Home and happy!

Best of the bunch

Morning delivery from the wholesaler to the local banana shop next to Seth's play school.

We survived!

One week, one bag, two kids. I did it! Happy though to be out of the cheap as chips lodging on Princess Street and back in our airy rooms at Sui House. The windows are open and my outside view is of lush green plants and shocking green parrots with red tails swooping by. It's good to be home! Ollie is on a flight back from Delhi and I'm surrounded by suitcases to unpack. Life is full again.

The reappearing lady

I stopped opposite this house to give Bo some milk and saw this woman drop waste into the hole and then slip behind the curtain probably twenty times in five minutes. I wasn't sure if she was making excuses to take another look at Seth, Bo and me, or whether she was taking out each each individual piece of peel as she prepared some carrots. It was quite amusing seeing this popping in and out of the frame.

I'd like to go back to this exact spot and stand there taking photos over the course of an hour, capturing different people as they pass that orange wall. It would make a great little series, don't you think?

Raban's lime soda bar, Palace Road

 

 You may even get a free gheko with your soda!

The Voice of Yesudas

I am really enjoying reading the anthology 'Where the rain is born'. One of the essays, 'The Voice' by Suresh Menon, centres on Yesudas, one of India's most well known and well loved musicians. He is a master of classical, popular and devotional music, and sings in most Indian languages.

He was born in Fort Cochin, Kerala, where we are living, and many of his songs are in the official language of Kerala, Malayalam.

'Malayamis have...stories about how they first wooed their wives or girlfriends with his songs; they can remember their first rejections when they hear other songs; their eyes cloud over when they hear him singing songs about mothers or sisters... And naturally enough, for a man who has sung over 40,000 songs, there is one for every situation. Songs of innocence and songs of experience...most Malayalis feel at home wherever they are in the world the moment a Yesudas song wafts through the music system.'

Not sure I would have been wooed by his music! But perhaps once I've listened a few more times to kannureermuthumai, manikyaveenayumayen, parijatham, pramadavanam, Yesudas's own favourites from his vast repertoire, when I've left India I will find, as for 'Malayalis the world over, a Yesudas song does the same thing. Memories come flooding back. It is impossible to listen...without being transported away from the present.'

Bagging it Kochi style

There's a surprising effort in Kochi to save on plastic waste. In several cafes and shops they charge a small fee to refill a water bottle with mineral water from the cooler. In Kashi art cafe they sell mineral water (again from the cooler) in their own sterilised glass bottles sealed with a new cork. In supermarkets there is a charge for bags, and then they offer Chinese eco-bags. Resuable jute, cotton or PVC bags are for sale in most general stores.

The Dil Se shop and gallery off Bazaar Road wraps gifts in envelope style bags made from newspaper. Dil Se is an Indo Swiss charitable organisation that seem to be doing a great work helping destitute women and children in South India. They have an orphanage here in Fort Cochin which I'm hoping to volunteer at. More soon...

Hindu fests: Kumbh Mela and more

Ollie is on an overnight bus (that's more like it!) from Delhi to Hariddwar, on the banks of the Ganges river. He's going to kumbh mela, the biggest Hindu gathering in 12 years, and the world's largest religious gathering.

On a tinier scale, these snaps are from a Hindu festival in Fort Cochin this afternoon. The day was really muggy so the pictures aren't great.

The elephant and the very loud music was actually quite scary and Seth had much more fun playing with this wheelbarrow of incense burners.

One stop shop for watermelons

Ultimate shopping

Seth's imaginary shop. After school trading hours apply. 

 

Sidewalk snacking

Chai and papers, appam and dhal at a local snack trolley

Friendship flirting

My days are pretty silent. There are only so many hours I can spend in Kashi chatting up lonely planetarians. With locals I've been prowling for new friends with Fresher like enthusiasm. But life is still pretty quiet and most of my conversation is with my 22 month old, a little man of very few words.

In Teapot cafe this evening I thought I overheard the guy next to me say Argentina, so I asked where he was from and turns out he's from Palermo, corner of Gascon and Cabrera, right near the cute little antiques shop! Small world, no?

I do have a new friend though! She's from Delhi and is one of the artist's in residence at Kashi Art Gallery. Next week I'll go there with my camera and take some photos for the blog. The space is amazing, so full of character and bohemian charm.

Rickshaw gossip

I've haven't been treated badly by anyone or been ripped off during this trip to India, until today.

Mornings with the boys are always tough for me and I was running late getting Seth to school. We piled into a rickshaw but the guy kept turning around and telling me he could take me to a new shop. Auto rickshaw drivers are on a commission with the Kashmiri shops selling Indian handicrafts so they often ask to take you there. I said no and that I was late for school, please could he stop asking me and get to Apple Kids as quickly as possible.

I dropped Seth off and got back in the auto. He started banging on again about the shop again, saying it opened today and he wanted to go and get a new dhoti (a sarong like garment that men wear here). I explained that I wanted to go home because I had a tiny baby with me who needed feeding. He kept saying 'just two minutes, you don't buy, just look. I get new dhoti'. I was so tired and I was quite irritated when it turned out he'd made a detour and was now outside said shop.

I refused to go in and insisted that he drive me home immediately. When we arrived, I asked how much and he said you decide, which they often say. It was a 30 or 40 rupee journey, so I said 40 and he nodded. I gave a 100 rupee note and he got back in the auto and started revving up. I stopped him and pointed out I needed change. He gave me 40 rupees. Would this guy ever stop? I was quite cross and insisted on 20 rupees more which he reluctantly handed over and drove off in a huff.

Later, in the afternoon, I walked with Bo to collect Seth and for the return we went by rickshaw. The driver was young and cheerful, really helpful and sweet with the boys - as they usually are. He turned around to me after we set off and said 'You're the girl who shouted at the rickshaw driver this morning. I've heard!' Apparently the new shop was offering two free dhotis to any rickshaw driver who brought in a foreigner, whether or not they bought something and the guy was really mad he couldn't get his free gift out of me. Apparently I was talk of the rickshaw town. At least none of them will ever try and talk me into stopping at a Kashmiri shop...


A word on dhotis. I do like them! They are especially worn in Kerala, where they're known as lungis. They're a long piece of cloth that is wrapped around the waist and can be worn long or doubled up and tucked into the waist to be knee height. Both men and women wear them in Kerala, but mostly men. It amuses me the way the men are always fiddling with them, holding them up at one side, and constantly tying them up and dropping them again the way a nervous teenager is constantly tying up here hair in an elastic and letting it loose again.

Sethie the schoolboy

I was feeling bad that Seth has no little friends to play with. He was always hassling other kids in the supermarket trying to play hide and seek with them, or clamber up onto the school buses with the other children.

So last week I started him at Apple Kids, a tiny pre school near to where we live. When I went to talk to the Principal, Laxmi, she ran through a list of everything he would be learning. This included a long list of birds of India and the national anthem. Pretty ambitious given Seth can't even say his own name yet!

The style is such a contrast with Argentina where everything was more relational and artistic. Laxmi looked horrified when I asked if they do any kind of painting or drawing with the kids 'he is too young for that!'. Very different from Argentina where we were given a folder of Seth's painting, drawing, collages, paper mobiles + a report on his appreciation of music and dance, how he relates to others, his character traits and so on.

This morning at Apple Kids I stayed a little longer than usual and saw them all lined up marching, saluting, standing to attention, and then at ease, reciting prayers and singing the national anthem.

Seth's the only non-Indian, and most of the children are from Gujarati families. The official language of the school is English, but they also use the Keralan language of Malayam and some Hindi words.

He is really very happy there and runs down the lane with his backpack and his tiffin (snack) box, barely turning his head as he waves goodbye to me.

Early morning at St Francis Church

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On Sunday we went to the 8am English service at St Francis Church in Fort Cochin. Built in 1503, it is the oldest European Church in India. I knew some of the songs, ancient and modern, and sang along while Seth flirted at the back of church with a little friend. The congregation was mainly Indian families, with a handful of tourists. The long narrow blinds hanging from the ceiling are Dutch style lace and were fans in the days when the church had only a roof and no walls. Men would stand with ropes pulling the blinds back and forth to create a breeze.

After the service we walked along the promenade down to the Chinese Fishing Nets. Sunday in India is the family day out and it was heaving - and too overwhelming with crowds of people around us wanting to take photos. I bought Seth his first coconut and we clambered onto the rocks to drink it together, leaving Bo in the pushchair to keep the crowds happy!

Ethnic Em

Can anyone stay in India for over a month without buying an item of ethnic or traditional clothing? Pottering around Notting Hill in early January I felt so strong. No baggy pants or tie dye for me! But I've fallen, just three weeks in, and today bought a pair of indigo blue Ali Baba trousers. Worst still, I love them!!!!

Chillin' at Cherai Beach

Locals at Cherai Beach

To the beach and back

So, where to go with my one bag and two children?

My original plan was to take the train six hours north to a lovely sounding place called Kannur Beach House, but they were fully booked. Rosi, the owner, was super helpful and tried to find another place for me nearby, but after being ill last week I decided to stay closer to Kochi.

Cherai Beach is 35km from Fort Cochin and is a long, long stretch of golden sand fringed with palm trees. It's a popular weekend spots for locals. So yesterday morning an Ambassador cab picked us up from Sui House, we bundled into the back (the front and back seats are benches, without any curves or individual 'seats) and drove to Fort Cochin where we took a little ferry boat across to Vypeen Island and then drove on down to Cherai Beach. Kerala is famous for the backwaters (canals, lagoons, lakes) and Cherai is a thin strip of land with backwaters on one side and the beach and Arabian Sea on the other.

The 45 minute drive was lush and green, taking us through small villages and over little bridges crossing the backwater canals. Everything was so lush and green. Then we turned off the main road, down a little dirt track, and down to a huge lagoon with a zigzagging raised walkway just wide enough for two autorickshaws to pass. We meandered along this until we reached Cherai Beach.

I'd booked into Brighton Beach House which was pretty remote, at the far end, away from any other lodgings, restaurants or cafes. What a spot! and the place had potential to be the perfect beach hideaway. Steps from the garden led up to a big covered deck with undisturbed views of the beach and out to sea. But the rooms were like a cheap motel and the place needed a bit of love. The beach also wasn't kid friendly as it sloped steeply down to the water and was too narrow in the hours when the sun wasn't so strong. There was also something I really didn't like about the place, so I stuck it out one night and Mr Ambassador driver returned today to collect drive us back to Kochi. (Not before a lovely Swiss couple looked after Seth and Bo so I could go for a swim in the sea. It was bliss! I felt so free (from kids!!) and I soaked up every minute.

There was no internet at the beach so we rocked up in Fort Cochin with no place to stay. I fancied staying on Princess Street, right next to the places I enjoy most (the pool, Kashi art cafe, parade ground, Idiom bookshop). I tried four or five places which were way above our budget and I was getting desperate (Seth meanwhile was sitting on Sheshi the Driver's knee and tootling up and down the street in the Ambassador). 'Tom's Homestay' had a makeshift internet cafe in the entrance and a sheet hung across a doorway so I figured that couldn't cost too much. Sure enough, it was 800 rupees a night, and I got him down to 700 (ten quid) for a big room, so I booked in for a week.

Space it has, style it has not. There are two strip lights, bright orange walls on two sides and rust orange on the other two, garish brass fittings and eight electrical outletts with approx six buttons per fixture positioned at head height on the walls, tiny windows, a double bed in the middle of the room and a plastic table and two plastic chairs. But it's clean, and BIG, and safe, and has a fan and air con.

Ollie meanwhile is now in Delhi for a week. He's staying in the house of our Italian friend who lives in the Diplomatic Quarter with a maid, nanny, cook, caretaker, driver... hey, wasn't Ollie meant to be the one on the road and staying in grotty budget accommodation?

Travelling light

This India trip is an opportunity for a change from my usual habits and practices. I'm trying to live more simply, I haven't had any alcohol or meat so far, and I've been in bed most nights by 11pm.

One thing I never usually do is pack light. We had a baggage allowance of 48 kilos each on our Jet Airways here, so we travelled laden with suitcases of books and toys. But this week I've had to move out of Sui House due to a previous booking so I set myself the challenge of travelling and living with just one small bag.

Clothes for the three of us, toys, games, books, wash bag, medicines, playmats, bottles, plates, cutlery all squeezed into the bag. It's not strictly true that I just took one bag - I also had my handbag, two carseats and the Maclaren (fold up pushchair), but I am still pretty impressed that everything for the three of us fits into a small weekend bag.

This post is dedicated to my father-in-law Douglas who is always baffled by why I travel with so much stuff.

Tea tonic

Ugh, I've been in bed this afternoon with earache, swollen glands, sore throat, fever... the only upside is this delicious, soothing homemade tea which Pauline made for me to help soothe the aches and pains.

As it happens an Australian GP is staying at Sui House tonight, so she went with me to the local pharmacy and picked out antibiotics. Bo has congunctivis again and she's worried about that, so we're in the wars a bit here in Kochi. Seth however is right as rain and terrorizing us as we're couped up in the room with him running round and round in circles, playing endless games of hide and seek, and jumping up and down on the bed as I snuggle in the corner under a pile of sheets.

They've both nodded off to sleep, and so should I.

Early morning at the spice markets

I was on Jew Town Road this morning as the carts were unloading fresh deliveries of spices. Wow, what an aroma. It made me splutter and cough as sacks were thrown through the open doorways. Once the dust settled wafts of delicious fragrances hit me as I worked my way down the row of brightly coloured shuttered entrances.

The woman pictured above was sifting a type of very small black pepper.

The message is in the post

Thanks to my Pa the postman has dropped off mail for us twice this week. Post was always hit and miss in Argentina and I love receiving letters (yes, that IS a hint), so this is very exciting.

Ollie has also promised to write to us while away on his travels. I have a collection of wonderful long letters from him while he was writing Viva! that I read over and over.

I must starting sending letters myself. First one will be to my Armenian grandmother, the most prolific writer I know, and for whom a letter on the doormat is the highlight of her day. She also knows just how it is to be in a faraway land, with two small boys and very little money, having done the same herself 60 years ago.

Off the shelf - book 2

So, I would definitely recommend Rohinton Mistry's 'Tales from Firozsha Baag', especially to anyone who hasn't read previously any Indian fiction. It's a series of short stories (all set in the same apartment building in Mumbai) so you won't get lost in a long, winding and it is a window into everyday urban Indian life: taking in paying guests, a condolence visit to a new widow, another written in the voice of an (maid). Rohinton Mistry writes beautifully as always.

Now onto Where the rain is born, an anthology of poems, essays, short stories and extracts from published novels. Some were written in English others originally in Malayam, but all are about or set in the southern state of Kerala, where we are living.

I bought it this morning and am already three chapters in - love it!
Not sure if it's available outside India, but an interesting read if you can get hold of it.

Public spectacle

A regular occurance on our daily walks.

This was a tour group who stopped to film us this afternoon.

Brotherly love

The Kiss was actually Seth saying sorry after swinging Bo into the door. But on the whole they're getting on really well and do seem to love each other. This is their play/living/dining/bedroom, which is attached to ours.

Right, I promise that is it for kidcentric posts this week!