India

After a walk on the beach, I give the stuff I don’t want from my backpack to the old lady in the guesthouse, and head down to the taxi stand. Typically a guy approaches me and asks if I want a taxi. He has a small van which is better than the auto rickshaw I was thinking of taking. I ask about the price and he says INR1,200. I say it’s way too much and suggest INR400. He eventually comes down to INR700, which is still too much. I decline and walk away, he comes after me and says he will do it for INR600 if I stop buy at a gift shop, as he gets a voucher if he brings people. I decide to go with it.

In the taxi we chat for a while, he is a nice guy. He shows me the voucher he gets from the gift shop. He has 10 at the moment, and he gets a free tyre for his van when he reaches 12.

We get to the gift shop, which has some wonderful things in. Lots of traditional Indian furniture, which I’m told is less than 100 years old, as it is illegal to sell to non-Indians otherwise. They also have some nik-naks. I see some Tibetan chimes which have a lovely sound. I haggle with the guy and get them for INR550, I could probably have got them for less (as always) but they are lovely and will go with my Tibetan singing bowl a treat. I have only bought these two items in 2 months of traveling.

Back in the taxi we head towards Palolem. The guy wants to take me to another gift shop, for another voucher, I say no, I’ve done my dead for the day. He says the minimum price for the trip is INR800, so I’ve done quite well. I’m not sure if it’s true, but I remember that a taxi ride from Margoa to Anjuna is INR900, so I think this is right. I day we had a deal, and he seems happy enough. So in retrospect I did quite well out of the deal today.

The landscape is typically stunning, palm trees, rice paddies and some small towns. The area is hilly, and the taxi driver rightly points out that the trip in an auto rickshaw would have been rough.

I spend the day writing and organising my backpack. I take a long walk down the beach and I have lunch at the Hawaii restaurant again, this time an excellent Chicken salad.

Whilst walking down the beach I see a fishing catch being sorted on the beach. It was fascinating to watch. The main catch was carried up the beach by the fishermen to trucks. There were a lot of fish. The local villagers would pick up the small fish left on the beach and in the shallows. There were an enormous amount of very small fish left to die on the beach, which the birds took every opportunity to feast on.

In the afternoon I caught up on my writing.

I have a 60 litre travel pack which has slowly been getting heavier since my trip started. I travel light, but have a few items that are weighting my down. In particular I am carrying a guide book to Nepal (which I don’t need, but want to take some notes from), a big guide book to India, which I will loose in a few weeks, and a guide book to Southeast Asia (for when I visit there in a few weeks). So I will loose 2 heavy guide books over the next few weeks, but I still have a number of things I really don’t need. My back is also getting a bit disorganised. Time for a clear out and a sort out.

I bought a jumper from home, but I will now be in the tropics until I return home next June, so I don’t need it. Even though it’s my favorite I will give it to the guest house owner tomorrow when I leave. I’m not sure it’s any use to him though, its winter now and he just wears shorts! Maybe he can us it for rags?

I also have a pair of Indian style trousers that I have only worn once. I bought them in India, but they have no pockets and I’d rather wear shorts anyway. I’ll leave these with the guest house also.

I am carrying a sleeping bag, from camping in India, but don’t need it now. I kept it in case I stayed at budget places with a motorbike, but didn’t get a motorbike in the end, and it’s so hot its the last thing I need. I hope the guest house owner can make use of it also.

I’ve traded my reading books here at the guesthouse.

I have a pair of light’ish trousers, which I don’t want, but need to keep in case of visiting temples. I’m looking for a nice lightweight replacement, but until I find them I need to keep hold of them 🙁

I’m going to keep hold of everything else for now. I’ve rearranged my pack, and stored the things I little use (shoes, rain jacket) in the bottom part of the pack. I have removed the mosquito net from there and will now strap that to my day pack when in transit.

Hopefully my pack will be a bit more manageable tomorrow when I set off.

After a few days in Colva I’m looking to go somewhere else, but I don’t know where, or what I want. I can be a very indecisive person sometimes. I longed for the beaches of Goa for some time, and now that I am here I am feeling a bit unsure what to do. I am enjoying myself, so I think it’s just a case of unwinding and enjoying myself.

I don’t want the party scene of the north, and I enjoy facilities such as Internet access that are only generally available in slightly developed areas. I think tomorrow I will take a taxi to Palolem, from where I can easily go to Patnem a little further south, which has some surf, but I should think the chances of renting a board would be fairly slim.

Bananas for breakfast and after some writing out to the beach for a swim. The water wasn’t as hot as I was expecting but was about the same as the Mediterranean in summer, but I have longer to get in the sea since my trip started. In the last 4 years, the last 4 weeks have been the longest period of time I have been away from the sea.

I sit on the beach wondering what I want to do with myself here in Goa. I hadn’t really thought about it that much. I knew I wanted to come here, and I know I’m a bit old for partying late at night. I think I will spend a few more nights here and then head south.

After lunch I head back to the guest house, and do a lot of writing. I think tomorrow I will rent a motorbike and explore the northern area.

India is a constant offering of sights, some you would expect and others that perhaps you wouldn’t.  Here are my favorites.  It would be easy for me to list the obvious tourist items, so I haven’t.

• Children playing cricket – normally on a dusty field, sometimes by the side of the road, often with the fielders playing in several games concurrently.
• A road worker mixing concrete on the tarmac, the only flat surface he could find.
• School children seated in neat rows under the shade of trees
• A camel on the highway – following the road’s edge, whilst the driver sleeps on the carriage behind.  Cruise control!
• Someone in the back of a rickshaw holding a full-sized house door.
• Trucks with no cab or body – just a driver sticking out of the chassis.
• Children waving
• Women dancing -seated in the back of a tractor trailer, whilst we dance back from within our bus
• Temples – big and small, everywhere
• Cows – just wandering, but never mooing?
• Women driving – I have seen only three women driving in India.
• Fruit and vegetable stalls and markets – such a colourful and beautiful sight.

I have noticed that a lot of Indian people talk to each other using English. I particularly noticed this in Mumbai, and later realised that in Mumbai there are a lot of different cultures of India and English may be their only common language.

The family I met on the train to Goa were speaking English with each other when they first got onto the train. When chatting with them they revealed that they family are originally from Gujarat, which is their first language, but they also speak Hindi and English.

Whilst walking on Elephanta island I noticed an India couple with 2 small children. They all spoke in English. The parents spoke English with a Indian accent, but the children were almost accent free. I assume that the parents have raised their children speaking both Hindi and English. It think is a very good thing to do. Children speaking fluent English will have a wealth of options available to them as they grow older.

Of course the only common language in India is English. Hindi, Tamil and Urdu and very different languages. When people from the north and extreme south of India met, English is the only common language they have.

I sleep well on the charging train. We’ve covered a lot of ground, the train always running at a fast pace. My cabin mates all sleep in, which means I have to stay in bed, which is fine. They all work within their family business, manufacturing paper tube products, like those found in toilet rolls. They work everyday, and long hours I suspect. This is the first day of their holiday, and If I were them I would stay in bed until noon.

It’s cold in the cabin, the AC is very effective. I wander outside the cabin and find the side doors open. This allows the warm air to rush in. I hang my head out of the door, whilst maintaining a firm grip. It’s a great sensation and a must do experience in India.

I spend at least an hour in the doorway, taking pictures, and watching the beautiful tropical landscape of palm trees, rice paddies and small farms roll by. The train occasionally stops at small stations. At one friendly station friendly faces meet me from another train.

I have chai and samoasa for breakfast 🙂

The train rolls in at around 23:20. It’s just about empty which surprised me. My berth is amongst an Indian family of 5. This is another family who regularly speak English to each other. Later, after chatting with them, they reveal they speak a few different languages.

They are a lovely family and we spend hours chatting. We talk about India, Europe, work and Goa. They take their holidays in Goa every year. They are passionate about Bombay, as they called it. One of the boys tells me an estimated 35,000 people enter Bombay everyday, and few leave. He also mentions that many wealthy Bombay citizens who drive Mercedes cars live in the slums. He says this is for cheap rent and to avoid paying government taxes.

India is a complicated country that often only reveals itself when I talk with its people. I certainly don’t claim to understand it yet. But I don’t think I ever will.

The family bless themselves several times during the evening. When we first pulled away the mother gave everyone a black bindi high on the forehead. I guess this is to ensure safe travel, but I don’t ask.

They are very interested when I talk of Christianity and its waning in many countries in Western Europe. I mention that I’m not really a Christian; in that I don’t pray or attend church, but I do enjoy the holidays. They ask which is my religion, as if it wasn’t an option to not have one.

They are great people and perfect train companions.