Friday, December 25, 2009

Tuesday – A much longer day than anticipated (Cape Comorin)

Tuesday – A much longer day than anticipated (Cape Comorin)

This morning we got up early. We had to get an early start for a trip down through Kerala and to the Southern most tip of India. Why? Because that is where 3 major bodies of water all gather in one spot. It is on this spot that you can see the sun rise in the east and stay all day to see the sunset in the west. To the east you have the Arabian Sea. To the west you have the Bay of Bengal and to the South you have the Indian Ocean. Three unique tides that converge at the same location. No where else in the world does this occur.

Our bus driver told us that it would take about 5 hours to get there. But we planned to make a few stops on the way. First stop was Thirvandrum. This is the capital of Kerala. This is where Blessy's Aunt and Uncle live. She fed us lunch, and we washed up and and used western toilets! One great thing about this Auntie's house was screens for all the windows. This was the first place I had seen that! That is the one thing missing at our place. It would be so nice to throw open the windows at night and let the cool air in. One problem – you will let in every mozzie and other creepie crawlie in as well. So we suffer in the heat with our ceiling fan on high.

After this stop we stopped by Abe's Aunt's house. Abe's uncle passed away the week before we arrived here in Kerala. Abe and Blessy wanted to give their condolences. This was a super quick stop with Ed and I staying in the bus with all the kiddos. One problem – It was hot on that bus, no air conditioning. So without the bus moving, we were dying. Thankfully it was a 10 minute stop.

Once the visiting concluded we began our journey on farther south. By my estimation we had traveled an hour and a half to reach Thirvandrum. So we should have had another three and a half to four hours to go. Ha, ha, ha! By the time we reached our destination it was a total of 9 hours. Granted we still had to drive back. Oh this was not good. It was closing in on dinner time. We stopped at the Cape and walked by foot down to the seaside. Everything I had every heard about life in India came true here. Watch your step – fecal matter and urine everywhere. The smell was like an outhouse and a dump at the same time. Because that is what it was! There were people everywhere. They were preparing for a big Hindu festival. Of course we are the only white people. So we were approached by many beggars for money. There were booths of trinkets for sale everywhere. Sadly, it was an overcast afternoon and there would be no sunset for us. My first inclination was this place is very dark. Not as in amount of daylight but spiritually oppressive. When we arrived, I was ready to leave. Thankfully, that is pretty much how it all went down. We were there for about one hour. What can I say? Got the photo! Got the Conch shell! Will get the question right on “Are you Smarter than a Fifth Grader!”

We loaded up the bus and started looking for a restaurant. Our driver knew of just the place – oh great! I didn't trust this driver any more. Oh, how I longed for Bola and Boscar. These were are drivers in Chennai. They were the best. To give you an idea of how bad it was – rickshaws were passing us on the street. So we waited while he maneauvered us to our dinner stop. Of course we asked for a place with Western toilets. I don't think he quite understood. We didn't mean West India toilets. So once again I found myself holding it! And holding it and holding it and holding it! I am so glad God gave me and my girls elephant bladders. I wasn't even in the mood for eating. I think all the jostling in the bus and smells of the day had pretty much taken away any appetite I had for food. Our quick stop ended and we were winding our way north for what seemed like an eternity. The good news – there were no roaches on the bus. For I don't think I could of handled another 15 hours of transportation with roaches. I have that to look forward to next Wednesday. One other nice thing we did on this trip – Ed and I started listening to Mark Driscoll's series on Song of Soloman. We have two messages down. Many more to go. So far it is very entertaining and thought provoking.

Our day began at 6:30am. We finally arrived back to Papa's place at 1:30am. Whew – long day.

1 comment:

  1. Sands Casino | Play Online | SEGATIC PLAY
    Enjoy the best slots and table games with the Sands Casino online casino. We offer the latest slots and casino games, plus a 마리나 베이 샌즈 카지노 쇼미 더벳 live entertainment experience.

    ReplyDelete