Bonjour!

We sadly left Mumbai and all of India on Thurs 1/28 and had a 9+ hour flight to Paris.  The next morning we took a pleasant train ride to Montpelier, then a local train to Agde, then a cab right to our door on Rue de Noilly in Marseillan.  We traveled through lovely rolling hills, little towns, vineyards, pretty church steeples.  Saw a remnant of a castle above a town.  So different from our India.  The apt we rented from Denis and Janice is lovely, roomy and a short block from the water's edge.  Sure, it's up 27 stairs along a winding staircase; won't D & J be surprised when they see the electric chair lift we have installed during our stay?  😏.  The weather is mild; we are wearing jeans, turtleneck shirts and sweatshirt for our walks.  The water we see is the Etang de Thau,  then the Golfe du Lion, then the Mediterranean Sea.  We are maybe a 3-hour drive to Aix en Provence, where Thom lived a couple years 40 years ago.  We are about 3 hours from Carol and Marcia's beloved Toulouse.  We had planned to rent a car for a week or two whenever we felt like it, taking trains and buses like we usually do.  But since traveling and dragging luggage around is getting to be such a physical drag, we rented a car today for almost two months!  We took a bus to Sete, an old port city that now is built up with lots of apts, hotels and tourists to the car rental place.  The ride there is nice along beaches and park areas.  We've got our wheels and will go tomorrow to Carcassonne and Toulouse.  Then we plan to be in Spain and Portugal for a week.  No tour guides now, we must find our own adventures.  

                                    

                             Scenery on our train ride from Paris to Montpelier

                     Our home in Marseillan in February and March - up 27 stairs, good exercise!

                                      Our scenic port a block from the apartment

Village of Marseillan

Local watering hole in Marseilles

                             Walkway and bike path along the Etang de Thau

         Watching the windsurfers on the Etang de Thau with the port town of Sete in the background

                    Great, clean public toilet at the start of the path along the Etang de Thau - and free!

Farewell to India

Mon night 1/25 we walked to a seaside restaurant to enjoy calamari, red snapper and the sunset.  It was a lovely night with cool breezes.  On our walk back to the hotel, we walked along the side of the road; there really weren't sidewalks.  Anne was in front, using her flash light, advising me of any obstacles along the way.  I looked up at one point and called Anne's name.  She was about four feet from walking straight into a cow coming right at us.  On Tues 1/26, Ganesh's birthday and Republic Day, Maria took us for a walk through the Latin Quarter.  I had to keep reminding myself we were in India, not Spain or Portugal, with all the colorful buildings, iron work, and street names.  Later we flew to Mumbai.  Leaving Goa Anne saw miles and miles of beautiful sandy beaches with no high rises!  Then we saw big mountains, then high rises and slums as we approached Mumbai.  The airport is new and easy to get around in.  The temperature was around 88 degrees.   We were met by an OAT rep, drove along the sea and saw lots of people walking the promenade and watching the sunset.   Akesh pointed out several outdoor wedding venues we passed.  They were in the middle of a block, fancy drapes and lights and things that sparkle light the entrance.  Then inside there are tables and chairs, more fancy things, more lights.  My photographer didn't get a good picture of any of them but it looked exciting. (But she did get a photo of an Audi decorated for a wedding)  We then had a vegetarian dinner of talih (I am not sure of the spelling).  We had a tasty clear soup with fresh-grated veggies in it.  A round tray with maybe six little bowls were set before us.  They were filled with different chutneys, sauces, vegetables.  Then the waiters brought potatoes, cauliflower, rice, lentils, all kinds of veggies and two sweets, strawberries with sweet yogurt and a very sweet grated pistachios and coconut - Anne liked those two sweets.   And about four different breads We've tried just about everything, and I definitely don't like lime pickles.  Because of the national holiday, no alcohol was served.  This morning we met our local guide, Malti, a local Indian woman wearing punjabi and a red powder in the part of her hair to indicate she's a married woman.  Malti received a blessing from Mother Theresa years ago.  (Throughout India, a woman's marital status may be indicated by bangles on her arms, different colored bindis, nose rings; Malti can tell what part of India women come from by their saris and how they wrap them differently.)  She is another very proud, patriotic Indian, not only a tour guide but a social worker, working with seniors, women and children in the slums.  She told us Mumbai is India's business capital.  Again, plenty of westerners here.  Today there is smog, but I have had no breathing trouble (thank you, Dr. Tess).  The bus dropped us off at the Gateway of India, a structure built to commemorate King George V's visit with his new bride, right on the coast.  Impressive.  Next to the gateway is the Taj Mahal hotel, the site of the terrorist attack almost ten years ago, where about 130 people were killed.  Also as part of that attack, a rabbi and maybe five others were killed at a synagogue here.  We hopped on a ferry and took a 45-minute ride to the Elephanta Caves.  Leaving the port, our boat was accompanied by a gazillion seagulls.  Apparently the birds know that the tourists on the boats will feed them, so they come along for about ten minutes of the ride, circling all around.  I swear a couple of them looked me right in the eye as they flew by.  Actually getting to the caves wasn't quite that easy.  We had to walk up 60+/- steps.  Doesn't sound too bad. But in addition to the steps, we walked flat areas that were also inclined.  This site was used perhaps 1000 years ago as a religious site.  Figures were carved from hewned rocks, so you see Shiva and many of the other deities.  The sad part is that the Portuguese used these carvings for rifle shooting practice.   The walk down was a challenge.  If you took a tumble, you could probably bounce on every step and landing before you hit the water.  We saw monkeys, goats, a donkey and many dogs.  After a late lunch, we said goodbye to Malti and the rest of our tour group.  We are leaving the hotel at 7:15 Thurs morning to get to the airport for our flight to Paris.   I have loved my adventures here, and I have been touched so deeply by the kindness of the Indian people.  It has been sad to see humans not well fed, without homes, so poor.  Very hard for me is to see so many dogs and animals malnourished and uncared for.  Yes, there is that trash issue, corruption in government, cruelty and crime against women and the lower castes.  Every day we should appreciate all that we have and the opportunities given to us.  Don't waste food.  Remember all the great things we've shared with you, and don't let anyone bad mouth this country.  Send good wishes to India, come visit when you have a chance, leave a little bit of your heart here where we have.   Here is a statement from a book Anne is reading about India that is an excellent summary of the India experience: From the book, "Holy Cow: An Indian Adventure"
"India. is beyond statement, for anything you say, the opposite is also true. It’s rich and poor, spiritual and material, cruel and kind, angry but peaceful, ugly and beautiful, and smart but stupid. It’s all the extremes. India defies understanding, and once, for me....."  

Street in Panaji, Goa - reminiscent of Portugal and Spain

Promenade on Marine Drive in Mumbai

In Mumbai a car decorated for wedding extravangazas

More wonderful sidewalk art

Gateway of India

Taj Hotel 

Taj Hotel & Gateway of India from our ferry heading to Elephanta Island

                              Some of the seagulls that followed our ferry to Elephanta Island.

We had to walk up many steps to get to the caves - or you could have someone carry you up in this type of chair for a free of course

Info on the Elephanta Caves

Entrance to the Caves

Beware of the monkeys on Elephanta Island - not friendly

Our guide Malta explaining how Portuguese soldiers used the ShIva temple carvings for target practice

Vendors on the steps walking down from the Elephanta Caves

Queen Victoria Railway station in Mumbai

All kinds of entertaining sites to see throughout Mumbai

Leaving Mumbai

Unfortunate Indian housing just outside the airport - so unlike the colorful, beautiful people and sites we visited in Incredible INDIA

But we will remember India with beautiful people & wonderful colors 

Hot, hot, hot in Goa - Beautiful Arabian Sea!

Everywhere here in India, the drivers are very skilled.  They have to be because most drive like demons and don't drive best-up cars and motorcycles.Drivers need good brakes, good horn and good luck!  After breakfast on Fri1/22, the girls went to see a Bollywood'ish movie.  They vary from region to region.  All stories must have love, music and dance and a little fighting.  'One Life, One Love' had them all.  Extra bonus for us was a most handsome leading man.  Anne googled him, knows everything about him.  Just like in real life, the women in the movie wore beautiful saris.  There was a intermission, and wait staff came to our seats ready to take our food and
drink orders.  Oh, the movie was not in English and there were no subtitles, but we figured it out well enough.  Later, Ganesh took us to see the inside of the Mysore palace.  Really lovely.  Imported stained glass from Belgium, Czechoslovakian chandelier, blown glass from Murano, Carrara marble and more.  Then we explored a very large marketplace; we watched people, cows, motorcycles.  What a place! That night we had our farewell dinner on the lawn. Before dinner, Ganesh showed some videos from various movies.  It was fun to see him just starting to shake his hips.  He is too proper to really do that in front of us, but we could tell he probably has some good dance do that in front of us, but we could tell he probably has some good dance moves.  Then we were all delighted to see a video from his wedding twenty years ago.  You remember we met his wife earlier in the trip.  Theirs was an arranged marriage;  they each had an opportunity to meet before the wedding, but they trusted the judgment of their families. He looked a bit bashful and she looked SCARED.  They are happily married and still enjoy each other.  On Sat, we drove back to Bangaluru while Ganesh recapped all we had done since the start of our tour.  We've been busy!  Anne won a 'Ganesh' bobble head for answering a question.  Yes, Priscilla, you also won one.  Bangalore is a huge IT hub.  Not unusual to see non-Indians so we've lost our warm welcomes.  Bummer.  Across from our hotel was a shopping center with a store like Whole Foods.  Eulaine, I had a chance to retrieve a balloon for a little girl in the mall; her mother said to the little girl 'thank Auntie, you are making her work hard for you'.   While I am working hard to get this message out, Anne is arguing with me about the color of her Tshirt.   Silly girl, she knows I have some color blindness;  why argue with me about it?  I told her to massage my feet but she went outside instead.  Anyway, we bid 3 of the girls farewell.  Michigan Jean was going home via Abbu Dhabi, Chicago, Kalamazoo.  Californians Cynthia and Priscilla via Dubai, LAX.  Glad we were able to meet them and hope to see them again.  Forgot to tell you an amusing story from a couple days ago.  Wherever we've gone, most of The time there are limited toilet facilities; even then, sometimes they are just squat toilets .  One of the gals, Dolores from Texas had the urge at a stop where there was no toilet available.   That problem-solver Ganesh took her to a nice home next door, opened the gate, told her to go to the door, open it and give the owner a sincere Namaste and indicate she needed the toilet.  A very gracious Muslim woman welcomed her and refused any money.  Don't you just love this place?  Even though Bangaluru is a pretty modern city, I did see a goat riding inside a hatchback car.   On Sun 1/24 we bid  a fond farewell to our Ganesh who proudly shared with us his beloved India.  He is a true patriot.  We all believe he showed us more than we ever could have expected.  In the paper we see that northern India is having a cold spell.  Not as severe as our Atlantic coast, but cold by Indian standards. FYI, every rupee bill has the denomination of that bill written in 15 different languages.  Every state in India has its own or several languages.  Amazing to think 1.3 billion people in India, speaking  lots of different languages, writing with different alphabets, all united.  So we flew to Goa and met our local guide Maria.  Lots of non-Indian sounding names here.  The Portuguese were here for 450 years, I believe, and left/were kicked out in 1961.  Maria, who does not wear saris, told us Goa is  60% Hindu, 25% Catholic, 10% Muslim.  Maria considers herself a Goan first, Indian second.  Interestingly, she was born in Uganda; her father died when she was 10 and Idi Amin kicked all 'Asians' out of Uganda; Maria's mother brought her here to Goa where her family lived. Tomorrow is Republic Day here, so it is a long weekend with plenty of Indian tourists here right now.  There are ALOT of tourists from Western Europe and Russia here.  We saw 3 churches within the old city.  The remains of St. Francis Xavier are inside one of them.  And I am not kidding you: his body is there kept inside a vacuum in a glass coffin in the church.  Not 'bones', but body.  Anyway, old Frank died en route on a pilgrimage to China; he wanted to be buried in Goa.   Instead, he is on display.  Last night we gazed at the full moon over and through palm trees.  This morning we met Maria for a walk through this part of town.  Then Anne and I walked back to our hotel along the Arabian Sea beach.  Anne enjoyed the walk in the sand.  We were sweating like oinkers.  Forgot to tell you about manually-operated fans we saw inside a church.  There's a frame structure over the pews and a sort of row of feathers attached to a pull rope.  Servants would stand on the side and pull this row of feathers back and forth, creating a breeze for worshippers.  We are still seeing cows along the roads but very few tuk tuks.  In the newspaper this morning, I saw a list of scheduled power outages for the week.   DTE could take a lesson from them...  There's some controversy brewing since a government minister
decided a cocoanut tree is not a real 'tree'.  It's got something to do with developers being able to remove them if they are classified as a plant instead of a tree.  Hope to remember to ask Maria about it.  Later we hope to have dinner overlooking the sea.  Btw, Goans usually eat dinner after 8:30 pm,
some even later.  Sounds awful, but people take siestas here.  Did I say that it is hot, hot, hot here in Goa?  On to Mumbai tomorrow afternoon.  This has been a wonderful adventure.  Come see India for
yourself!

Basilica of Bom Jesus were the body of St. Francis Xavier is interned in a vacuum sealed glass coffin

Streets of Goa 

                        

 Walking to the beach, I couldn't resist the following two photos - - Goa's Electric Dept. & a cable marker on the sidewalk like a cemetery headstone

 

Walkway to the beach in Goa

Selling fresh fish in Goa

Market in Goa

     Our beach side spot for Kingfisher beer, fried calamari, grilled King prawns, grilled   red snapper, watching people parasailing and a marvelous sunset over the Arabian Sea!

Ganesh and the prize winner with her Ganesh bobble head doll

Greetings from Mysore!

We were still hot and sweaty a couple days ago in Cochin (Kochi) on the Arabian Sea.  On Tuesday Ganesh took us to seethe Chinese fishing nets.  I was surprised to see how they worked, dropping the net in the water and pulling ropes to raise the net and its catch of fish.  So we all took turns lowering and pulling.  Amazing how rest of the world lives!  We visited the church where Vasco da Gama was first buried; his bones are back in Lisbon now.  Back at the hotel, we saw a sari-wrapping demonstration while we got our hands henna-ed.  Then we danced to Indian and American tunes with the sari wrapper and a cute male housekeeper.  An observation I had while standing on the outside hotel steps overlooking the pool waiting for my henna to dry:  two veiled Muslim women walk past the open gate to our hotel, a motorcycle zooms by, five goats of assorted shades meander past.  Dorothy, we aren't in Kansas any longer.  The 'girls' in the group (2 Californians and us 3 Michiganders) went together to a home-hosted dinner at the lovely home of Oscar and Jeanette Rozario.  They are Catholics of Portuguese descent.  We met their college student daughter and Jeanette's 98 year old mother who eats fish every day of her life, no meat.  Their son works in the travel business and their neighbor is our hotel manager.  We talked of a variety of subjects.  They do a lot of home hosting, and they enjoy their  American guests.  Their street is in a gated community and is very clean.   Ok, so I haven't mentioned it before because it is just a part of this incredible India, but there is a lot of trash laying around.  That's all I'm going to say about that.  On Wednesday we visited the Jewish synagogue from the mid-1500's. The community is very tiny now, but it was a large thriving community under the Maharajah's protection.  We skipped the hotel lunch and joined the Californians for a Greek salad and pizza.  The 47 year old owner used to be a French and Italian chef on cruise ships;  he also was a U.S. army cook in the Middle East.  Later we boarded a little cruise boat to see Kathakali dancers.  Men are painted and costumed and perform expressive dances.  Then the dancers left us and we cruised another hour.  Then we were dropped at a different location and followed Ganesh for about ten minutes until we reached a temple festival with about six elephants.  Mixed feelings about these elephants;  newspaper articles talk about their poor treatment.  Ganesh tells us again he likes that we are up for adventures and don't complain about walking, etc.  Early 5a.m. departure for the airport on Thursday, enroute to Bangalore.  We say farewell to our good driver Panil and his assistant Arun.  Nice new airport in Bangalore and the temperature is 68 degrees at 10 a.m.  The British used this city as a summer resort.  We have a new bus, driver and assistant.  By the day's end, we still haven't had the bus blessed...  We had about four hours of driving to Mysore.  Drove past granite hills.  Went to a cocoon market (silk).  Indian cocoons are white, Chinese are yellow.  Throughout our travels, we see homes and buildings with a painted evil face to ward off the evil eye.  It seems we drove through more cities than villages, but still you see oxen on the road pulling their heavy carts.  We saw an ostrich walking around our lunch restaurant.  We had an hour to rest at our hotel until 7 pm when we were headed to the market.  We drove by the market, but of course Ganesh had another adventure for us.  After a year's absence, a show had returned to the Lalitha Mahal palace.  We sat on lawn chairs and faced the palace.  To the accompaniment of music, vocals and assorted sounds, a light show was presented on the palace and surrounding temples and buildings.  It was a marvelous show and we were fortunate Ganesh had discovered its return.  Back at the hotel, Ganesh had arranged for a birthday cake for Priscilla, one of the Californians and the youngest in the group.  The girls had much merriment.  This morning we may enjoy the pool for a while.  This part of our tour is sadly coming to the end.  Let your adventures begin here in marvelous India!

Chinese fishing nets

Members of our group (including Maddy) demonstrating how to use the nets

Anne's henna right after completion,  needs 1/2 hour to dry and then it flakes off 

                                                       

                                                       Maddy's henna - a work of art

 We saw  two Kathakali male dancers get dressed for their performance of a traditional story about a demon and a doomed princess (don't ask me anything else about this story cuz I really didn't understand it!)

Doomed princess (a male)

The evil eye placed on many houses and buildings to keep the demons away

Maharajah's Lalitha Mahal Palace light show - really a great sound and light show!

The show was a real treat!

Priscilla, our California friend, celebrating her birthday