India and the Maldives 2018 | The end is near

It's our last day at sea before I begin the long trip home. My return trip is an itinerary all its own. The knock will come at 4 am. Breakfast will be ready, to eat or to take. Then it's onto the fast boat to shuttle to Laamu, where we will wait two hours for our flight to Male. I hadn't actually figured all of this in when I was making travel arrangements so I will be hanging out a local hotel for the day, a kind of day-care for adults before catching the first of three flights that will get me home sometime on Tuesday afternoon. I have no idea how many hours that is and I refuse to count them.

I've had a lazy day mostly aboard the ship. After a restless shloshing about last night I opted out of the before-breakfast snorkel, thinking I would save my limited remaining energy for the last dip of the trip. I spent those early hours just after sunrise quietly enjoying my own private yacht., following the sun from back to front, until it the heat and humidity sent me in search of a breeze and some shade. I went out before lunch, and floated along atop the shallow reefs, where the most colourful fish often hang out. They pop out from between the bits of coral and stare you right in the eye, before darting off. There was a bit of a swell, so I spent a lot of time clearing my snorkel, which is no big deal, but it all added to the rock and roll of my tummy left over from the night.  So after lunch I opted out again, which brings me to where I am now. It's lovely to sit on the second deck in front of the cockpit. The Captain's torqouise leather chair is empty, so we aren't going anywhere, but the dhoni is in, the snorkelers on board, so I think we will pull up anchor soon, and head closer to Laamu for the night.

I am enjoying my day of rest. There hasn't been much of that this trip. The last 7 days have been more relaxing than the first 17. We do have a schedule to keep to, but a nice one. But today I read a book (The Couple Next Door) from the book rack, caught a wee bit of sun (its scorching hot, burning) my hair blowing in the breeze, my eyes occasionally scanning the arc of blue horizon that surrounds us. So close to the equator, and in the middle of Laamu atoll, it's just blue sea all round, interrupted occasionally by the torqouise green of shallow reefs and pristine white sand. A spec of paradise on earth.

Just to yank me from my paradise, a "speedy boat"just went by. Last night one came out to the boat and took an ailing passenger in to Laamu for tests. The patient was a doctor, so he knew what he needed! The speedy boat, I'm  told, was $100 USD, the taxi 12USD, and the ECG, blood work etc...are you ready for this, 66 USD. It's time to get into the transportation business. It is rare though to see anything on the water, let alone a noisy machine. Just a few dive boats and live-aboards like ours, nothing to disrupt the peace.

The bar is open. Wine is on the way.

India and the Maldives 2018 | It's a dhoni

Dhoni. That's the word I didn't know how to spell. Each day after the briefing we board the dhoni and go through what is now a well-established routine. Shorts and T-shirt off, full rasher on, followed by a short rash shirt for extra warmth. Then defog the mask, take a long drink of water, tie my hair up, and get ready to move to the deck. Once we have our spot checked by a diver, we get specific instructions about the current and hazards. Fins on. Go.

We've done that now at least three times a day for six days and I'm still thrilled every time I get in the water. It's warm, anywhere from 83 - 88, but compared to the air temperature which is around 31 or 32 (ok, I know those are different scales but we have Americans on this trip) and humidity feels like 100, a dip in the water is the best thing going.

Yesterday was a full day, more activity than I normally put into a week. I think we were in and out of the water five times. Then we cleaned up and headed to an island for a barbecue. I've never seen a beach so long, nothing but cornstarch white sand forever. The crew set a fine table with candle lighting, a bonfire, and sand sculpture of a whale shark. There was beef and scampi and chicken and a barbecued jack fish, wine and beer, and tons of goodwill and merriment. With the work of shuttling all of that, and us, over to the island, it's an all night affair. And just as we were settling in for the night, the knock came to tell us the whale shark was back so off we went to the deck to watch this amazing creature for another hour or so! Whew.

Margaret and her chocolate layered birthday cake

Here we go!

Margaret...just in case you can't tell

India and the Maldives 2018 | Whale shark and other photos

A whale shark arrived to great  applause. Some photos below, some with the snorkelers in the background to give you a sense of scale.  Not a huge one but big enough!  Most with mouth wide open taking in plankton.

Those are cleaner fish on top.

All you can eat tiny sweet bananas.

Snorkel briefing in the lounge

India and the Maldives 2018 | Eat, sleep, snorkel repeat

That's pretty much our routine. We snack before the morning snorkel, then come back for breakfast. We snooze until the post-breakfast briefing, then back to the water. We come in for lunch some time after noon, then relax until the mid-afternoon briefing. Back into the water we go. If the thought of boredom ever strikes it is soon dispelled but some spectacular citing.

A gentle knock on the door at 615 this morning  said it was time to dress and head to the briefing room where coffee and cookies were laid out for us. I headed for the bananas hanging from the back deck and yanked a tiny sweet banana to tied me over until breakfast. I don't dare have my usual green tea or I will be peeing every five minutes. Not easy with a bathing suit, full rasher,  top to bottom, and a second rash shirt on top. This is the gear we layer on each morning.

First thing this morning we dipped into the water in the middle of a school of banner fish. Black and white and yellow stripes are topped off by a long sweeping fin. The water was amazingly calm, and full of fish, mostly in schools, floating by. There were surgeon fish and fusiliers, parrot fish and more. No frenetic darting among the corals, just calmly passing through our space dodging the multi-coloured two-legged creatures among them. The morning sun cast rainbows onto the coral, and warmed my back like only the sun can. It was quiet, my own easy breathing the only sound I could hear. With a gentle current going our way, I tucked my arms across my chest and floated along with little effort. There were tiny fish, like you might have had in your goldfish bowl as a child, and big fish, like reef sharks, barracudas, and of course turtles.

After breakfast we stopped at a cleaning station and as promised, swam with the rays. They come to the ledge of coral to be cleaned by the cleaner wrasses. I was mesmerized as a giant manta floated up toward us and slowly passed by. A school of maybe a hundred parrot fish passed through our group, a mass of shimmering green, pink and purple. We are quite south, and here the coral is richer but still white-bleached and damaged. The water is usually pristine clear. We are able to see lobster, their white antennae sticking out from among the rocks, and puffer fish, trying desperately to hide from the pesky cameras. I recognize more and more fish each time I go out, but we have experts here, who can take us through a process of progressively narrowing down the options and identifying what we see. And the library has great books, which combined with people's amazing photos, ends up in an engaging game of name that species, or sub-species, or sub-sub....

The guides are amazing in the water. In addition to keeping track of everyone and making sure we are all okay (they ask me often), they will free dive to point something out or to take a photo for someone. When they see something exciting they holler, point, and dive to bring it to our attention. They will do anything to ensure you get a great experience: fix or defog your mask, take your fins and help you up the ladder, teach you to free dive (one spent a fair bit of time with Margaret yesterday helping her to get down), and of course identifying fish.

Must go. Time for the afternoon briefing. So once again I don a wet bikini, grab my water bottle and towel, and head for the doney (dough-knee). I know what you are thinking--I'm a sworn  cover-up girl who hasn't worn a bilini (oops-two glasses of wine at dinner tonight)  in years, but when you have to pee as often as I do, a one-piecer just won't do.

Hilight from this afternoon's snorkel: a nurse shark sleeping in a sunny spot on the bottom, undisturbed by pokes and prods, and camera flashes.

Back, and have eaten. We are all sitting up hoping for a whale shark sighting. The light is on at the back of the boat, and we all have cameras ready. Some are in bathing suits ready to jump in the water. The guides have promised they will ring the bell and knock on doors if one shows up, a whale shark that is. I am in pjs on the back deck; others have taken up dress-circle seats on every deck including the lower one. I'm not planning on jumping in.

India and the Maldives 2018 | Maldives photos

I'm not taking underwater photos and I have  no idea what I can upload so wil drop pics into here as best and as often as I can. It's day 3 I think and have been in the water 7 or 8 times. We go before breakfast which is best because its calm, and then after breakfast and then again sometime. There was a night snorkel last night but we didn't go. The water was rough and I was tired. The snorkelers had a great time. Those of us that stayed back did too, drinking g and t on the deck. Food is fantastic, group is great, lots of fish, not much coral 😒. Planning to sleep on the upper deck tonight under the stars. We have a promised wakeup if anything big arrives at the back of the boat. There is plankton, which attracts small fish, which will possibly attract bigger fish.....

It looks like this in every direction!

India and the Maldives 2018 | In the water and on the boat

This will be short because we are rocking our way on open seas toward a new anchorage wheree we will have dinner and a night snorkel. It's the afternoon of day 2 and already we've been in the water 4 times. We were able to get in yesterday afternoon and everyone was raving about the fish. There Re far too many to speak of but I did see my first black tip shark yesteday but alot of it was getting the routine down and just relaxing and enjoying the scenery. The coral is bleached but the fish are abundant--schools of anemones ( remember Nemo?), lots of parrot fish, countless varieties of angel  fish and butterfly fish. Today we've been in and out of the water three times. The first, before breakfast, was fantastic. There were black tip sharks, we swam along with a turtle, I saw my first scorpion fish, a lobster, bluelipped crabs, it goes on and on. I watched a moray eel puff up for photos this morning too.

Yes photos. We might be the only ones not carrying cameras. It's enough for me to manage my fins, mask and snorkel. The routine is simple and there is lots of help. The crew are fantastic. We have all our gear on the dive boat or doney- I have no idea how to spell that. We just show up when the bell rings, grab outr green towels from the drying rack and our personal water bottles and make our way to the stairs. A crew member takes your stuff, passes it down, you climb down, grab it and go. From there you have help to get your self ready to get in the water. We go in groups of 5 or 6, each with a guide who points out stuff and makes sure everyone gets back to the doney. Thats where they are really so helpful, taking your fins and passing them up, rinsing your gear, hanging stuff up, bringing you juice or a snack, and just generally making sure you have a hreat experience each time you go in the water.

It's a great group of people. Most Re bery experienced snorkellers and have gravelled to places I have never heard of. The food is great. There's no partying as far as I can tell, but then we did have an early snorkel today sp perhap that kept things down last night. But the rule is, when the drinking starts, the snorkeling stops, so that's pretty clear. But this a bar and a bartender on the boat and beer and wine included with dinner so we will see. I found a fellow gin lover. She  smuggled her own in. A bit risky since it is illegal to bring alcohol into the country, among other things, and most Muslims dont drink.


There is a torquise blue lagoon surrounding a strip of land off to my left, nothing but  blue sea to my right. A couple of small boats  are transporting passengers, probably to island resorts. Another island just popped up ahead. A steady breeze is blowing. Lovely. 

India and the Maldives 2018 | Off to the islands

We are here finally. All that is left of India is the faint hint of curry in our clothes, and a little (a lot) of trail dust in our lungs ( and ears and nose-- at least you can scrub those.We toasted her goodbye on the Spicejet flight over with vodka and some strange brand of lemonade. The taste? Not so great, but is served its purpose. We have heard from so many people about the wonderful backwater boat trips. It's tempting to go back, but not so much as to convince me to return any time soon. Perhaps with time my enthusiasm will return. In all pur travels we've never had a disappointment like the houseboat. If you are thinking of going I can certainly tell you who NOT to book your trip with!

My hair is curly again ( but still punk, oops, I mean pink) so we know the humidity is high. And the heat. Drenched all the time. We are boarding the Carpe Vita this afternoon and may or may not get in the water for a short snorkel later this pm. Short is like an hour. Most days it is much longer. There are hard core snorkellers on this trip and it is more than a little intimidating. But we've decided that as newbies we will take all the help and advice we can get. It will just be so nice to be on the water again.

We have paid and limited ( read unreliable) internet access on the boat, so I will try to keep up but not sure if that will be possible. I'm pretty sure the photos will have to wait until I get back here to Male. I have a long day here waiting for my flight home via Sri Lanka, China and Vancouver.

These photos are from the boat trip  as per yesterday's post.

India and the Maldives | The houseboat and getting there

I am sitting on the upper deck of our houseboat, after breakfast of appam (thin rice panckaes) chana masala, the ubiquitous omelette with tomato and onion, toast and jam. The appam is pretty good; since I can't eat the toast I'm puting jam on it and rolling it up like we did with pancakes when we were kids.


Regrettably (too late) the rest of the houseboat is shabby, dirty, and in poor repair. The air conditioning quit at 2 am, a blessing in disguise. The captain who slept on the upper deck last night, didn't notice that the generator had quit. For us it is a ticket off this junk and he is now waiting instructions while the company plans our exit from here and a new itinerary. The cruise through the backwaters is supposed to be fantastic--it is what the afea is known for-- but it might also be a tad boring. In addition to the problem with the air conditioner, the bathroom smells of sewer and diesel, the toolet leaks onto the floor each time it is flushed, and there are gross remnants of the last guests in the shower drain. I won't go on. We insisted we would not spend another night on the boat. Our driver is on his way, and we will stay in Cochin tonight. Enough grumbling.

Sitting here , it's obvious we are in a birder's paradise. The continuous coots and calls, songs and tweets of unseen birds fill the air. Most of the other boats have pulled out already, so the waters have calmed. Purple hyacinths burst forth from weedy patches of green, and up ahead fishermen are stationed on a small island, hard at work. The landscape is dominated by coconut palms, reflecting in the water undisturbed by the gentle movement of the fishing canoes. There is a gentle breeze, but at 930 in the morning it feels like 30 degrees.

The driver has arrived and in lieu of floating down canals we are off on a tour of Cochin. This turns out to be a much better option and we spend the day in the city and end it in a decent hotel. The highlight was lunch: fresh caught red snapper bought from the fishmonger and grilled to perfection at the cafe next door. With french fries 😊 .
PS? Arrived safely in Maldives this afternoon and are at the hotel--just a stone's throw from a pristine white sand beach that feels like talcum powder on the feet.  We sail tomorrow at 2 pm. Seems like a nice group of people.

India and the Maldives 2018 | Ayurveda

We've been seeing evidence of the strong influence of Ayurvedic medicine and health practices since arriving here in India, but nowhere has it been as strong as in Kerala. So today was our day. As soon as we arrived in Thekaddy, our driver dropped us off at his choice from among the dozens of spas offering Ayurvedic treatments. Interesting that he has a favorite and for a moment I thought his commission might be a massage. I fantasized over that for a while! But in the end the bunkroom for drivers was right next door and our hotel, just a half block away, so I guess convenience won the day.

After meeting with the receptionist, a swarthy male who explained the options, we chose the full meal deal. He promised 120 minutes of Ayurvedic bliss, and he wasn't far off. The package included a head and face massage, a full body massage, a special treatment for the first chakra called Shirodhara (more on this later), and a steam bath. We were each ushered into a room, and the doors closed, leaving me with a young woman in a modest purple uniform. She might have been 25. I glanced quickly round the barren room. There was no iPod playing lulling music through a blue tooth speaker. No scented candles, no incense, no words of wisdom on kitschy posters, no lamps putting out soft ambient light. At one end there was a bathroom, at the other a brown painted wooden box, perhaps 4ft by 3ft.  There were two bare wooden platforms or planks, with thin pads, one on either side. No heated mattress pad, no plush pillows, no sheet or fluffy blanket or terry robe to wrap myself in. There was also a pot, attached to an arm that could swing from the side wall out over the table, and I took this to be the oil pot for the Shirodhara. From the tiny spout at the bottom oil would be dripped onto the canyons of wrinkles between my eyebrows.

As I stood naked in the tiny room, awaiting instructions, the woman removed from its package and then placed around my hips, a disposable covering. First she pulled each end of a long tie around me and knotted it at the back, tugging firmly to secure it. Then she reached between my legs and pulled another tie through and fastened it securely at the back.  Are you getting a picture here? The whole thing sat snugly like a well-fitted string bikini, and might have served as one if it were not made of paper, although I suppose if you're going to wear one it doesn't matter what it's made of, it's going to dissolve to nothing sooner or later anyway.

First came the head and face massage to clear the mind and debunk any stress or distress in the head, neck and shoulders. If you've had a good shampoo from your hairstylist you'll know how this feels.
Likewise the long figure-eight strokes around the face and neck were familiar. The difference is in the sensation of being bathed in warm oil, and in the strength and swiftness of her hands. Every stroke is deliberate and firm.

"You okay?" [Yes]

"Now is the body massage".

I lie on my back on the hard wooden plank in anticipation of her hands. Instead, I feel drops of warm oil hitting my skin,  ankle to collarbone. I struggle not to flinch! For the next 15 minutes she works my feet, calves, shins and quads, knees, arms, chest and belly. Long swift strokes intersperse with slaps and chops, pinches and pressure. Her hands glide across my oiled skin, from foot (press, slap, press, slap harder) to shin (ouch!) to knee and thigh, belly ( chop, chop, slap) and chest and back again, only to repeat. I felt like meat on a slab. The backside 20 minutes was much the same as she chopped away at the soles of my feet (I have to walk on those!)! my back and shoulders (ahhhh...ouch....ahhhh) while sweeping firmly in figure-eights up and down, down and up, warm oil being added frequently, intensifying the heat that is already radiating from my skin. Whew, made it.

I turned on to my back for the Shirodhara. It was the most curious sensation--warm  oil dripping onto my forehead. If this was to put me in a trance, it worked. Lest you think this is some sort of quackery, there is published peer reviewed research on this treatment, known to induce an altered state of consciousness (trance), reduce or eliminate anxiety, and potentially create a positive immune response. I'll take it.

I didn't notice when she fired up the steam bath, the innocuous brown box I saw when I came in. When she opened the front door and positioned me on the stool, it crossed my mind that I maybe could have opted out of this part. Then she closed the door, carefully ensuring that my neck fit comfortably in the hole in the top, with my head easily resting on the top. In my sleepy state I could barely keep my head up but the guillotine-like posture was motivation enough to stay alert. Ten minutes later she was wiping me down from head to toe, removing the bikini, now drenched in oil and sweat, wrapping my head and hair tightly with a rag, also sweaty and oily, and unlocking the box that contained my valuables. A tip, and I'm out of here!

We kept those rags on our heads, as required, for a couple of hours. No one looks at you strangely. They know where you've been. A couple of shampoos later, my hair is like (pink) Kerala silk. Which is pretty much how I feel too.

I found this photo after I got home.

India and the Maldives 2018 | Photos from Kerala

India and the Maldives 2018 | Misty Mountain Kerala

Good morning from Misty Mountain. I have some catching up to do. We arrived here after dark last night, and woke surrounded by mountains layered with tea plants. From Udaipur we flew to Mumbai and then on to Cochin where our driver/ guide met us.

We headed straight up here from Cochin. Well not straight at all. Indeed, after the first 15 minutes or so of small cities surrounding Cochin we started the gentle then ever increasingly steep and winding climb to here. First stop: mangos from a roadside stall. They were perfectly ripe and we peeled and ate them with our hands. Then water. Big water. We've been downing jugs of it laced with electrolytes like it was the morning after, which of course it isn't. This is India.

Each small town shows signs of an active tourist industry, although a day of sight seeing we are not entirely sure why. It does seem to appeal to hippies and hikers.  I'm not sure I can tell them apart. Oh, and honeymooners. OMG I've never seen so many couples posing lustfully for selfies.

It's tropical--dense with palm trees, gulleys and valleys. We stopped along the side of the road for a break ( I think our driver needed to cool the engine) and sampled the local tea, hard boiled quail eggs, and something very hot that came from a jar. Even the monkeys couldn't finish it.

As night fell the drive became a crawl, as cars, buses, motorbikes, tutk tuks and trucks snaked their way up the mountain. The down-coming traffic might have ben even heavier until at last we arrived here. This morning I woke to a cool, fresh, misty dawn, the smell of breakfast cooking wafting in the window. The sun popped up at about 7. We've had fluffy rice panckaes for breakfast and are hoping to explore the cardamom plantation behind ( and above) the hotel before out guide picks us up at 9. He has promised a special Kerala style lunch typical of this area, and we have a lot of walking on our itinerary. I think.

Well we've done our sightseeing and at the moment are both suffering the effects of a 3 hour 'safari' (read jeep ride) through some small villages. The morning was more what we expected . We drove through hectares and hectares, row upon row, up and down mountains of mushroomy mounds of tea plants. We learned that the trees grow tall but for commercial harvesting they are kept low and carefully spaced. I cannot imagine picking tea leaves in the heat. It was 34 C or about 95 F this afternoon. But the landscape is remarkable, and we managed to get a feel for the area. We don't have a guide here so mostly our curiosity goes unsatisfied when the driver either doesn't understand us or we don't understand him. We learned a wee bit about the processing of tea, but again even on the English tour it was nearly impossible to follow the guide.

Paying for internet by the minute and it is sooooo slow. I jave my photos off my va era but can't seem to get them to up.oad right now. Will keep trying. And will try to post a bit about Udaipur. We quite enjoyed it.

We are off to dinner. We just learned that there is no drinking in public places. So we can have them bring us liquor from a store I presume, but we would have to drink it in our room!
Maybe not. 

India and the Maldives 2018 | On our way to Udaipur

Yesterday was a hot, dirty but very interesting day. Sometimes I can't quite believe what we jam into an afternoon. The mornings tend to be slow, often driving from city to far away city. Yesterday we walked a wee bit into the streets then returned to our hotel for the remainder. But after lunch where  everyone was playing holi, we headed out south into the desert to visit some rural villages where many of the artisans live and work. According to our guide, Jodhpur has no industry other than the handicrafts. This seems a bit of a stretch, perhaps part of the pitch to encourage you to buy more of what you don't need or want.  We visited a pottery shop, family owned, and watched the owner work his magic with the black clay. At the Bishnoi village they farm, but also prepare opium juice which we were told would cure all our ills. That was worth a try! And we watched a young man weaving a durrah, the flat carpets that this part of India is also famous for. Of course, we had to turned down the opportunity to buy, while admiring the beautiful handiwork. The women and children in the villages are very friendly; they fold their hands into the prayer position and voice a humble namaste. The children like to practice their English: hello, how are you, where are you from, what is your name, goodbye. Check out the round disks of cow dung piled up in store for cooking and heating.

I have lovely pink hair today. It's 

like I visited my hair stylist for foils! I washed and washed but the pink just seems to hang in there. All the other colours are pretty much gone, but not the pink. I'm sure it's high fashion somewhere for someone. Maybe I will try this when I get home.

India and the Maldives 2018 | Holi day in Jodhpur

It is day two of the Holi celebration. Yesterday was the holy day as in spiritual celebration, but the colours started coming out even the night before. But today they are out in earnest, and the young boys especially are coloured a solid mass of mixed green, yellow, pink, purple, red, and who knows what else. Some are carefully decorated on their faces, others just covered head to toe with the fine powder. We have been 'holied' voluntarily a few times now and my hair and face are a mess of colour. It's fun. You can see the delight on the faces as the colour comes flying past.

Early this morning I walked the grounds, or a small part of it. This hotel sits on a huge estate with a man made lake, a golf course, horses, a pool of course, and abundant trees, gardens, birds and other assorted wildlife. After chasing the peacocks, I watched the monkeys drink at the pool and snapped numerous photos of families along the road. On my way back from the lake  I was chased down the hill by one friendly fellow. At least I think he was friendly and just looking for food, perhaps in payment for the pics. That would be pretty common here.

This  afternoon we are off to a Bisnoi village by truck. The Bisnoi are an indigenous tribe, sort of. Technically they don't qualify for indigenous, but they have withdrawn from Hinduism in favour of a caste-less society. They are known for their environmental stewardship. We are advised that the jeep trip will be hot and dirty. I am already anticipating the shower when I get home.

We are hoping our driver will take us somewhere for dinner. The food is great everywhere, teeming with spices of many kinds, each hotel and chef offering its own secret masala, sometimes hot and sometimes not. As we have travelled away from Delhi the same dishes are more heavily seasoned making them very rich for our tummies. I'm managing by sticking to a pretty western breakfast of tea and an omelette, but those lunches and dinners are threatening. Three more days and we head south. Maybe a change will also mean a break for the digestive system; but french fries are starting to look pretty good!