Calcutta

VICTORIA MEMORIAL
CRICKET IN CALCUTTA

MAURICE LOOKING LIKE A LEGO MAN
HUMAN RICKSHAW WALLA

COWS OF INDIA

SILLY COW

OLD COW
HORN Y COW

HOLY COW!
LUCKY HORNY COW
FAT COW


HAPPY COW

INDIA HAVELOCK ANDAMAN ISLANDS

FROM THE DIARY

Yesterday we woke up and went for breakfast at our local 'world class restaurant' and decided that we would move out of our camp. The owner had come back and fired the chef after hearing what happened and it turns out that the chefs young girl was not his daughter, but his prostitute, and that the chef has also another wife on the main island Port Blair! what a mad story!. So anyway we had had enough of all the drama and the chaos so we packed up and Maurice drove to ECO Villa to book a room.

He came back and picked me and my stuff up, and I have the best boyfriend in the world! We are staying in a BEATUIFUL camp, with a much more open sea view, closer and so gorgeous, good food in the restaurant, a DVD player with all the recent movies, nice staff and our hut is just divine.

Two levels,

Total bliss,

Hot water,

Huge open window in the bedroom upstairs,

massive bed,

Fridge!

exactly 10 steps from door step onto beach!

This afternoon I started drawing the view from our window, but after around 30 mins, the storm picked up again (it started out as a really calm and warm morning and we thought that the storm had passed) and it was so wild, that everything got soaked in our bedroom.

Luckily that everything that got wet was just the floor and fittings, the bed is too far away and we had the sense to keep all our belongings downstairs! the palm trees that we were able to see from the window landed on the porch, spoiling my picture, because of that I hav'nt drawn them in!

After that wild storm, it continued to rain during the whole night but not as drastically and Maurice was able to sleep in the hammock that we had placed in front of the window. The ment that I had the whole of the bed to myself, safely tucked up in bed with the mosquito net securly around me.

We found out this morning that it was a cyclone that had passed over us yesterday (that was what probably came into the hut!) and it was on the cyclone scale of three, one being the worst.

Many of our lot went home today, they all went for dinner last night again, but we were just too nice and cozy in our hut to go out but we met them all at the jetty to say goódbye. Saron was one of them, which I was quite sad about, lovely girl and I wasnt expecting her to leave.

Last night I went back to our old camp and she was the last one there. She had been told by the owner that she had to leave tommorow (today now) as he was closing the camp beacuse he had no staff and there was another cyclone on its way and this time a much bigger one. He also told her that we had all left the island beacuse of this, and she was like..."no, they moved camps because yours sucks"! but basically he just lied again, because he didnt want to admit that he needed more staff on the camp and doing it all om his own!.

So she told me that she would probably move camp to our place, but then today, she deciede just to go back to Port Blair as by the time the weather did clear up she would have to lave anyway so would still not be able to finnish off her diving.

We are not too sure wether to leave tomorrow or not. Its raining again and another thunder strom earlier. Have heard from other people too that there may be another cyclone coming. Possibly coming on monday when we fly off Port Blair on tuesday.

Kind of think we should go just in case.

Would give us time to look round PB.

But we love our hut! and feel really nice and relaxed, dont wanna move!

There are only 6 of us in this camp now, we are like the last men standing!

I have loved drwaing our view from the hut, but no matter how we stay here, I dont think it will ever be finished......oh actually thats a good excuse for staying here forever. I cant colour sea, sand, sun and sky very well so I guess it may end up quite a mess!

One of the mornings we awoke to a beautiful day (but not for long, so we took a romantic walk from one end of the island to the other, it only took us around half an hour but it was lovely, and so calm!

THANK YOU HAVELOCK!

INDIA HAVELOCK ANDAMAN ISLANDS

FROM THE DIARY

HAVELOCK

A pretty do nothing day today. I woke up early to the sound of banging on our roof - coconuts being dropped from the main palm tree above us. A guy was up the tree, knocking them down. It was quite interesting to watch him climb up and down with rope round his feet and waist, to shimmy up the tree.

Later on I heard a distant rumbling and looked out from our hut at the weather really closing in. The wind had really picked up and soon enough it started raining.

A few of us had all come out at the same time and we all went down to the beach and stared for a while at the once still waves crashing on the shore, quite different to how the sea on this side of the island usually is.

Normally the sea is quite a way out, and all the rocks are sticking out, making the journey to ankle deep water quite tricky. On reaching this water, its usually quite a few meter more to reach deeper water.

Today though, there is hardly any beach, the water was much colder than usual and the colour is a much more intense blue-dark green. Fantastic. The clouds are also really intense, dark to the north, heavy and black, while in the south, clear and calm.

This is an amazing storm.

Its been about four hours since it started and its still rumbling and sheet lightning all around us. Its pouring rain, but I'm quite nice and dry in my hammock again.

Its getting heavier and heavier and louder and louder, and the whole of the camp has changed colour. Through the palm tress, its become a grey colour, misty with rain, but the leaves on the palms and the grass have become greener and more vibrant.

Although this means that there is nothing to do, no swimming, no sunning etc I am really excited in this storm. Its giving me a really happy feeling to sit here and watch everything explode around me.

The rain seems to be slowing down a little, but it will soon be back I guess. Weather updates in blue ink!

Yesterday a big group of us went to beach number 7 where around the corner from it is a lagoon, where apparantly there is an ok reef. After the long walk there down the beach we all settled ours selves (more rumbling, less rain) down and a few went snorkelling. Apparently it wasn't that amazing, as it was quite overcast, so although I had hired flippers, I could'nt really be bothered to do it, I was enjoying myself too much wave diving!

The waves were quite strong, so we kept diving on top of them and being swept onto the shoreline, only to be sweptback into the sea....somtimes sideways, sometimes forward rolls, back onto another wave. It was quite funny, and the amount of and that I brought home with me was quite impressive, I must have looked like a completley different person, huge bum and big boobs - judging by the amount of sand that fell out!

While we were all on the beach we decided that we would all go to the Italian restaurant in the evening, as it was Anne-Charlotte's, last night. Plus we all wanted some GOOD FOOD. Anne-Charlotte and Betty walked down the beach to the restaurant and ordered pizzas (as you have to order the pizza base 5 hours in advance!) While I fell asleep in the sun and the boys played water cricket (?!) and raced cone shell crabs in an olympic style obsticle course(!?) When we got back to the camp, after de-sanding ourselves (rain has stopped) we had a little nap, then Mo and I jumped on the bike and had a beer each in a small bar near the restaurant before everyone else came. The journey there was quite exciting. it takes around 30 mins from here, and in the dark it was really hair raising! lots of ups and downs rounds and downs ups and rounds and downs and ups!

The dinner was beautiful. It is the only restaurant that I think can deal with such a big party of people on the island. We have tried eating with 2 other people and its always taken FOREVER to get the food, and when it comes, if it all comes at the same time, half of it is cold! Despite it being a little frustrating, it really makes you learn how to relax!. But the Italian restaurant was good. The pastas did come before the pizzas but not long before. Maurice ordered a pizza, while I had a BACON and mushroom tagilatelle pasta. YUMO. I was tempted to get a wine, but once the owner (from Italy) told us that it was an Indian sparkling wine I was put off the idea! It was a lovely evening 18 of us in total, all on one long table.

The chef of our camp has just come back rolling drunk. The owner of the camp is away, and has left the chef in charge. As soon as the owner left, he closed the kitchen, opened a bottle of whisky, got his wife and daughter over and put them in one of the huts, then, last night, just before we arrived back, Sharon heard a massive fight between the daughter and wife of the chef. Lots of (big roll of thunder) beating of the daughter and then an extremely drunk chef. (torrential rain, dark sky, more thunder)

Then they disappeared during the night (the chef was seen lying drunk on the road by some of our group (REALLY dark sky and HUGE wind) as we came back) and we have still not seen him (oh my god, so much rain its deafening) . There are two Swedish girls staying in our camp and they are in a camp where its leaking all over. so there has been no one (no electricity now) to put them in another hut.

Now the chef has just come back and should help, but he almost fell off the motorbike his friend dropped him off on, hes just far too drunk. Poor girls. (Wind has ripped menus away and its COLD!)

(This is insane)

INDIA. ANDAMAN ISLANDS

FROM THE DIARY

HAVELOCK

Swinging on a hammock out on the balcony of our beach hut after a night out drinking on my first 'Full moon party'.

This is a really peaceful afternoon.
Most of the people that are staying in this camp are here at the moment, we are all recovering and trying to sty away from this heat.
The Finish couple are outside their hut, having a small picnic, Helen is swinging away on her hammock listening to music, as are Laura and Sam, in the hut next to us. Lars, on the other side of us, is also in his hammock, on his laptop.
I am watching everyone.
Maurice is in the hut, fast asleep under the mosquito net. The two Swedish girls have just pulled up outside their hut on their scooter.
The stay dogs are starting to gather round the Finish couple, looking for a stray tomato or a few loose crumbs from their crackers, while the camps pet puppy, Buso is lying flat on his belly under one of the palm trees, panting his little heart out.
Despite there being ten of us here at the moment, the whole camp is silent. All I can hear is the sound of the electric fans swirling away in Lars and our huts.

Before the party started last night, we had a little pre-party with Sam and Laura, our neighbours, and some Danes, in the camp next to us, over a few bottles of Rum, we got to know them and had a great time.
Its been a long time since we had a drink, and although the music was not wonderful, we still had a great party.
It was wonderful having all of the travelers on Havelock, all in the same place for once.
People were soon up and dancing to the tunes that a Scottish guy was pumping, dancing round the fire in the center of a clearing on a beach.

The Andaman's are probably the nicest place that I have ever been to. Nothing can compare to this place.
Its such a shame that very soon, charter flights will be coming here straight from Bangkok to start with, then later, flights from Heathrow. PLEASE, NO!.

I think that it will be such a shame. I cant imagine how it will be in a few years time. There is one thing that I love about the Indian government and that is the fact that they are really trying to preserve the Nicobar Islands. Visas are given to only a few people per year, and then they are very specific visas, only given to certain people ( Doctors, scientists etc). I think that's wonderful. They are really keeping the tribes safe from this other world.
After the tsunami, rescue workers went to one of the Islands to check the damage, but were shooed away by the Nicobarese who threw sticks and stones at the approaching boats, they still don't know the death toll on that Island. On another, probably quite close to the Andaman Islands, apparently the death toll was not very high at all as they are so at one with the nature, they have nothing to distract them, so when the bird sounds changed and the sea acted differently, they all escaped to higher ground to avoid the coming Tsunami. Unfortunately though, other Islands were terribly destroyed, cutting the number of these tribes even lower.

Its hard to imagine that such 'simple' people are basically only a few islands away, with no contact to the outside world, apart from maybe a few boats passing by very occasionally, and maybe aeroplanes flying over head. I guess some may know what aeroplanes are but how can they know what kind of world we are getting away from to visit these beautiful Islands?
Do they even have electricity? despite us wanting to 'get away from it all', we still have TVs with DVD players, latest movies to watch, sodas, Beer, telephones and even the Internet at our fingertips, while they are totally primitive. I'm sure Havelock was not long ago like this, and we have slowly made it more livable for the westerners.
That's why I am finding it hard to get used to the idea of Charter flights. We have ruined this Island enough.
Of course I cant be selfish, and scorn people that do come here in the future on a package holiday, but I will do my best to get them to come ere on their own. Having no pre aranged accommodation, choose your own hut, which camp, eating in different restaurants, for example. Basically just 'spreading the love' with your money, going to all the locals pockets instead of a faceless and sterile hotel.

I love the fact that my ear problem is not effecting my enjoyment of the sea life here. I dont feel like I HAVE to scuba dive as the coral is so so close that you can almost touch it (not that you would want to though)
The beach that we are staying on (beach number 5, and all the way down to beach number one is beautiful, but a little annoying that it is quite rocky to get into deep water, and that water is so so warm! Its really surprising how warm the water is, so its not much good to sunbathe and try t cool down in! Its lucky that our hut is so close to the beach that its not far to take a quick cold shower to cool off!

We went on a boat trip 2 days ago, to an Island called 'South Batten' and snorkeled for hours, fished, snorkeled, fished..... it was a beautiful day and well, well, worth the uncomfortable journey there and back on the boat. We caught a few fish, and took it to our favourite local restaurant (small, popular, flies everywhere, slow service, but great staff and fab food!) where they cooked it for us.
We had done some snorkeling a few days earlier, on another beach, elephant beach (no Elephants) and I had used some flippers there. What a difference it makes! I didn't have them on South Batten and really regretted it, as I am not a confident swimmer and I wasn't too sure if could make it the whole way round in one go as the waves were quite rough (for me) towards the north part. I still absolutely loved it though, and it was much more impressive than the Great barrier Reef in OZ, Much more fish!।

So basically, the Andamans have everything. Wonderful chilled out natives, great company, nice huts, good food, long stretches of squeaky white sand, pure blue sea, fantastic underwater life , and just a handful of tourists.
Need anything else?

INDIA. VARANASI

Its our last night here tonight, and we've had a really chilled out time for once, compared to all the rushing around that we have been doing since we got to India! Despite other peoples warnings, we have really enjoyed Varanasi, and would like to stay longer, but the Andaman Islands are calling us, so its time to go।

Despite being sick on the first day here (we had been on a train all night, and I had been ill before we left), we are both feeling much better, and it helps with us having a nice hotel room to chill out in and relax.
We have seen a few dead people around here, on the ghats (water banks), being burned, following the Hindu religion. That was one of our first views when we walked down the ghats, and we watched the whole process of them dipping him in the river Ganges, piling the wood on top of him, and lighting the fire, and it was only when the son of the deceased was taken away wailing, that it really hit home that it was actually a person there, and it was a funeral. That sounds strange, but its just so public, and so open and common, that you can easily forget.
The river Ganges are extremely polluted. If you can imagine the amount of dead people, their diseases, the sewage system here, the fact that some people cant afford a full cremation, so the unburnt bits go into the water, Lepers cannot be burnt so have a stone attached to them and then sunk, its an extremely dirty river. YET, people swim, bathe, fill an empty bottle with it to take home and bless friends and family, wash their clothes, clean themselves, and their teeth...wow, its disgusting! The people that live in Varanasi must have built up such a great resilience to infection that they must actually be quite healthy!, we watched all of this going on this morning, as we took a boat ride down the river. We are on the last Ghat, Assi Ghat, and we took a boat up to the main burning ghat and walked back from there.

I have gone off Indian food. OH NO! since I have been sick, just the thought of a curry turns my stomach, but hopefully I will be getting over that soon!, Luckily, we have found a great place to eat here, so have been having wonderful European foods, really well made...yummmy (just in case anyone I have met in India comes now its called the Lotus. Just past the Main burning ghat!)
We have also met quite a few people here, and had lovely lazy (but hot) afternoons sitting under fans in the hotel or trying to catch some breeze on the roof of the Lotus as there has been nothing better to do in the heat, but sit and make friends!
If I dont write again for a while, I am on the beach ahahahaha.