Lazing on the backwaters

I know what I want to eat: a big Publix sub with loads of veggies or a Greek salad. And I guess I could have a grilled cheese, too. I wasn't getting sick of Indian food, until I got sick and then ate Indian food for a week. I think I might need a little break this weekend. Not that ill find that in Kerala, which is supposed to have amazing coastal Indian food. But maybe tonight before we get on our bus (let's pray this bus ride goes okay) we can have some American food.

The plan for this weekend. Take an overnight bus to Alleppey (which is in the state of Kerala) and then stay 3 days/2 nights at Palmy Lake Resort (evil evil place, you will see in several paragraphs.) Kerala is famous for its' backwaters- a chain of inland lakes and canals parallel to the Arabian Sea. We will do what we do best- lay around in hammocks, read books, relax, eat, get some aryuverdic massages, spend some time on a houseboat. Then take a train back and arrive in Bangalore Tuesday morning in time for The Wedding!

So that was yesterday afternoon, and then I accidentally fell asleep for 5 hours and woke up at 530 pm and Ale and I had to get our lives together to go to Kerala. Blogging hasn't been the best this week.

The good news, I made some grilled cheese at The Thackers and it was delicious. Mmmmm. I had 2. I was kind of dreading the bus ride since I had accidentally taken the nap. But since I had no choice, it was off to the bus we went at 830. It of course didn't leave until 10 pm but it turned out to be nicer than the first bus we took to Madikeri in Coorg. This was a Volvo bus which basically meant it was nicer. It even had AC. Which then got annoying since the AC for the whole bus was right next to our seats and my nose was cold. So we got all comfy (in 150 degree backward position) and I started to daydream.

Now many people in India love using their horns, almost as a directional. Like "hey I'm coming up to your right" or "hey I'm passing you" or "hey I'm behind you" or "hey I'm driving". There are lots and lots of horns. But usually the buses don't use horns when they are outside of Bangalore. Well, that's hard for me to say since I'm usually asleep by this point in the bus-ride. But our bus driver, he was using his horn like he wasn't driving a night bus of 30 people trying to sleep. So it is just going on and on and since I'm not tired, it is making it hard for even me to sleep. I daydream a little longer and then all the sudden I had fallen asleep and it was now 1 am and we were at some bus stop station with a bunch of other buses and it was so hot (apparently the AC was now off) and all I could hear was the clanking of tools. I looked at Ale and we laughed. Apparently our bus driver decided the middle of the night was the opportune time for an oil change or to fix the brakes or who knows what. After what felt like forever, the bus finally starts up again and I magically fall back asleep.

The next time I looked at my watch was like 9 am. I took some more short naps and we finally arrived around 11 to Alleppey. As ale and I get into a rickshaw in Alleppey, we go to call the resort to give our driver directions and the lady proceeds to tell us she has given away our room. We booked it 2 weeks in advance, called to confirm the day before, and this witch gives away our room because our bus doesn't show up on time! What bus in India shows up on time?! So after some plots to ruin her tripadvisor reviews, Ale and I decide to get a quick bite to eat and them go find an Internet cafe so we could figure out where to stay. And by we, I mean Ale, since this type of scenario leads to panic attacks on my part.

We ended up finding a nice, beautifully preserved old homestay, Tharavad, with lots of teak everywhere and decided we would stay there for the first night and then head over to a more cottage-y place the next night (it was booked for tonight.) We organized a boat ride on the backwaters and were off at 2 pm to laze on the covered boat for the rest of the afternoon. We went in and out of lots of canals and lakes and saw lots of little houses dotted along the canals. The women were doing the washing in the canals in the afternoon and by the evening, the men were coming out to bath. We also saw a lot of houseboats strolling along. This is the real draw to Kerala, and if Ale and I weren't just pretending to be doctors, we would be staying in one of these. But since we don't have jobs, we are doing it the backpackers way. And it is still just as beautiful to be on a small little boat with chairs and chaise lounges and to get to see the beauty of the backwaters. At one point we stopped off at a restaurant (in the midst of the houses) and got some amazing prawns in some kerala curry with amazing coconut rice. I can see why everyone raves about the food here.

It is so neat to be able to visit such different towns in such different parts of India. Before coming to India, I was so naive. I barely understood the concept that India was made of a number of different states, let alone realize how completely different the cultures are in each one. Kerala is so different than Karnataka. And even in Karnataka, we have seen how Coorg varies from Hampi from Bangalore. Here in Alleppey, the men all wear these knee length skirts. These are rarely seen in Karnataka.

And on that note, I'm going to get Ale off the phone and to go get dinner!