Ali Baba & His Madame Do Morocco

“Think of the world you carry within you” Rainer Maria Rilke

In India Mike was Maharaja, in Egypt & Jordan everyone thought he was a native and here in Morocco Mike is Ali Baba. How funny to be walking down the street and hear local after local call out “Ali Baba, come and visit my shop”, with a big smile and a thumbs up. Apparently Mike’s beard makes him look like Ali Baba, the Robin Hood of Morocco. What a great country to end our journey in. It’s a bit like India where you feel as though you’ve warped back in time. The spoken languages are Arabic and French and that’s pretty much it. Who would have thought that Morocco being so close to Spain would have such a big French influence?

Fes, not to be confused with Fez the Turkish hat, is what you imagine when you think of Morocco. A maze of narrow streets, we were told between nine and twelve thousand in the old city, key hole architecture, old Riads with beautiful courtyards, doors inside of doors, donkeys pulling carts, fresh meats including Camel hanging from hooks, chickens squawking, people praying and hand made goods being sold everywhere. Vegetarians beware; this is a meat eating country. Chicken or lamb Tajine, roasted chicken with frites, camel meat burgers, pigeon or fish Bastilla, and Moroccan tea so sweet it’s guaranteed to rot your teeth as you can’t help but notice from all the toothless smiles.

Marrakech is bigger and more modern. Each night Djemaa el-Fna , the big square in the Medina, becomes a fantastic fair with stalls serving traditional street food including Moroccan soup, lambs head, snails, all kinds of skewers and of course couscous. There are snake charmers with live Cobras, fortune tellers, healers and plenty of dancing & music. After a wide sampling we, of course, were interested in learning how to make all the delicious food we’d been eating so it was time for one more cooking class. First we did a trip to the market to choose the fruits, vegetables and chickens, still alive that is. There was no doubt they were free range and organic. Mike was fascinated by the whole “off with the head” thing while Carin diverted her eyes. Ten minutes later we had two freshly plucked, clean birds ready for the Tajine & Bastilla. It was back to the yellow and turquoise and courtyard in our own riad where we spent the next three hours slicing and dicing. Although the chef spoke very little English she managed to instruct us with ease. It was delicious!!!

No matter where we are the water and beach always call to us. The laid back and charming seaside port city of Essaouira was a beautiful end to this journey. The people of Morocco are incredibly warm and friendly and extremely proud of their country. This is displayed in their traditional crafts, including pottery, leather goods, carpets, wood carving and metal working passed on from father to son, generation to generation. They pride themselves on being tolerant and welcoming to all.

REFLECTIONS
It’s amazing how quickly ten months has passed since we hugged Hannah goodbye at DIA with a one way ticket to Bangkok and the rest yet to be determined. One thing we know for sure is how fragile life is and that there really is only today. Rachel’s love for travel and adventure was our inspiration and the ten months away was our time to heal. We know our lives will never go back to “normal”, but we are moving towards a new “normal” with peace, love, happiness and laughter. We felt Rachel’s presence everywhere, on the beaches in Bali, in the colors of India, with the animals of South Africa and mountains of Nepal. She painted the sky with the most beautiful sunrises & sunsets and was there by our side to guide us when we were lost. It will take time before we fully realize all that we have experienced but there are a few things we know to be true. Our world is amazing and there is beauty everywhere. It is in the mountains and at the beach. You can find loveliness in the sands of the desert, the clay of the outback and the scrub of the bush. Your eyes can see it in the rice terraces and rolling green hillsides. It doesn’t matter if it’s the colors of a giraffe, a flower in bloom or the night sky filled with stars. The mind quiets and the heart beats a little faster when you stand before the Taj Mahal, notice the faces carved into the temples of Angkor Wat, see the Buddhas glowing with sunlight at Borobudur and make the journey into the hidden valley of Petra. It is the people with their open hearts and big smiles that touched our souls, how they reached out to us, inviting us into their homes, offering a cup of tea or a place to spend the night. We feel blessed to have shared these experiences with some of our dear friends, An, Ed and Nicole, Sue, Dani and Kim, and with family, Lee, Marcia, Gerri and Mia. Our journey was made complete with Jess and Hannah’s presence. We hope that our stories and pictures elicited a smile, a laugh or even a tear. Thank you for taking the time to be part of our journey.

A final shoutout to our support team:
*Chuck and Chris for keeping the business in check and being so supportive
*The Teschners for taking excellent care of our cars and storing Hannah’s stuff
*Lee for all things technical including an I Pod, phone and portable speakers
* Marcia and Gerri for amazing travel expertise
* Sue for taking such good care of Hannah
*Hannah for getting yourself ready for semester abroad, no easy task, and taking such good care of us while we were with you in South Africa
And last, but certainly not least Jess for everything else and we mean everything, including Gus. You are amazing!

“If travel truly is in the journey and not the destination, if travel really is an attitude of awareness and openness to new things, then any moment can be considered travel” Rolf Potts

With love,
Small Travelers

The Bush

We can't bring you the smells and sounds but here are a few of the sights of our Safari, intoducing the stars of Addo Elephant Park and Kruger National Park.

Lekker South Africa

Touching down in Cape Town on April 14th, also known as Hannah’s birthday, was the start of our journey through the country of South Africa. We arrived a bit wobbly from the 17 hour flight but ready to help our baby girl turn 21, knowing she needed her parentals around to keep her in check.. NOT, as she celebrated this milestone. Reality is we brought the ice cream and then headed back to our hotel for a little recovery time and Hannah and her friends partied on, dancing the night away. Then it was time for a little hard core sightseeing. With Hannah as our guide, an excellent guide we must say. We drove into the city for a walking tour starting at Charley’s Bakery and then the District Six Museum, our real introduction to the tragedy of Apartheid includining the history of the pass laws and the beginning of total segregation forcing black families to move out of their homes and into the townships. Then a trip to Robben Island where Nelson Mandela spent 18 of his 26 years in prison and finished the day checking out the shops at the Waterfront. To lighten things up a bit we spent the next few days exploring the many beautiful beaches along the cape. Camps Bay where you’ll find the rich & famous , Boulders beach home to the African Penguin colony, Kalk Bay for the best fish & chips ever and *Mzoli’s a place we won’t soon forget.
*Hannah, wanting us to experience a real taste of SA, said Mizoli’s on a Sunday is a must but left out a few minor details like; Mzoli’s is located in Gugulethu township, not the safest neighborhood in Cape Town, she wasn’t exactly sure how to get there and that this is an all day party packed to the gills with people from the townships, mostly under 30. Here’s how it works, first you wait on line for 45 minutes to pick out your meats (chicken, chops & sausage) don’t forget the special sauce and a side of pap, take your bowl of raw food, wait on another line to hand over to the grillers and then head out to the back yard where the party is raging. Two plus hours later, you make your way back inside to pick up your food, fight your way back to the table with a bowl of perfectly barbecued meats and enjoy the feast, every finger licking drop, eating with your hands and without napkins while listening to great music and drinking beer. We loved it. The food was fantastic and the people were great.
With Hannah now of legal drinking age we thought a weekend trip to the wine country was in order. The vineyards of Franschoek & Stellenbosch are home to some of South Africa’s finest wineries and only a 45 minute drive from Cape Town. The towns are charming and the countryside beautiful. We spent Saturday visiting a winery known for its sparkling wines where the proprietor was delighted to give us a cellar tour, sabrage (slice open a bottle of bubbly with a sabre, quite the trick) and then partake in six different tastings, eat a delicious lunch at a small vineyard just outside of town and then watch a chocolate making demonstration at a little chocolate shop. Hannah loved the wine tastings, Mike thoroughly enjoyed the lunch and Carin's fav wasof course the CHOCOLATE!
You can’t fully understand S. Africa without seeing a township. Unfortunately the majority of white South Africans have never visited one, but Hannah highly recommended doing so after spending a weekend in a township with a family. We met Siviwe our 27 year old guide who took us into the Langa Township. We spent two hours walking and talking, visited a high school, traditional healer, shebeen (home brew) and ended at the Guga S’Thebe Arts and cultural center. We were so touched we returned the next day with Hannah to watch the Happy Feet dance troupe perform traditional gum boots dancing. Siviwe volunteers his time teaching this lost art to children six to fourteen years old, giving local kids an alternative to wandering the streets. Definitely one of our highlights.
A few of the other things we managed to fit in worth mentioning were the scenic Garden tour up the coast, Addo Elephant park and a hike up Lions Head to prove to Hannah we really could do some serious hiking after all that bragging about Nepal. It turned out Mike managed to slip on the rocks and Carin turned Hannah’s 35 minute record into an hour and fifteen which Hannah found quite hilarious.
South Africa is a total contradiction. There is so much natural beauty, Cape Town’s Table Mountain, endless beaches, rugged coastlines, pine forests and the amazing bush. There’s such a strong sense of culture, art, dance and music. The food is delicious and the people are warm and kind. Yet, this beautiful landscape is still marred by Apartheid. The majority of the population, Blacks, Colored and Asians live in shacks with outhouses and no running water. This is a country that has the largest gap between rich and poor, twenty one percent unemployment resulting in a high crime rate and one of the highest HIV/Aids numbers in the world.

Like the rest of the world S. Africa has its challenges but we found it to be a fantastic country, buzzing with excitement about the up and coming World Cup. Sorry we won’t be around to enjoy it! Lastly we would like to say our visit to this country was even more special because we got to spend time with Hannah.

One Big shoutout to Jackie & Mark for an amazing dinner on the Waterfront and for thinking of Hannah while visiting Cape Town. We saw the Big Five but no Cheetah.

In šāʾ Allāh

Meeting MGM as we like to call them otherwise known as Marcia, Gerri and Mia in Egypt was just what the doctor ordered. Marcia had prepared the most amazing itinerary with the perfect mix of sightseeing and adventure including a few nights in luxury accommodations, what a treat. Gerri brought with her the essentials, more hair product for Carin, books and clothes, a few sweet treats, and a Woody Allen straight from the Carnegie Deli for Mike. Mia brought her pink swim goggles, plenty of hugs and kisses, tons of fun, and her amazing traveling spirit. The best part was that we got to spend 15 days with three of our most favorite people. Staying with tradition we like to give our guest travelers the option of sharing their experience, Here's what Marcia, Gerri and Mia had to say;

Gerri -

What comes to my mind most about Egypt & Jordan:
How easy and wonderful it was to travel with Carin & mike. Now, this wasn't an easy trip and there could have been many opportunities for crankiness....try to imagine in just over 2 weeks doing the following:
*traveling on planes not only in Egypt but going to another country (Jordan), more than a few 3 hour van rides in the middle of the desert, taxi rides that made NYC look tame, camels, donkeys, horses, a jeep ride that actually felt like a camel, horse & buggy rides, an over night train where Marcia was petrified and thought her life was over while Carin snored throughout the entire night, snorkeling in the (rough) Red Sea and seeing some of the "BEST" fish of Mikes life, a 3 day cruise, ferries, falukas (Egyptian sailboats)...we were exhausted!
*in addition to these modes of transportation we: listened to one too many tour guides, negotiated with the locals which was no easy task & actually got into one too many arguments over 10 cents, saw more temples & tombs than all of Asia combined, got up frequently at 4, 5 & 6 in the morning because they wanted you to see a sight before sunrise and Carin was ALWAYS on time, dragged Mike to one too many souks, ate more hummus & baba than Mike & Mia would care to remember...while listening to Carin, Marcia and myself moan with delight as we asked for more (we began to look like chickpeas and all of us would agree if we don't eat any of the middle eastern dips for about a year we'll be ok)
Marcia and I have been rating our trips (1 to 10, 10 being the highest) for many years. Its not always so easy to do when you have such diversity in a country and Egypt was one of these countries. We've included Mia in our rating system and this is Mia's version:

*Mia gave the food a 4 (I think she being generous since her least favorite food is hummus, yogurt & eggplant)
*Seeing the Pyramids an 11!!!!
*Traveling with Aunt Carin & Uncle Mike an 12!!!!
We tried to explain that the rating system can't go higher than a 10 but she insisted on the 11 & 12 and quite frankly we couldn't disagree.
Our trip was filled with adventure...and while this type of trip wasn't completely different to many of the journeys Marcia and I have had traveling around the globe, what was different was traveling with another family. Marcia and I have never been good traveling with groups & tours. We have always been independent travelers that relish our trips and have always traveled so well together that we've felt too selfish in the past to include others. Traveling with people can be complicated....and this type of trip warrants complication. Not many could keep up with us and what was sooooooooooooo wonderful was how Carin & Mike wanted to do everything (except for the hot air balloon ride!)
What we will remember most is how awesome it was to travel with them. It was such an added bonus to our trip and for Mia. Being in NY, Mia doesn't get to see her Aunt & Uncle very often and when she does there is always family around and lots of other people. This was 2 1/2 weeks of just Carin & Mike and Mia fell in love with them and ended up having a major crush on her Uncle Mike....we all know what a "kid" he can be and Mike was always up for splashing in a pool. He even learned to apologize! When he would "rough house" a bit too hard Mia would tell him "Uncle Mike, if you don't learn to say you're sorry you're not going to have many friends..." Mia connected to her Aunt & Uncle in a way that will change her life. Get ready Carin & Mike because she is planning her visit in Boulder and yesterday asked if she could bring her roller skates when she comes!
We ended our trip in Jordan saying goodbye with tears & hugs we didn't want to part...and we were jealous that they were continuing without us!
Our trip was AWESOME!!!

Marcia -

Most cultures have their heyday, their golden years. Britain had The Empire when the sun never set. Italy had the renaissance where they created an amazing body of art and literature. America had the 20th century during which the invention of the toaster-oven helped catapult us to world dominance.
Egypt is no different. Their civilization peaked over 4500 years ago when the pyramids were built. It is been downhill since then. Even though we traveled through Egypt thousands of years past the country's prime, this didn't detract from the quality of our trip one bit. Gerri, Mia and I just returned from 2 and 1/2 amazing weeks with Carin and Mike touring the Nile from top to bottom and then jetting over to the Rose City of Petra, Jordan.
We can't deny that when we first meet up with Carin and Mike in Cairo they were a little bit... how should we say?...tired. They had just finished up two grueling months in the most unforgiving of destinations, India, followed by a trek in the Himalayan Mountains of Nepal. If you question the challenge of the former destination, rent Slumdog Millionaire. If you question the physical demands of the latter, read "Into Thin Air." You'll begin to understand.
Thankfully, we came armed with the sustenance required to rejuvenate them both. For Mike, we brought a chilled "Woody Allen"--a 2 lb. sandwich from Carnegie Deli containing corned beef AND pastrami on rye with that kind of deli mustard that you can only get in NY. For Carin, it was the largest container of Lanza Leave-In Hair Conditioner permitted by international airline regulations. Both reveled in their gifts and immediately got a spring back in their step.
As expected our travels were diverse, fulfilling, and a ton of fun. We managed to squeeze in seeing the wonders of the world between meals. Some of the highlights included:
-camel riding at the pyramids. Of course, our guide tried to lead our caravan across the parking lot (the shortest distance) as opposed to across the dessert behind the pyramids (the scenic route) until we lodged a formal complaint with the camel dispatcher.
-the view from our hotel in Giza--the framed pyramids under a full moon. They were so close you could touch them from the balcony
-horseback riding in the dessert behind the pyramids. Our proprietor was a swarmy stable owner named Nasser who spent the entire ride trying to coerce Mia into joining him on HIS horse. Not for unsavory purposes, but rather so that he could charge us for a 3rd horse.
-Watching Mike give Mia diving lessons in every pool along the Nile. (she now knows how to dive)
-being stuck for 2 hours in "Polyester Alley" in Cario, with the locals, with no side streets for us to escape
-watching Mia get a henna on her hands at the infamous Fishaway cafe in the 1000- year old souk, Khan El Khalili
-learning that every restaurant in the country of Egypt was NOT closed on March 28th for a national holiday. The same day, that ALL tourist souvenir shops conveniently remained open for business
-Negotiating for EVERYTHING from bottled water to hookahs to table clothes ("cotton egyptian") to hibiscus tea to rides in unmetered taxis to strangers wanting "baksheesh" on the street for allowing us to take their photo (Carin refused)
-seeing the 3500 year old hair and fingernails on the mummy of Ramses II (aka-Yul Brenner) in the Egyptian Museum and then seeing his masterpieces at Abu Simbel and Karnak Temple
-our 4 day/3 night Nile cruise. We opted for the less expensive cabins which were actually BELOW the water line (a cabin that Judy and Joe would never tolerate)
-Carin's love of jewelry on the felucca leading to an impromptu jewelry show that rivaled The National Jewelry Show at the Javitz Center
-Snorkeling in the infamous Blue Hole in the Red Sea. Once we walked past the tombstones of divers who "didn't make it", it was actually a mind-blower.
-Petra at Night...and during the day
-Being with Mike when he saw "the best fish ever" during our final snorkel in Dahab. Yes, Carin chose to sleep in that morning.
But nothing beat, simply traveling with Carin and Mike. It was 2 and 1/2 weeks of quality time spent together that we will never forget, and always cherish. Thank you both for an amazing trip. We love you.

Shoutouts:

-MGM you are AWESOME! Can't wait till our next adventure.

- Brit, Sorry sweetie but we're just going to miss you in Morocco by a week. Let us know where to go. See you at Mike's Cantina.

- Alexa, So glad you're enjoying our blog we were definitely inspired by your travels.

- Lauren, Definitely stop by when you're in town this summer. we always love to see you.

- Jess, your the greatesttttt!

- Hannah, Our amazing little tour guide. We now have a new day to add to our top ten.

-To All, Happy Spring and see you soon. In šāʾ Allāh

note: (In šāʾ Allāh - is a word commonly used which means God willing in Arabic.)

Namaste

Namaste, " I honor the spirit in you which is also in me", a beautiful greeting that introduced us to the people and glorious mountains of Nepal. We spent 15 days in this beautiful country. Two days preparing, eight days trekking and 5 days recovering. After climbing Uluru, tramping the Abel Tasaman & Queen Charlotte and hiking the hillsides of Sap pa we really thought we were ready for the Himalayas. Boy were we mistaken. Even with a porter carrying the brunt of the load, in flip flops, we still were huffing and puffing after three hours straight up hill and that was just the beginning of day one. Each day there after was pretty much the same until the last day when we started our decent, 3200 steps down in just the first hour. There were rewards, sunrise at the top of Pune Hill (killer 5:00AM climb) with a magnificent, panoramic view of the Annapurna Range including Machhapuchhare, known as Fishtail and the Dhaulagiri, peaks towering over 24,000 ft., beautiful rhododendron forests of red and pinks and tea houses cooking up delicious Tibetan bread smothered in honey. Our stay in Kathmandu was short but a great place to recuperate, eat a little western food and visit Bhaktpur a UNESCO World Heritage site, the most well perserved medieval city which turned out to be an unexpected delight anda great way to end our adventure in Nepal. So we say to all of you NAMASTE!

This is India

Our journey through India continued a bit auspiciously as we arrived at the train station in Cochin to find out that the overnight sleeper train we had booked left for Goa the day before. Trains in India are the main source of transportation used by millions of people each day and have to be booked pretty far in advance. Luckily we found a supervisor with enough English and a can do attitude to help us secure 2 new tickets on another train leaving that evening. Of course the first tickets were non refundable and now we were in 3rd class, 6 people to a birth. That means 14 hrs, 3 bunks high on each side and not enough room to sit up. That’s when we met one of our bunk mates Nitin, a very nice young man from India on his way home to Delhi. We chatted it up for several hours in the early morning before the train finally arrived in Goa, and as travelers often do exchanged info and said goodbyes. Three or four days later we were surprised to receive a text message from our train buddy, offering so graciously to be our host when we arrived in Delhi. We thanked him and explained that we already had hotel arrangements and a driver scheduled to meet us at the airport. Nitin insisted that we stay the night in Delhi with he and his family (mother, father and younger sister), have a traditional home cooked meal and get a good night’s rest. The offer was too hard to resist so we changed our plans and were greeted at the airport by Nitin and his dad. We had the most wonderful evening, eating, laughing and talking about India and our travels. The next morning our driver Deepak, who we would be spending the next fifteen days with picked us up and our magical journey through the state of Rajasthan began. Each day started with “Good morning Carin ji, how are you, are you ok?” (Ji pronounced like the letter G is added to the end of a name to show respect .) Every time we were amazed, bewildered or sometimes disgusted by what we were seeing, smelling or tasting Deepak would say, “this is India”, when we narrowly avoided head on collisions which was often the case he would say, “don’t worry this is my job”, when we arrived at our destination and before leaving us to explore on our own he would say, “this is India use your mind”, and when we found a hotel in the guide book and asked if he had heard of it he would say, “very nice, cheap and the best, you decide.” Needless to say we really liked Deepak. Rajasthan has kingdoms, palaces perched on hill tops protected by incredible forts, royal families, Maharajahs, mosques and temples. You feel as though you’ve been dropped into an elaborate movie set and this couldn't be real.... people using camels and water buffalo for transportation, goats crossing the “highway” and we use that term loosely, followed by a goat herder dressed in a traditional longyi, men with colorful turbans, women in beautiful saris, the “Holy” cows wandering around the streets, eating everything, except grass, and leaving patties all over, 400 year old Haveli’s with the most elaborate facades, entire cities painted blue, pink and yellow with narrow winding streets bordered on both sides by endless shops and stands and roof top restaurants with incredible views that come alive at night when the sun begins to set. Traveling through the state of Rajasthan is like being in a fairy tale.

After saying good bye to Deepak Delhi became our hub for the next few days. We thought we would relax, take care of a few logistical things and see a few of the sights, Red Fort, Mosque and Presidents house before heading north to Rishikesh. Wow were we wrong. Delhi is a major city in the midst of a massive renovation for the 2010 Commonwealth games and under very tight security. The traffic under normal conditions is insane, but imagine now with a new subway line being added, it’s absolutely mind boggling. So we spent what seemed like the brunt of our time entangled in endless lines at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, travel agency and Train Station. Delhi under the best of circumstances can be quite challenging, but as always we did find time to relax, enjoy the shopping (Fabindia Carin’s new fav) and some delicious delectables.

Rishikish a destinations for Hindus and spiritual seekers, became very popular for tourists in the late 70’s after the Beatles spent some time in one of the Ashrams. Besides the Unique Lives and Experience ladies does anyone know the story behind the Beatles song "Dear Prudence"? It's a small city with the Ganges river running through where you can revitalize your soul with yoga and meditation and even a little white water rafting. We were fortunate to be in town for the Holi festival which takes place all over India. Needless to say it was quite an experience.

For Hindus Varanasi is the holiest city on earth and our last stop in India. This is a city where the most private matters are publicly displayed, were many come to die so that they can be cremated on the Ganges, stopping the cycle of reincarnation. It is a place that will remain etched in our memory.

This is India where;
- ‘No rules is the rule’ Deepak, driver extraordinaire
- Shah Jahan built one of the worlds most beautiful buildings for his 2nd wife who died giving birth to their 14th child, the Taj Mahal, a monument to love

- one person stops to help and seconds later there’s a crowd, listening, head bobbing and offering a little advice
- “ladies” and “gents” have separate ticket counters

- the whole family including babies and grandparents go to the theater to watch late night Bollywood movies eat samosas, talk, laugh and sing along to all the songs
- taxi and rickshaw driver will never admit that they just don’t know

- you can stand on the roof of a building admiring the view and have a man drinking tea come up and tell you about your beautiful Aura

- on any given night you will fall asleep to the sounds of chanting, horns blowing, motor scooters zooming by and dogs barking

- littering, spitting and public urination are common place
- you will be invited into someones home or shop to have a cup of masala chai tea
- not only does a sweet or salty Lassi taste great but also helps you to fall asleep

- everthing is a negotiation
- very small children beg for money and food

- when you least excpect it and really need it someone gives you a big hug
- groups of girls and women love to have their pictures taken
- walking or crossing the streets is always a challenge due to the cows, elephants, goats, pigs, monkeys, camels, dogs cars, buses, motorcycles, bicycles, trucks, carts, and PEOPLE

-no doesn't mean no it just means try harder

-1.2 Billion celebrate Holi by throwing paint powder all over each other

- on the Ganges cremations, bathing, washing clothes and religious ceremonies are all happening at the same time

- people look at what they do have and not what they don't

- the food is incredible!!!

This is India where religious belief is a daily celebration of faith and commitment.

We are throughly exhausted by our six facinating weeks in India, a country unlike any other.

Shoutouts...

-to the Anand family, our amazing hosts in Delhi. Thank you

-Hannah, your adventures in Capetown sound fantastic

-Jess, keep on juggling-job, school, dogs, finances both your and ours, friends and Rich. Did we forget anything?

-Jan, we continue to love hearing from you on the blog

-MGM see you in Egypt

- Mom and Joe, miss you a ton!

- Lee we know exactly what you were talking about

- to the rest of our faithful followers we miss you all very much

South India

Carin's brother Lee, our other travel advisor, who spent 6 weeks in India, was encouraging us to start in the south and work our way north. His last bits of advice before we parted ways in Thailand were, (1) don’t wear open toed shoes because of the cow...(2) don’t brush your teeth with the water, you will be sick for weeks (3) the south can get really hot so it's a good place to start and finished with how much he loved the people and food and wished he was going back with us. So off we went to Kerala, in the southern part of India. There are a few things you immediately notice upon arrival, how beautiful the women are in their colorful saris, how little English they speak and how blazing hot it is. Fort Cochin, an extremely cute little sea port town, would be our base for the next week as we explored the backwaters of Alleppy, and the spice gardens & tea plantations of Munnar. Four hundred years ago in this area the spice trade drew Portuguese, Dutch and Arab sailors, the Chinese with their gigantic fishing nets, still used today and Jewish refugees who fled after the destruction of the second temple. Can you imagine Hindus, Christians, Muslims and Jews all living together in peace. Today the population is mostly Indian Christians and Hindus
We boarded the local bus for the hour and a half trip to Alleppey where most of the backwater house boat trips begin. After arriving safely, which was a miracle in itself, we began the search for our vessel. With the aid of Ashuk and his never ending inventory of house boats we found the perfect match. Mind you these boats come with a captain, first mate and a chef. That’s a three to two ratio and we departed feeling very attended to. The day was beautiful. We stopped along the way and bought some incredible prawns which would be cooked for dinner and enjoyed watching life along the river. After docking that evening the captain informed us that his home and village were just a short distance down along the bank and invited us to meet his family. We walked along the river edge until we arrived at his very small, cement house. We were ushered in by his absolutely adorable four and two year old daughters. We met his lovely and very young wife through an arranged marriage and his mom who we think lived nearby and not with them. He proudly showed us the two bedrooms, the little kitchen and the yard filled with chickens. We also saw their small rice field behind the house. We wondered what happened during the monsoons with the house so close to the river’s edge and he laughed and with many hand gestures shared that the whole place fills with water when the rains come. Next thing we knew, we were in the sitting room, given the only two chairs in the house and were served steaming cups of sweet tea and a plate of yummy fried rice munchies. The girls entertained us with their toys, a little plastic truck and a snowman light. Actual conversation was limited as they all spoke Malayalam (the official language of Kerala) although the captain could speak a little English. Seeing their pictures on the camera was a highlight for the girls, especially the younger one who was a little bit shy at first. As we walked back to the house boat mom and Grandma were having a great time giving the girls their evening bath in the river. Typical of the people we are meeting all over Asia, their nest’s may be small, possessions very few, but their hearts are open.
Rumor had it that we would be able to beat the heat by heading up to the tea plantations in the hills of Munnar. Hiring a driver seemed like the way to go after our bus experience so off we went for a five hour, 140 km (84 miles) adventure. How can it possibly take 5 hours to go 84 miles? That’s India! It wasn’t quite as cool as we had hoped but it sure was beautiful seeing tea being grown all along the hills and ridges, It reminded us a little of the rice terraces in Indonesia and Vietnam and the wine country in New Zealand. Our driver/guide took us to a spice garden where we saw over forty varieties of plants, flowers. herbs and spices. Our favorite part of the day was during a hike on one of the private tea plantations to see a waterfall. The ladies called “pluckers” who harvest the tea were just finishing their morning work and were about to break for lunch. Again the camera was a great ice breaker. Between asking if we could take their picture, finding out who wanted their picture taken and showing them the pictures of themselves, we spent a half hour laughing it up with some very friendly, hard working women. There is no doubt that the best part of traveling is the opportunity to spend time with local people.
Last stop Goa, the smallest state in India, but a much loved beach destinations by Indians and foreigners alike. We stayed in a hut with an outdoor bathroom, cold water shower and resident bat, which came home each evening around nine. Carin knew we had left our routines behind when four days in Mike first realized the room didn’t have a TV. The beach was especially great on Sunday when most of people don’t work and entire families come out to stroll along the beach and enjoy the water. Of course as always we were able to locate a few good restaurants along the way.

It is with great sadness that we remember our dear friend Bob Matthews. Before leaving on our journey we had dinner with Bob and Cindy and can’t forget how excited and encouraging they both were. We sat around drinking Bob’s famous Margaritas and laughed as Bob told stories about his wild backpacking days. We will miss so many things about Bob but most of all his love for his family, sense of adventure and incredible kindness.