Vacation 2005, Kollam

From Sabarimala, we went to Kollam. We stayed at Valiyavila Family Estate. It is a great resort. We stayed there for three days. It was totally relaxing. Very comfortable facilities and thoughtful staff. Food was great. Given our vegetarian restriction, the cook did a great job. I can only imagine how good he must be in his specialty, Keralite sea food. They have a good selection of imported and domestic liquor. Too bad I stopped even the occasional consumption of alcohol since last Thanksgiving. Not just that, I wasn't going to have any when my family was with me anyway. We hired a Kettuvallam and took a trip on the backwaters through the National Waterway III. I highly recommend a stay at Valiyavila Family Estate and Kettuvallam trip. The Goddess Of Light statue in the estate is a landmark. Disclosure: The estate is owned by Veena's uncle. That has nothing to do with the recommendation!

Kettuvallam (House Boat) we rented for our trip.

On the upper deck of the Kettuvallam.

Vacation 2005.

Fishermen harvesting crab in the evening.

National Waterway III. This stretch is very narrow. On both the banks, we saw several abandoned buildings with all doors and windows missing. Later we learned, the Govt Of India has acquired the land for widening NW III. The building owners removed everything they can before handing it to the GOI.

On the upper deck of the house boat.

Fishing Hamlet Chavara.

Karthi on the leading edge.

Boat landing at the resort.

View of Kollam from Ashtamudi Kayal.

Vacation 2005.

A view of the resort from Kollam side of the Kayal.

Vacation 2005.

View of Kerala backwater isn't complete without a Chinese Net.

Vilakkamma.

We stopped by a pineapple orchard in Pathanamthitta district.

Looks like Bill took it on stride.

History of Medicine

If you were sick in

2000 B.C. - Here, eat this root.

1000 A.D. - That root is heathen. Here, say this prayer.

1850 A.D. - That prayer is superstition. Here, drink this potion.

1940 A.D. - That potion is snake oil. Here, swallow this pill.

1985 A.D. - That pill is ineffective. Here, take this antibiotic.

2000 A.D. - That antibiotic doesn't work anymore. Here, eat this root.

Thanks to Tony @ elixir.com.

History lives in India. You can see all of these medicines being practiced at the same time, today :)

Swami Saranam Ayyappa

From Thekkady, we went to Sabarimala. We were lucky since that was the last day of Vishu Darisanam and the temple will remain closed for the next few weeks. Myself and Amma trekked up the Holy Hill after taking a dip in the Holy River Pamba at 2AM. It is a 7KM uphill trek (of course on bare foot). Amma wasn't able to climb all the way. After 1.5KMs, we arranged for the doli to carry Amma. I followed the doli. It helped we trekked before sunrise. We must have reached around 4.30 AM. We had a good Darisanam. The return was challenging in its own way. I got sprained and legs got giddy climbing down the slope, probably 30 degrees. Walking backwards, holding on to the rail helped. But by Lord Ayyappa's grace we made it safely before 8AM. Srinidhi, Veena and Karthi were waiting in the car. It would not have happened for Amma unless for this time. Amma wasn't planning any pilgrimage to Sabarimala, since it requires one mandalam (41 days) viratham. Swami Saranam Ayyappa.

Srinidhi, Bhuvana and Boomika.

Tractor Trouble

Check this out: Tractor trouble.

Not an uncommon sight in India.

Srinidhi, March, 2005.

Thekkady, Apr 17, 2005

We went to Thekkady this time. We went on the wildlife boat tour. We saw lot of macaques, elephants, sambar deers and several species of birds. Of course tigers were not active during the day time, even if they were, we didn't spot them.

A group of Lion-tailed macaques at Thekkady.

There were lot of Bonnet macaques.

An elephant family grazing, Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, Thekkady, Kerala, April 17, 2005.

Malabar Hornbills at Thekkady.

Wildlife tour at Periyar Wild Life Sanctuary-Thekkady, Kerala, April 17, 2005

How English survived in India

Slightly sarcastic, this article talks about how C N Annadurai (Anna) fought for the survival of English in post-independence India unwittingly giving Indians (especially south Indians) a comparative advantage in the outsourcing revolution.

On a related note, this book is a historians view of Language struggle in Tamil Nadu. I haven't obtained or read this book yet. It is in my curious list.

Voice of Indira (from 1976)

Indira Gandhi visited Mannargudi around 1980 and addressed a public meeting; Appa took me to the meeting. It was a really large gathering. I saw Mrs. Gandhi from far away. I heard her and of course did not understand a bit, not even what language she spoke nor the Tamil translation. But I always had this memory of her majestic voice. Hearing her voice now, in this audio interview from 1976, I do not hear the majestic voice, but more pedestrian Indian accent . But her thoughts and conviction are majestic, reminding she was in fact the Iron Lady of India. Interesting to listen to why the democracies of India and US did not have a cordial relation and why India didn't completely defeat Pakistan in the war of 1971 and about the role of foreign assistance to India. (you will need RealPlayer)

Click here to listen to the interview.