Home is where the heart is.

April 8, Chennamkary
I have two new friends and roommates! Let’s rewind a bit. As soon as I saw the porch, I threw my bags to the ground and plunked my sweaty, barely breathing butt down on a chair to catch my breath. The two girls sitting there laughed at my total state of disarray and gave me a couple of minutes to rest before introducing themselves. They are both named Julia and they were both wearing the same shirt. They are also both German medical students (what is with all the Germans?) who just completed a month long internship in Vellore and had bookended their stay there with travel. They helped me bring my bags into the house where I met Lolly, the wife of the owner of the homestay. She was very pretty, about my age, and dressed in a red muumuu. She told me her husband was asleep, but assured me there were rooms available. I didn’t want to disturb Thomas, so the Julias let me put my stuff in their room and we went out for a little walk before tea. The backwater region of Kerala is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, but I guess you can sort of equate it to Venice or the bayou in Louisiana. People live and work and farm on small, mostly man-made islands (of course they were man-made a few centuries ago, so they seem pretty natural now) that sit in the middle of winding canals and open stretches of river that lie below the level of the Arabian Sea. Inland of many of the islands are rice paddies that provide the major source or employment and revenue for the people living there. It’s a fascinating way of life and I got a small taste of it as we walked along the tiny dirt path between the houses and the water. It was late afternoon, so lots of people were out, having their afternoon bath in the river, washing clothes, and just playing. All of the children in the village came out and demanded photos of themselves and we had fun talking to them and their mothers. We had to turn around pretty soon, as teatime was approaching and I was starving. Lolly makes her chai with lots of cardamom and ginger and it is absolutely delicious. We had a few cups and some cookies and Thomas came out from his nap and introduced himself. The Lonely Planet book described him as being “erudite and helpful” and I can’t think of a better description for him. He is small and attractive with glasses and a beard. He speaks perfect English, although he seemed to have a bit of trouble understanding me sometimes – maybe I talk too fast. Side note – Kerala has a 97% literacy rate throughout the state… thank you Christian missionaries. Thomas told us later though that the increasing amount of extremely educated people is leading to a decrease in the numbers of people who want to do the essential jobs of farming, mud-digging, and other manual labor that keep the way of life in the backwaters intact. It’s an interesting social problem to have. But I digress…
While we all had tea, Thomas asked us about our plans and suggested a few activities for the evening and tomorrow. He arranged a sunset canoe trip through the canals for us and a guided walk around the island for the early morning. After we finished our chai, he gave me the key to my room and we went out to the canoe that was conveniently parked right in front of the house. The three of us were seated, rather luxuriously, I thought, in our own little wooden chairs in the canoe. We had two local men as rowers (we weren’t to pay them directly , Thomas instructed, because one of them had a drinking problem, so the money was to be given to his wife). The trip was so peaceful and beautiful. All of the huge commercial houseboats that usually fill the waterways were docked for the evening, so we had an open canal to drift around on and enjoy. The Julias and I talked and got to know each other and I knew right away that I really liked them. I have been running a little low on rupees, and this homestay is the most expensive place I will have stayed in India, and I noticed earlier that they had three beds in their room. I figured I didn’t have anything to lose, so I half-jokingly suggested that the three of us share their room and cut the price way down for all of us. They discussed in German for a few minutes and said yes! I was so relieved and I also think it will be nice to have some company at night.
After a couple of hours, we returned home for dinner. What delicious food we ate! Thomas’s mother cooks and she is really good. We had – brace yourselves – vegetable curry, but this one was rich with all kinds of veggies and not too spicy, a cucumber and tomato salad with cilantro and herbs (yummy!), and poori, which is a fried poufy bread that is indescribable. It was so nice to feel like I was in a real home after so long of being in hotels and dorms. It was comforting to have a family around and to be really taken care of. After stuffing ourselves, we took turns in the shower. While I waited for my turn, I played with Anne and Anina, the two scrumptious daughters of Thomas and Lolly. We did a little dancing, a little singing, and some hand-clap games. We had so much fun! They are just the cutest little girls, Anne is six and Anina is four. You can tell that they are used to new people because they warm up to you right away. I think we are going to be good friends… they remind me of the first graders at Shanti Bhavan. After about a half hour, Anne climbed up onto my lap and whispered “I like you.” What a darling! After that, I got into the warm shower to clean off my disgustingness and now I’m sitting here practically falling asleep. I can’t wait to see more of this captivating place tomorrow.