It is late on December 24^th here in India. Our readers in North America have a few hours left to buy those last-minute gifts, if they need to. As for us, we are in Coonoor, a hilltop tea plantation outpost. It was 26C today but with poor air quality. I miss Victoria’s pristine air. We are fully packed, and leave tomorrow at 09:00 for Munnar, another hilltop tea plantation town. It’s not that far, but the average speed you travel at is 30 km/hr. So 120 km takes about four hours of painful travel, with lots of horns, stops, bumps and cows on the road.

Christmas Eve Church Service

We will be getting up early tomorrow, not to exchange gifts. We decided the trip was our gift to each other and we simply didn’t have the space to lug gifts around for six months. Our church has a Christmas Eve candlelight service and they also do it by Zoom. I’ve sent the details out to family and if anyone is interested, please let me know and I’ll get you the details. It starts at 8AM December 25^th India time, 6:30 PM December 24^th Vancouver time.

Tonight we had Apple music playing a Christmas classic loop while we ate dinner. There are decorations around, trees, lights et al. It’s not the same. By participating in the service, which was not possible pre COVID, we can integrate with our family/community and fill the need within.

Traffic congestion in India

India is a unique country. Today for example, we were out sightseeing with our dedicated driver. There was also, what I felt, was half of India on the same road. As were leaving Lamb’s Rock in Coonoor, we were in gridlock. After over an hour, we had moved maybe 150 meters. At that point I said to Meg, “it’s 2.3 km to the restaurant we want to eat at, let’s walk.” Meg, always the trooper, was all in. 

We told our driver, who doesn’t speak the best English, we were going to walk. Then, hopping out of his car, we started walking and truly could not believe what we were seeing. The road, which could fit one car comfortable, was blocked both ways. There were buses that were trying to do three-point turns, more like a 103-point turns, on the narrow road. This of course blocked traffic even worse. Then some folks decided the traffic was too bad, so they got out of their cars and walked to the attraction. The problem was this: they left their car in the middle of the road, so now it is an alternating one way. Oh My…

Christmas Dinner – sort of…

We arrived at our restaurant after 30 minutes, ordered, and had lunch. Looking at the calendar, and having spoken to all three children within the past 24 hours, we were both feeling a bit lonely being away, so we agreed a pizza would be a good meal to cheer us up. It was as good as any thin crust pizza we have eaten. The meal picked us both up. Our next stop was the botanical gardens. We called our driver, who was still stuck in traffic and told him where we were and when to pick us up.

In the end, everything was alright. 

Reflecting on Christmas

Today, or when you read this, you will know that we took time to reflect on the gifts we have been given in 2023. To me, Christmas is not only for rejoicing but for reflecting. When we were young, Christmas was about anticipation. Now, as we are older and wiser, there is reflection to go with the anticipation. As I write this, I am anticipating a future Christmas, shared with our children, mothers and friends. I reflect on Christmas’s of yesteryear.

I also looked up at the cloudy skies this evening, but I didn’t see anything. The clouds were blocking everything, including the full moon.

May you never be too grown up to search the skies on Christmas Eve.

Where ever you are, whatever you are doing, may peace, joy, love, happiness and good health bless you and your clan today and always.

Cam and Meg

On our second day in Mumbai, we woke up and enjoyed the wonderful breakfast at our hotel. Before heading out, we made sure we were all packed and ready to go. Having seen numerous games of Cricket the day before, we walked back over to the Oval Maidan, the local Cricket pitch. This is a large, Grade I recreational ground, situated in South Mumbai, about a ten-minute walk from our hotel. It is so named because of its oval shape and is where anyone can play Cricket. On the weekends, up to 50 games are being played with balls crossing into each other’s area. 

The passion for Cricket in India cannot be under estimated. I very much enjoyed watching despite not having a clue of what the rules are. The only issue I had with taking all this in, was there were no females playing. Heading back to our hotel, we checked out of hotel and met up with our driver for the day. Heading through the traffic for The Gateway of India where we would catch a ferry to Elephanta islands.

Elephanta Island

The one hour and ten-minute ferry ride took us to the UNSECO world heritage site where we met our guide for the tour of the Island. Only residents of the Island, about 1,200 in total, can be guides. We learned a lot about the symbols, the carvings and life on Elephanta Island during our two-hour stay. Catching the ferry back our driver took us to our travel agent “India Someday”. They could not have been kinder or more helpful. They confirmed the number of details and gave us more advice and pointers for remaining 2 1/2 weeks.

We returned to our hotel, which was only about five minutes away, where we claimed our luggage, having left it after check out. Ready to head to the overnight train we went down the road and got some street food to snack on for dinner. The travel agent warned us the food selections at the train terminal were not great.

Getting to the train station

Driving the one-hour and 20 minutes from south Mumbai to North Mumbai was chaotic. Arriving safely at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, or LTT train station around 7:00 PM, we munched on our dinner sitting in the utter chaos that was the terminal. Our 8:50 PM train was announced around 8:00 PM and we went to our platform, finding the position where our car would be. The train arrived at 8:30 and we boarded, going to our two person sleeper cabin.

Our cabin and meal options.

For those who have not taken a train in India, it can be an experience. They were sleeper cars with 80 berths in them however, our sleeper car only had 24 berths. That is the difference between travelling first class and third class in India. First class also gives you air conditioning and since the overnight low in Mumbai was 28, air-conditioning was a very good investment. The train left a little bit late and after we got underway a room steward brought us our sheets. He then confirmed that we wanted dinner.

He seemed somewhat surprised that we were happy with a vegetarian meal. While we are not vegetarian, after 12 days on a cruise ship, eating beef almost every day, a vegetarian meal was a good break for our system. Our meal started off with tomato soup, which was unlike any tomato soup I had ever tasted. It was very good, however, it was very spicy, and Meg was unable to finish hers due to the heat.

We then received a tray with five dishes on it, and it was quite tasty. We ate in our cabin and after finishing, the steward came and cleaned we are plates. It was now 10:30 PM and the steward came back and said he had some breath mints and how much of a tip would we be giving him? I kind of looked at him and his friend standing next to him with his arms folded across his chest. There were signs all over do not tip staff, but curiously, his plate with breath mints on it also had some bank notes on it. I looked at him, and then he said how much you tip me? Caving into the basic extortion, I gave him 100 Rupees just so he would go away.

We then got into bed and tried to fall asleep to the trains rocking. Our coach was only two cars back from the engine and, similar to Thomas the Tank Engine, the horn sound incessantly. This naturally woke us up regularly throughout the night. We seemed to sleep best when the train stopped, which I thought was at a station, however I never looked out the window to confirm this. We were due to arrive in Goa, at the Madgaon station at 5:40 AM and we dutifully each set an alarm so we would not sleep through. This is where it got interesting…

A temporary panic attack!

Two berths down the coach from our two-person room, was a family in a four-person unit including two children. The three-year-old child had a tantrum of epic proportions after getting on the train which lasted about 30 minutes. Eventually everything was quiet. At one point I woke up during the night, when it was pitch black, and heard the child speaking. I thought to myself, “are we there? Are they getting ready to get off?” I looked at my phone and it was only 4:30 AM. Then I panicked and thought “is Goa on a different time zone?” I searched the internet and found all of India is on the same time zone, which I knew, but for some reason, at 4:30 AM, I could not remember. 

Well, I was up now, so I crawled down from my upper berth, managing not to step on Meg who was fast asleep on the lower berth, and went to the loo. Returning to our berth, I thought I might as well stay up, since I’ll be getting up shortly. I did a quick search of Google maps and found we were only half way there. This was supposed to be a nine hour journey, we had been travelling for seven hours, what’s up with that? I have now learned Indian trains do not seem to run with the same efficiency as Japanese trains. I turned off my alarm and tried to find Meg’s phone to silence hers, but woke her up doing so. 

Traveling along India’s train routes

I texted our driver to say we would be late. He replied back immediately, saying he was following the trains and would meet us there when we got there. Just before 9 AM we arrived at Madgaon station in Goa, over 3 hours late. Our driver was waiting for us. We then did the 40-minute drive to our hotel through lush forests and fields.

Arriving at our resort at 10 o’clock in the morning, we weren’t able to check in. Depositing our luggage with the concierge, we went and had a late breakfast, changed into our bathing suits and went swimming in the Arabian sea. We then walked around the town, scouting out places to eat et al. 

Goa is beautiful

Our first impressions of Goa were very similar to beach resorts in Mexico, but without the vendors on the beach. Of course, there were vendors in the town, which is basically one road in this part of South Goa. The north part of Goa is a bit livelier, translation, party town. Goa’s south is more family orientated. The beach is amazing: about 2 ½ km long of fine sand and between 50 – 100 meters from the buildings to the ocean, depending on the tide. Being only 15 degrees north of the equator, the sun and heat are relentless and the days are 11 hours long at the winter solstice.

We are now on day four of our four-day beach phase of our India trip and absolutely loving it. This has allowed us to catch up on outstanding chores, including updating the web site and Instagram pages. We are working on visas for the next phase of our trip and getting ready for our 4:30 AM departure from our resort to the airport 

Thanks for reading.

Feel free to ask any questions or suggestions in the comments section.

Here we are, on December 6^th, 2023. Last time I wrote, we were leaving Japan and I highlighted the cost of that trip. Since then, we have been to Taiwan, Singapore and then boarded a cruise ship. Internet is spotty, hence the delay in posting.

Where our cruise has gone so far

On the ship, we have visited Malaysia, Thailand and Sri Lanka. After visiting these three, we are now sailing for India – we have our visa’s and we’ll see what awaits us as we embark on a three-week tour of the southern part of India. We have multiple hard copies of our visas and passport pages.

It was not too long ago that Sri Lanka, Ceylon before 1972, was in the midst of civil unrest, protesting against the government. Most Canadians will recall, not that long ago, a minority of Canadians were protesting against the government and making international headlines. Today, in Sri Lanka, everything seems fine on this lush tropical Island nation of 22 million people. They were very warm and welcoming and we intend to return here to explore more of the island and its food.

Tours in Sri Lanka

We took two tours in Sri Lanka, one in Hambantota and one in Colombo. Both times Tuk-Tuks were our method of transport. Our first Tuk-Tuk had a sun-roof, which is a rare thing here. We spent a lot of time standing up with our heads sticking out of the window. You can see a video of that on Instagram. The Tuk Tuks’ don’t travel that fast, maybe 60km flat out, and they are rather noisy, but are they ever an experience!

Hambantota – gateway to Yala National Park (and elephants!)

Our first trip, from Hambantota, had us in a Tuk Tuk for about 45 minutes, then transferred to a safari jeep. We then toured Yala national park in search for animals. We saw a number of birds and mammals and just as we exited the park gates at the end of our safari, we saw an elephant. 

This beautiful elephant, completely wild, was just hanging around at the side of the road, drinking from a stream and “shooting” water. It was like a scene from the movies. The elephant headed over our way and the guide gave him a melon, which he “crunched” in one bite. Then two bunches of bananas were passed and devoured, peels and all. It was awe inspiring to watch the elephant gracefully use his trunk to feed himself. Where there was no more food, the elephant got bored with us and headed back for some leaves. 

Asian vs African Elephants

Seeing this majestic animal, it is devastating to believe anyone could hunt these animals for their tusks. Our elephant, who had no tusks, was likely an Asian male elephant. Noting the broken branches on the road, the elephant was likely “marking” his territory, according to the guide. A small percentage of Asian male elephants do not have tusks. Female Asian elephants do not have tusks. Both male and female African elephants have tusks.

From the safari, we went to a restaurant for a very late lunch, 4:00 PM in fact. Conveniently, it was at the restaurant of a “friend” of our guide, and rather out of the way. While the food was good, it was not earth shattering. 

Colombo, Sir Lanka – a beautiful city.

This morning, we arrived in the capital of Sri Lanka, Colombo. After leaving the ship, we went to the shuttle which took us to the entrance of the port. Not surprisingly, the touts were waiting for us, and our fellow passengers. The first tout wanted $50 for a three-hour tour but soon dropped that to $30. Considering his English was “pigeon” at best, we passed and decided to walk a bit.

Of course, other touts took the opportunity to entice us with various offers and prices. Eventually we settled on $20 for three hours with a fairly decent English speaking Tuk Tuk driver. This is still likely more than we need have paid, however considering the economic plight of the residents of this country and our blessings, I didn’t bargain too hard.

Buying Local

The tour was fine, not remarkable, but fine. Of course, it was about 20% of the cost of a similar one from the ship. One thing that was impressive about Colombo, was the number of green spaces and the friendliness of the local people. Naturally, half way through the tour, we were taken to a “tea factory”. After the requisite demonstration and samples came the “sales pitch”. We up and left as we are not going to lug stuff around India for another 3 ½ months. Our guide then took us to a “gem store” and we said “no”. “Oh Sir, you do not have to buy anything”.

It was at this point Meg said “that’s why we’re not going in, please drive away”. We know the drivers get a kick back, but we are really not interested in tea or gems. The tea was about $15 CDN for a small pouch, about double what you would pay at David’s tea. They also sold cinnamon, which I’m sure was laced with gold, considering the price. I had wanted to go into a grocery store to see if they had any cinnamon, just to compare prices, but we didn’t find the time.

Lunch on the tour

When we asked to go somewhere for lunch, we drove around for 10 minutes to a restaurant we were assured was “nice”. The sign read “Indian food”. We said “no, Sri Lankan food”. So, after another 10 minutes of driving, we were deposited at a buffet, where we had a decent meal for about $4.25 CDN each. We were not sure about any kickbacks here. There were a number of Uber eats vehicles outside the restaurant.

After lunch, we were dropped off at the port and then we walked a bit and found what was likely our highlight of Colombo. A bakery. The deserts were out of this world good and they were about $0.50 each. Yup, less than a buck CDN for two scrumptious pastries. 

From there we headed back to the ship, continually being asked by other Tuk Tuk drivers if we wanted a lift. Once onboard, we relaxed until sailing time.

Tomorrow will take us to India. We are so excited and a bit nervous. I’m really not aware of anyone who doesn’t say India is fantastic. Everyone also says it is a total assault on the senses. From that point, we are thankful we are starting in the south first. Of course, the visa thing is “out there”. Even though it is settled, who knows? Our visas were in place a week before the “storm”.

Our pending arrival in India

We’ll let you know how our travels in India go.

Thanks for reading and please feel free to leave any comments or suggestions for things to do/see in India.