Mannil Regency Kerala

... morning to the before dawn prayer that lasts 15 minutes). I go see the local caves, which turn out to be overpriced and super crowded, much to my dismay (after climbing a mountain for an hour), so I return and try to go to the Wayanard Reservation (again overpriced). I arrive only to see it's also super crowded, so again I did not enter and after talking to the warden, he advises me to come at 6:30.

The ...

... India. By now I have become accustom to this country, though some things I find silly and strange. Like filling up cars full of people, anywhere from 10-15 people shoved in a car Some unfortunate souls do not even get a seat on top of someone, so they simply hang outside the cars, gripping for sheer life around the hairpin curves, coughing up exhaust. Some other things I have also learned is that every vehicle has been blessed with a God name written in cheerful ...

... the slopes and curves are very extreme. We have been to many Ghats sections and climbed mountains in car, but never seen such a planned and beautiful safety roads to climb and move through valleys. Thanks to British guys making this wonderful planning. We reached our destination @ 1pm, after refreshing we had lunch. We knew that the dusk will be very quick in the hilly and forest areas, so we have to chase the time and give some happiness to mind and sceneries to eyes. Good that ...

... inside out.
Hollowed out. Will it be better that I stop thinking about beautiful people around me? Will it be better that I assume the camouflage of a cold-hearted cynical person that plays around with humor and defense rather than reveal my fragile heart to this unpredictable world which is full of vile and betrayals? Should I disarm my cynical façade and load off the anger, the ...

... br>
I had the most amazing fish curry at lunchtime! Seafood is a favourite here and certainly one of mine (I'd requested it as a preference when asked what I'd like to eat before the trip). This meen pollichatu (cooked in banana leaves) and also molee (cooked in coconut milk , ginger and cumin) were absolutely fabulous. The food is cooked in coconut oil here and I always had one vegetable dish mixed with fresh coconut (eg grated carrot or beetroot). Vegetables were ...

... h*s * l*rge te* g*rden under its M*n*l*roo Est*te ne*rby. M*n*l*roo Est*te is the highest yielding Te* est*te in Indi ...

... guys who were close to her face and hanging on every word she was saying. At one point i saw someone put a mobile phone up to her mouth and she spoke a few words into it as though making a decision. Then i realised that Amma hugs all day continuously and has to do business at the same time, she barely stops to sleep or eat. We were given a tiny piece of cake to eat and told to sit with our legs uncrossed. I was completely starstruck by her. People or ...

... transportation...the local bus, thus we found out the following fact ... an Indian bus is never full up! People just keep squeezing in....squeezing and squeezing until the next stop when 1 passenger gets down and another 5 replace him. At times I felt like I was playing Twister one limb here and another God knows where! Tomorrow we are off to Mysore. Hopefully we'll find better internet so we'll upload more photos, especially on facebook. Bye

Wake up passengers... it 2:00 in the morning... Hmmm... okay so what? Need to change the bus.... Thousands of blistering barnacles... Well, the situation ask for co-operation, good that I only had 1 bag to carry... Will be interesting to see, how they are going to transfer the other luggage... I would rather try to sleep.

... through the backwaters of Kerala, it is supposed to be unbeivalbe in beauty. There is a beach you can swim at around 20km aways too I'd like to check out. A lillte vaction from ashram life may be nice, although nature is just a spiritual to me as everything else. Be well my dear friend's and I'll be in touch LOVE PEACE P.S. HAPPAY BIRTHDAY MOM (Maternal Mother) She has the same B-day as Amma-imagine that! LOve you and ENJOY your trip in South Africa. Miss you LOVE JEFF a.k.a JAgadish