Out of India

On our last day in India we were driven to the Marriott Hotel which was one kilometre from the Kochi International airport. We said somewhat sad farewell to Pradeep, invited him to look us up next time he was in New Zealand realising that although he has a fairly good job, is quite well educated and had plans for the future, it is most unlikely that he will ever travel outside of India. The Marriott Hotel was one of the best we have stayed in. Although it is in a dirty dusty climate in India it matches up well to some of the best places we have seen in Australia or South Africa. We enjoyed our last night before flying to Dubai.

 

Emirates flight into Dubai took four hours and as is expected on this airline everything went smoothly. We landed to 34 degrees but it didn't seem that hot, very dry heat probably. Dubai is quite a contrast to India where all the people are dark skinned with black hair but the country is so clean and the skyline was full of skyscrapers. Dubai boasts the tallest building in the World and one gets the feeling that if another was built somewhere else, they would build another to maintain their '....tallest building in the World'. We had a man waiting at the airport with a sign ".......Mr Rob.....", I love that! He quickly taxied us to our lodgings at a bed and breakfast accommodation. Once off the motorways we are into narrow streets with three story stone buildings on either side. Our room was through some even narrower corridors, and we instantly had a feeling of being in Arabia somewhere....I don't really know why because we haven't spent any time in theses Arabic countries before. In saying that there was once a very famous Lawrence in these parts of the World!

We only have 3 nights so had to make best use of a short time so chose to take a day excursion with a guide along the coast. The other option was to take a journey into the desert but it never greatly appealed, it never had very good reports either. So we went northeastwards up the coast driving out of Dubai and into their neighbouring United Arabic Emirate of Sharjah. For a short time we were in Oman as well but that was a back cornerstone of that Sultanate and nobody noticed our whereabouts. Many things are different in Dubai. There are 3 men to every one woman and in one small dormitory village near the main city there are 3000 men to one woman. Little wonder that they are completely covered up when in public! But the country is rich! Serious! When a "native" couple marry the government give the man and the wife $20,000 each. If they have a child then they are given more money and the child is given an allowance from birth that increases with age. This is only for the "native" population which are 1.5 million. The government will also provide a house, all education costs, hospitals and other services in every small town so that the native population can stay in their ancestral area - often in the middle of nowhere. Crime is practically non-existent and when some one is imprisoned they often choose to remain in prison rather than be released! Crazy stuff for a rich country goes on and on. Bus shelters are closed in and air conditioned! It is the 20th most expensive city in the World to live in but I must say my haircut at $4 was as good as any in NZ at $15. Petrol costs 50c a litre and most people have a fairly new car.

 

On our drive we visited a very old mosque and were allowed a quick look inside provided the female was dressed like a local, so barefoot (and almost penniless) Diana visited. Roads are spectacular between the seven emirates, often three lanes with very little hill climbs and no sharp corners.

 

We did find some mountains and spent quite a bit of time looking for forest.....we are still looking for that.

 

 

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Into Paddy Fields 11 - 14 May

We were down on a flat part of the Indian subcontinent and had quite a long day driving to our next destination. A short visit to a botanic garden near the tea garden had trees from all over the World except New Zealand. We will try and arrange for a Kauri seed to be forwarded as soon as we get home.

Back on the flat we entered Kerala, the rice bowl State of India. The roads, towns and houses take a very sudden cleaner more organised appearance. We were heading to Cochin (now called Kochi, by some) and a hotel on a large man made Island from when the British dredged the port. This hotel was pretty flash and we enjoyed the hospitality, the food was excellent and staff most helpful. Diana couldn't help but notice that the restaurant had the same 'loop' of 10 or so quite rocky songs playing at breakfast, lunch and dinner!! Of all the zillion that are available.

 

In the evening we were treated to a local dance show. This was an ancient dance form Kathakali, where there were no singing or dancing, a drum beat only and a commentary. The lone dancer first showed us his mostly facial and eye moves and then acted out a wee story....slipped over both our heads but we applauded loudly at completion....we were the entire audience!

 

We had a day tour of Cochin planned but unfortunately the town was on strike and our driver could not get over the bridge to our hotel. The protesters were exhausted by 3.00pm so Pradeep snuck in and we had an abbreviated half day tour. We got around very quickly now as the streets were pretty much deserted. The strike was Union organised (still quite strong in many parts of India) because the government were not supporting a fertiliser works that was likely to go under without financial assistance. The company has 1200 employees. Not sure if the strike had any effect on the government but it did stuff our day up somewhat. We still had time to see where Vasco de Gama was first laid to rest and also see some Chinese fishing nets and Jewtown. This part of India has had a strong early association with the Portuguese in the 16th century, the French and the English. It is a wealthy corner of the country that boasts the highest literacy rate at 96%.

Our Guide gave us some really interesting social history and explanations for the better life comparatively that people have in Kerala. There are 800 people every square km! and a town every 7 kms but they are not keen on apartment style living - they still appreciate having enough space to grow veggies.

From Cochin we went south to the rice growing area of Kerala and boarded a house boat for an overnight cruise and sleep. The area we visited is known as the Venice of the East, with a labyrinth of waterways that make up the main streets. The stay on the house boat was a highlight of the trip. (One could feel the serenity!) We had a captain, a boat boy and a chef and they were all exceptional in looking after us. There are 1000 of these houseboats on the waterway and it is rated the second most special thing to do in India after seeing the Taj Mahal (by Lonely Planet).

 

 

We have one night left on our tour of Southern India and are at present camped at Turtle Beach. From a quick look that Diana and I had at midday it should be renamed "Crab Beach". We are resting up, drinking the last of our 'Kingfisher', doing a bit of washing and writing a blog. Stay with us, in 48 hours we will be in Dubai for a bit more exploring and it looks like the geocaching will offer a few opportunities.

 

 

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