First Impressions (Continued)

 

Facing the Arabian Sea

   We traveled as a group for the first time to Varkala, a beach town in the south of Kerala. Our friend Melinda wanted to celebrate her birthday at the beach, so the seven of us entrained to Varkala. It is hard for me to remember a trip with so many experiences of all kinds. Getting the train tickets required the patience of a zen master and a linguist to decipher the meanings of all the codes: sleeper 2A, CC 2B,  AC, 3A, etc. It took us several days to navigate the online system. We had to put our passport numbers a dozen times and as we were ready to book, caput!, the system would fail one way or another.  We finally purchased the tickets, and felt incredibly accomplished and independent. We were ecstatic! The next challenge was getting to the train station. My friend Candy, the savvy traveler had already downloaded Uber, this was a blessing because with our luggage it was hard to fit in an otto. 

Upon arrival to the station we waded through hundreds of people trying to figure out where to board the train. Illiteracy takes over as most of the signs are in Malayalam. Chickens with heads cut off were far more coherent and organized than us. We finally made it to our respective seats a few seconds before the train departed, angry with each other, frustrated with the world and feeling like a million devaluated rupees. 

Little by little I caught my breath soon enough to be able to experience the olfactory display of fried bananas, spices, sweat... accompanied by the cacophony of voices of all types and intonations.  There was the gentleman that in his baritone voice chanted: “chai chai, chai” followed by the graver voice of the person selling the fried bananas and then the soprano selling briyani (fried rice). Obviously the jerk baby  was there to top this off shrieking at the minimal discomfort, or want. Every time I dozed off he was there to take me out of Morpheus arms.  Thanks baby!

In the train

All in all people always offer you a smile which makes everything ok. We felt excited about going to the beach,  and proud to have survived the process of getting in the train. That feeling only lasted until we realized that there were no speakers in the train and no announcements of the stops. You have to know where to get off, the train is not going to magically tell you: “Wake up there, you have arrived”. Nope! you have to simply know where is your stop. Period. There are signs at the bus stations but the signs are in Malayalam and seeing through the window that has been damaged and scratched by the inclemencies of the weather and  time,  is an impossible task.  As always, we had to appeal to a kind soul that could tell us where to get off. With my best puppy eyes I inquired to the gentleman right next to me who was traveling to a city farther south than Varkala, so he was able to tell us where to get off. Our friend Frank did not have the luck to be seated with us, he was in a different coach. We just had to hope that he asked around about where to get off, and thankfully, he did. It was great to see him appear slowly but surely at the station in Varkala. In my very anxious mind, I was already imagining him lost in some town. I underestimated his intelligence and survival skills. 

Train Station in Varkala

Varkala is a small town on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea. It’s shops and restaurants are arranged in parallel to the cliff. There was a multicultural plethora of restaurants, from Italian to Tibetan and the whole world in between… Ok, that might be a bit of an overstatement... There was a street with several Tibetan shops where beautiful jewelry was displayed along with sound bowls, Buddhists beads and meditation cushions. Our hotel was  cute and clean, well lit and pretty minimalist. I immediately liked it. The name, simple: Inda hotel.  The owners, an Ukrainian couple, were very friendly and helpful. We had the best breakfast I can remember and undoubtedly the best coffee in Kerala. It is hard to find good coffee in Kerala, in small shops, coffee is a sweet experience that leaves you at the verge of a diabetic coma. I remember one time I went to a big coffee shop in Lulu mall, one of the largest, or the largest mall in India. I asked for a vegan ice coffee. I had three sips and could not finish, I tried to change my drink as the semi-liquid required a spoon to “drink” it, but in that occasion the usual Indian hospitality and desire to please failed. After all I was in a chain coffee shop, not in a mom and papa shop where they still solve small problems like this without involving the manager or the cash register. 

The hotel

Tibetan Market at night

The cliff town

Don't do this, specially if you don't have a rabbis vaccine

The hotel was near the cliff and access to the ocean was possible, but the beach was erased by the heavy Monsoon season. This was a bit disappointing but it didn't deter our friend Melinda who next morning went to a beach nearby that was not closed. She could not bathe, but she could observe.  Instead of the usual rooster, I was awaken by music, the entire town has audible access to a huge speaker that in the morning and in the afternoon broadcasts traditional songs. You can’t help but listening to the languid tunes that remind you that you are somewhere remote from your hometown. Somehow this music makes me feel happy, there is an air of mysticism in it, even though there is not a word I can understand, my imagination wanders to not anymore remote places while I listen. See, when I was in the west and I heard that music, my soul would travel to India, now, I am here! I feel as if I had entered the movie I always imagined in my spiritual eyes! I experienced the same  when I went and sat by the cliff, overlooking the rocks and the fishing boats, I felt happy and complete in this far away town.

Happy, touching the Arabian Sea

It has been established that I look Indian… to a great extent at least. My other friends definitely look like foreigners.  They are frequently approached by people who want to have a selfie with them, but this evening in Varkala, the proposal was far more “indecent”. We were approached by the operations manager of the Deshadan Resort who wanted our pretty faces to be in his promotional video. We hesitated for a while, debated etc. He said the magic words to a bunch of broke students: “If you accept to be in my video, you will have breakfast lunch and dinner at our resort and we will take you to all Varkala’s attractions for free”. We were sold!

 

Press play to see the video

Bright an early the next morning we were picked up by a luxurious car that fit the seven of us. This taxi of sorts had to transport us for the entire two block distance to the resort. It was almost not worth trying to fit in that car for such a short ride, but the manager wanted to go above and beyond and make us feel comfortable and important. I guess we were important, we were about to be movie stars! I felt a bit ashamed though as we made this poor driver wait for at least 20 minutes for such a short ride.

The first shots were around the pool of this fancy, beautiful tropical, and of course, green resort. It was liberating to be able to sport a bikini without being concerned for breaking any cultural rules. This was foreign territory and we were foreigners, so, off with the shirts!  

Action!

I did notice that the Director of the operation was always approaching my blonde beautiful friend and my male friend. Obviously they look like foreigners. As for me, it seemed that they wanted me out of the shot at all times.  I quickly developed a complex and started to hear the wrong things. If the guy said: Mam, could you please walk… I would hear: “Mam, could you please walk out of the hotel”. I swear he asked me to go under water for a few minutes while they finished the pool shots.  One thing was for sure, I may have looked too local for the video, but I managed to stick my head here and there and appear multiple times in it.

Waited too long beneath water

We had the most care free afternoon I can remember. Just as it is meant to be for any student at a field placement. We played for hours in the pool, then visited the aquarium, then some went to ride elephants, visit temples, bike. We did all the things there are to do in Varkala. I did not want to go ride elephants though. I feel different about that whole thing. Ever since I became so aware of the suffering involved in any kind of recreational activity that involves animals, I just can’t do it... I imagine us humans having all the fun at their expense. The more I understand that animals have their own volition and emotions, the more I find it impossible to justify that we use them or abuse them. My friends though, they went and enjoyed themselves. I spent some of this time visiting an Ayurveda center and then to the Hindu temples around there. I learned that unless you are Hindu, you are not permitted to go in to certain parts of the temple. And in the smaller ones photographs are not allowed. I was impressed that there was one temple that was approximately 2000 years old. Holy caw! Also, you have to be dressed modestly, my friend Candy had a dress that was a bit above the knee and she could not enter. I found it a bit paradoxical that their priests are shirtless and their dhoti is always folded upwards, so they are showing their chest and legs... I enjoyed the visit to the temple, especially the sung prayer by a woman who was playing an instrument with one chord.  I gave her my name and twenty rupees and I think she sang a prayer for me. They are supposed to include your name in the song but perhaps mine morphed too dramatically in the transition to the language in which she was singing because I could not recognize my name in her song. 

Temple

Inside of the temple

Deshadan Hotel

That day was definitely a highlight in our book. We were open to just go with the flow and we had an amazing day, planned for us. We still went to the beach and enjoyed the view of the roaring ocean, but we had the goal of having a good time, the means were less important and we were surprised by the sweet taste of watermelon juice and the feeling of bonding with brand new friends. 

Me!