Friday 13th December
Max and Betty served us a delicious breakfast of curry and appam supplemented with packaged mini chocolate croissants and Ferrero Rochers. I had my second attempt at a shower, as the night before the water from the rooftop tank had run out. I'd tried the shower in Bindu and Ajay's ensuite, which was on a lower level, and that bought me a couple more minutes before it too dried up. But this morning our shower worked just fine, apart from being cold again - something I'd more or less adjusted to.
We drove back to Rajachayan's house to say goodbye. Before we left, Ajay prayed powerfully for Max, Betty, Rajachayan, Molly Aunty and their family, and for Rex's widow Rittu. It was an emotional farewell. Even after only one day of being there, a year after the death of his son, I felt some of Rajachayan's grief.
We called a taxi and drove north again, stopping on the way to visit Gomes Uncle, a man of Portugese-Indian descent who had worked closely with Ajay's father in the anti-smuggling business. He and his wife welcomed us in, although there was some confusion until Ajay clarified who we were. A thick cloud of mosquitoes followed us inside, buzzing around the Catholic ornaments and crucifixion imagery which decorated the living room. We were hoping to hear some exciting stories of Gomes Uncle's anti-smuggling adventures, but it seemed there was a miscommunication, and they hadn't been expecting us to visit that day. And with the mosquitos hovering around incessantly, Abhi, Viv and I were eager to make it a short visit. So we took a photo outside together and said our goodbyes.
The northbound journey continued until we reached the Zuri Kumarakom, a resort beside Vembanad Lake - the largest lake in Kerala and longest across all of India. Vembanad Lake fed directly into the famous Kerala backwaters, which we were eager to see for ourselves. After checking in, Abhi, Viv and I went straight to the restaurant for a late lunch. Being a 5-star hotel, it was a relief to know that everything on the menu was safe to eat, or should be at least. I ordered spaghetti bolognaise, and it was the best I've ever had (assuming the amazing flavour actually came from the food, and not from my delirious joy at having western food again). And I got to drink water directly from a glass, not a bottle, without even checking if it had been boiled first. Ahhh, luxury.
The rooms were amazing too: high ceilings, lakeside balcony, air conditioning, large bathtub, indoor and outdoor showers, and the snuggliest, comfiest king bed. I fought off disappointment that we were only staying for one night, and focussed on being thankful for the experience.
We took an evening boat tour along the lake. Abhi quickly made friends with some tourists from the UK, and they chatted the entire time. I've never really been sure where Abhi got his easy-going friendliness from, until I saw Ajay chatting away with the captain as well. It's a trait I admire in both of them. Me, Bindu and Viv, however, were perfectly content to stare at the water instead of talking with strangers. The brooding, atmospheric serenity was only amplified by the busyness of our prior ten days in India, and the tour quickly became one of my favourite parts of the trip.
We spent the evening playing pool, taking photos, learning to play Carrom, having a delicious dinner and checking out the gift shops.
Saturday 14th December
I woke early that morning, but Abhi was already gone. He'd woken at 5am to watch the Aus vs India test match with Viv in the other room. I took the opportunity to sit on the balcony in front of the lake and listen to the birds. There was a large tree obsuring the view, but it became a feature when a squirrel climbed down the trunk right in front of me. It stayed for a while, searching for food amongst the bark, then scurried away.
We had a late checkout, so took our time in preparing to leave. We hired two bikes, and I learned how a single-seat bike can become a somewhat sketchy two-person mode of transport. Sitting on the crossbar got uncomfortable pretty quickly, and even more so when we accidentally steered off the path, down a bump and onto the grass. So ended our little biking adventure. I'll have my own bike from now on, please.
Over breakfast we decided the lake tour was so enjoyable that we'd like to do another one, through the backwater canals this time. We checked out of the resort and stopped on the way at another backwater touring place, making sure to keep our passports and other valuables with us. We saw many different species of birds, along with locals working along the banks and washing their clothes in the water. We stopped at a spot where the water bubbled and churned, and the sound of machinery emanated from a shack nearby. We disembarked to have a closer look, and discovered that the machine inside the shack was pumping water from the surrounding paddy fields, back into the canal.
It was so calm; the hour passed peacefully and quickly.
The next three hours did not. Eventually we bumped our way all the way back to Kochi, to the apartment of close family friends who live in Brisbane. The apartment sat two stories above their web development business, so we were shown around the office before settling in. Then it was time for dinner, so we planned to take the metro train to LuLu Mall, a large shopping centre nearby, and then do some shopping. After our long drive, taking a train and then going shopping was about the last thing I wanted to do, but I was reluctantly lured in with the promise of (hopefully safe) food. It was a ten minute walk to the station. Abhi had to keep ducking under low signage as we passed the shopfronts - difficult when you also need to watch your footing on the uneven pathways.
The metro railway is an impressive construction runs overhead on large columns, right above the highway - even the stations are overhead. We only had to travel a few stops. The mall was actually a lot like Garden City back home. We ordered Dominoes and hoped for the best; it turned out pretty good. I felt a lot better once I had some food in my belly. That was followed by an hour of exploration and clothes shopping, before we took the train back to our temporary home.
Sunday 15th December
The next morning we went back to the metro station - this time via autorickshaw. I'd been very much hoping to avoid the ubiquitous vehicles but it seemed I could escape no longer. I understand the need for a small and versatile vehicle to manoeuvre around the congested traffic - but why couldn't they just add one more wheel? It's already three quarters of the way to being stable, why not just finish the job? Especially on roads which are frequently potholed and uneven. Anyway, that's my two cents.
We were going to the Renai Hotel for a formal lunch with the family of Ajay's late mother. We were shown into a spacious function room with polished tile floors and gold sashes on the chairs. A few family members were already there when we arrived, but most trickled in over the next hour. They greeted us warmly, welcoming me into the family. Most were either the descendents of Ajay's mother's eight siblings, or the siblings themselves (plus spouses). Unexpectedly, Rajachayan and Max also made it to the event, having travelled from Kattanam earlier that morning. Others had travelled even further, from Trivandrum, near the southern tip of India.
We played a video on the projector screen - one which had been first created for our wedding reception. It showed photos of myself and Abhishek as we grew up and got to know each other, serving as an introduction to the two of us. Abhi died a little on the inside from embarrassment every time it was played. I was called up to give a speech describing my family background, so I told them about my sisters and parents, and their parents, but I forgot about the uncles and aunties unfortunately. Very un-Indian of me. Encouraged by Bindu, I also shared my historial connection to India; how my dad's mother's uncle was a missionary to the bordering state of Tamil Nadu and had helped set up over thirty Christian mission schools. Abhi also gave a speech describing how we met and the story of how we got engaged (always an entertaining one). He was careful to avoid words like 'dating', 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend' - terms which have negative connotations here, where a large proportion of the marriages are arranged. They asked us to show them the proposal, so I handed him my engagement ring and he bent onto one knee and 'proposed' to me - much to the amusement of the family.
After that, we projected the large family tree diagram onto the screen while each family approached, pointed to their place in the tree, and introduced themselves. I appreciated their effort to use English for my sake. I also noticed how the interactions between the men and women seemed casual and relaxed; I wasn't sure how the dynamic would be between the genders here, but the formality was less than I expected. Then it was time for lunch, followed by family photos.
The event wrapped up around 3:30pm, then we made the 1.5 hour drive back to The Retreat. When we got there, a woman had arrived who had been a neighbour of Bindu's back in Baroda when she was growing up. The family switched into Hindi over dinner to accommodate for her, so I retreated into my room early to figure out how to pack eight days' worth of clothing into a carry-on suitcase - a more difficult task in an Eastern country, where shorts and a t-shirt is not considered an appropriate outfit, regardless of the weather. Appacha allowed our guest to sleep in the bed with Ammachi for the night while he took the living room couch. It took a while for me to figure out what to bring, but worth the effort because tomorrow we'd be taking a domestic flight to our new adventure.
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