Nikki's Nest Kovalam

Hello all,

Finally managed to get access to a proper computer that I can upload some photos.
Enjoy these amazing photos of Kovalam. Unfortunately it seems that tourism is arriving in Kovalam in mass production. They are even building a promenade which looks disgusted!! I'm glad I came to Kovalam before it becomes just another European looking beach.

Staying in Kovalam till Tuesday and I'm still undecided where to go next ...

... fishermen who were diving down to the rocks to hand pick mussels. We spent a lot of time swimming around the boat and some huge boulder's in the sea below us and we managed to see a very scary looking Moray Eel and lots of ugly bloated Puffer Fish (or Blow Fish) the second most poisonous vertebrate in the world, only if ingested incorrectly mind. The waves prepared us for our lunch over on Lighthouse Beach where we met up with ...

... than the constant hassle we used to get from the moment we stepped off the train, nobody tried to rip us off. We're pretty hardened at this stage though, which is a shame because it doesn't allow for those random chats with locals which we would have had in other countries. We've been burned too many times by conversations which invariably led to a sales pitch. Here in Kerala though, it's different, they're just not that desperate. The sadness and sorrow you saw in ...

... geval is voor een doorsnee belg) om het SISP te sponseren. Morgen is mijn allerlaatse dag hier in Kovalam en vertrek ik voor een rondreis door Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andra Pradesh en Maharashtra om dan op 15 juli vanuit Mumbai terug naar huis te keren. Opnieuw volledig andere ervaringen staat me dus te wachten. Niet in het minste het feit dat ik alleen zal reizen. Niet evident maar des te leerrijker! Mijn volgende schrijfsel mag je dus vanop een volledig andere plek verwachten...

... even left time for some culture. We stopped off at the Napier Museum. if you have a serious interest in early Hindu Temple art this is the place for you. they have an excellent collection of statues of more gods than I could list but not much else. i suppose we should console ourselves with the thought that the entry charge is the same for Indians and Europeans, only IR5. All this culture was clearly too tiring and I fell asleep in the car as ...

... in England but the fresh round green ones, and then you bite into it with the full force of anticipation, and... eeuugh!... how disappointing! What happened to it? Where did all that flavour go? I've fallen for it twice in the last week! It's like a reverse durian process where pleasant surprise and relief turn into disillusionment and a handful of fruit that you really don't want to eat.

... me. When I finish here I'll be catching the bus into Trivandrum, where I'll book a train for tomorrow to Varkala, and then explore the state capital. Hopefully the next entry should come from Varkala, where I'm planning on staying a few days. I need also to improve my planned route, 'cos it's pretty punishing carrying my backpack in this heat. I'm probably going to focus on beaches and mountains, meaning that the 'inspirational buildings in Rajasthan' count might have to suffer...

... the latest business bibles, beautiful art deco buildings - especially the fantastic train station - a very palpable absence of cows, and a very popular, commercial tourist centre. the headbobble proved to be an effective bargaining tool when we were captured by security guards at 2 am after sneaking into the pool at the taj, the most renowned hotel in the city, and unsuccessfully extorted for a few hundred rupees. we practiced our headbobble as we ...

... friendly, no shortage of places to eat and of course we cannot forget our friends that can sell you anything. This morning I availed myself of a very nice shirt, purchased at 'morning prices' I Like that.. 10 seconds to like the shirt, 15 minutes to buy it.. deal done, we both left happy. The best thing about Lighthouse beach? No bottles on the beach..! now that could be ...