Goa – need we say more?... Maybe...

Goa's Palolem beach at night

Goa, the holy mecca of Goa Psychedelic Trance music. The origin of it all. A small little state that was hill locked and inaccessible by land for the longest time was a Portuguese colony. Evidence of colonial rule is very evident through every corner and bend as we scootered around.

We stumble in at 4:30 in the morning. We love stumbling in when everything is closed because we like to get screwed in places to sleep. We stumble out of a sleeper bus. Max, our wonderful German friend that we’ve been leap frogging back and forth with already had our accommodation all sorted out for us. We trudge along a beach and shortly arrive in these simple wooden huts. We crash for the night and then wake up to see the beach front.

Monkey gods and boulders

Hampi

Boulders in Hampi

As much climbing as we’ve done, nothing prepared us for the limitless amount of boulders that Hampi provided. The bus ride in from Hospet (the closest big town to Hampi) provided us with a view with the extent of boulder problems that sniffed out.

We get off the bus and tried to find our way to a pre-booked hostel called “Goan Corner”. The first few rickshaw drivers we met explained to us that “The Goan Corner is demolished” – Seriously? Demolished? It was hard to believe. In our Lonely Planet guide book, they explained that rickshaw drivers would say something like that and take you to a “better and cheaper hostel” for you and they get a commission for it.

We shrug it off and truck our way to the ferry to take us across the river where the Goan Corner supposedly was. We march around a huge rice paddy field to find at the end of the rainbow and found *drum roll* the Goan Corner.

Running away from the heat

Ooty Hill Stations

Tea plantations in Ooty

We retreated back into Tamil-Nadu, the first province we entered in the beginning of our India chapter. We retreated to higher grounds, running from the hell fire that’s scorching the plains before the humidity comes to bake it into a sauna. At 3,000 meters, the night air drops to a very comfortable 19 degrees. An inviting change after suffocating 34 degree nights at the bottom of the mountain.

Ooty is the highest hill station in India and one of the most popular. Hill station started with the British trying to find a way to escape the killing heat of the South Indian summers and found that the high mountains provided ample relieve. As already a retreat for the rich, this area is re-known as a tourist area, however, surprisingly not completely destroyed by tourism yet. (thank goodness)

As a British safe haven, it also doubles as their tea plantations. And over the years, this area transformed into a tea plantation capital of South India, only next to Darjeeling in the North.

Forts, Martial arts and dances

Fort Kochin

Kelari Payattu

Arriving in the heat of the afternoon the bus drops us off and we pick up a rickshaw driver to our guest house. Fort Kochin is filled with guest houses. A ferry ride away is Ernakulam where most people are dropped for the train station and bus. Fort Kochin, though, is where you want to be. It buries deep nasty secrets of old European feuds and battles over Indian grounds, including Jewish, Portuguese and Dutch settlements. Most of the fort now are just remnants of a conflicted past, but kept alive with names like “Bastion street” or “Rampart street” – inviting discussion of 16th European fort and city planning.

The Eastern Venice

Alleypey – Mar 8


Not-so-deeply buried in the backwaters of Kerala we dig ourselves out of the Ashram refreshed from Darshan and a short spiritual awakening. We head into the town of Alleypey to find the inlet to the famous backwaters of Kerala. “Eastern Venice” as it’s often referred to as sits lower than sea level. Fresh and salt water mixes through the canals and through its estuaries. They provide romantic get-a-ways with house boats where your hire a personal chef, driver, and porter to satisfy all your luxurious needs. Yes, rich people needs. Which we apparently are now.