mass in Konkani, the local language.
Sunset in Goa...Kuttss and Xavier in the water.
Xavier, enjoying life? :D
Sunsets in Goa...
Beaches in Goa...
Still in Goa. Xavier translated the conversation of these women...it went something like this... Woman 1: So, what's out there? Woman 2: Nothing. W1: There's nothing else out there? W2: No, nothing. Only what you can see, that's it. Nothing more.
And this sunset...we thought it looked like a sun picture that belongs on a t-shirt.
Kuttss spinning LED poi on the roof of Xavier's parent's house.
All dressed up..and ready for a wedding. Haha. Xavier, Hana, me, and Kuttss went wedding crashing. Not for the ceremony, but for the food, dance, and festivities...dancing the funky chicken in a saree...
Riding to Old Goa for a day trip. Xavier and Hana in front, Matty on a Bullet.
Kids drinking tender coconut on the roadside.
Old Portuguese church in Old Goa - from the 15th Century, I believe.
Door of a cathedral in Old Goa.
Church corridores in Old Goa.
Leaving Old Goa after reaching "old cathedral saturation."
Aw, Goa...and why we stayed for 10 days...
So this is a dead man. But not really a dead man. One of the traditions in Xavier's villiage is that on New Years Eve, people make these "dead men" and then kids (mostly) run around with them, singing chants, trying to get money. The better the chants/songs/antics are, the more money they get. Then, just before or on New Years, the "dead men" are burned to symbolize the leaving of the old year (thus coined "the dead man") and the start of a beginning. If you look closely, you can see a coin collection box behind this dead man on the motorcycle; I think we gave 10 or 20 rupees. :)
All dressed up...for a final wedding. This time, no saree, but not thrilled about dress clothes so soon again...
New Years Eve fireworks in Goa. Xavier and Kuttss.
Not a wild party...haha...but we had a good time chilling.
Meal time at Xavier's parents house = delicious. Home cooked Goan food...mmm. What you see are three curries, rice pilaf, fried fish, and port wine...a Goan specialty.
Xavier's mom, by the front gate, watching the village "sports day."
Xavier and his village, watching the New Years Day sports.
Friends of Xavier. A few of the work (or have worked) on cruise ships. The guy to the right is a chef. It's a popular occuation in this part of going to go out to sea for 9 months, and then return for 3 months before starting the cycle again.
Watching the games...
Kids (or is this case, kid) having fun.
Tug of war. The teams were 1) married couples and 2) unmarried people. Guess who won?
It was the married couples' day to triumph.
Kuttss, getting some South Indian coffee while waiting for the train to leave (taken from inside the train). Heading south from Mangalore.
Switching states from Goa to Kerala. In Kerala, the communists reign...it is a communist state, the only (I think?) in India. For the most part, it serves the state well. It has some of the highest literacy rates of the whole country. On the other hand, much of the thinking is backward, and women's social mobility is limited. Even driving a car around as a single female is looked down upon.
Kuttss, and one of his friends from high school (left). We stayed and visited with her and her family.
Women walking to a Kerala sunset. (Kerala, India. January)
Chembra peak, 2100 meters, one of the tallest peaks in the Wayanard region of Kerala.
Climbing in Wyanard region. We stayed in Kalpetta, and then made a day trip to the "hill."
View from atop Chembra - across the valley, another hill/mountain.
Coming down from Chembra, walking through the tea and coffee plantations (in this picture, tea).
In Fort Kochi (Cohin) chasing more Arabian Sea sunsets.
Traditional Chinese fishing nets in Fort Kochi. They work on a fulcrum, and are lowered at high tide. Currenlty, they aren't utilized as much, as trolling in the ocean is more effecient. But there are intersting to look at.
Fish, shrimp, octopus, squid. Sidewalk seafood market in Cochin.
Riding the backwaters of Kerala, wathing the local transport.
Channel of unused Chinese fishing nets.
I have no idea why...but there were SO many ducks! One duck, two duck, three duck, four...
Meeting of the...birds.
A postard? Maybe it should've been. But it was real.
Local deep sea fishing boats.
And the sun still sets...from the Kerala backwaters.
Morning on the cliffs in Varkala.
Local fishermen out for a morning catch.
Train station in Varkala. Indian train.
Kuttss, waiting for our south-bound train in Varkala, headed to Kanyakumari, the southernmost point of India.
Inside a sleeper car.
Tip of the southernmost point of India. It is also the confluence of the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the Bay of Bengal.
Thiruvalluvar Statue, as seen at night. (Thiruvalluvar was a Tamil poet and saint - the statue was constructed in 2000).
Night market scenes, Kanyakumari.
Watching the sun rise and the clouds reshape and reform over the Bay of Bengal.
Harnessing the power of wind on the South Indian coast.
Climbing the steps to the Vivekananda Rock Memorial. It is a sacred monument and popular tourist attraction in Kanyakumari. It was built in 1970 in honour of the visit of the great spiritual teacher Swami Vivekananda. He swam to this rock and meditated about the past, present and future of India. It is said that he attained enlightenment on the rock, and henceforth became a reformer and philosopher. (thanks wikipedia for some help)
View of Swami Vivekananda memorial from other small rocky island with the tribute to Thiruvalluvar (Tamil poet).
Thiruvalluvar statue in the background, day market in the foreground.
Pilgrims getting ready to watch the sunset. We're all standing on the Gandhi Memorial, where Gandhi's ashes were kept before being dispersed into the ocean. The memorial was designed in such a way that on Gandhi's birthday, 2 October, the first rays of the sun fall on the exact place where his ashes were kept.
People watching from up high on the Gandhi Memorial.
The religious pilgrims are thge ones in black. They are vegetarians, walk barefoot, and wear a special dress for 40 days as they pilgrimage to a special locoations in Goa.
Watching the sun set in Kanyakumari.
Outside a Hindu temple in Madurai.
Close up of the temple.
Inside the main Hindu temple in Madurai.
Ganesh.
Really...it's non-Hindus (or people that don't look Indian) that aren't allowed in. But they judge your "Hinduness" only based on the color of your skin...
Local dance performance in Pondicherry. It was fantastic. A mix of Kerala style with modern.
Rocky coast of Pondicherry, looking at the Bay of Bengal, a rather rough ocean.
Watching local coffee be prepared. Keeping the milk nice and frothy.
Pouring milk into espresso-like coffee makes delicous South Indian filter coffee, or local coffee, as it is often called.
Solar eclipse on Jan 15th, 2010. Pondicherry.
In a local transport.
Woman riding a bike in a saree in Pondy.
Waiting in Chennai train station for a night train to Bangalore.
Seeing my Wheaton friend Lindsay - a great surprise to encounter her living in Bangalore!
Final coffee in India...
Getting dropped off at the airport by motorcycle taxi...aka...Kuttss.
Self explanitory. Back in the USA, transition shortly to South America.
