Friendship

Friendship

Saturday, April 08, 2006

glimpses of india

I thought I would post a few pictures to give you a feel of life in India - just some of my observations about this facinating country. In fact, I will only give you some glimpses of Kerala this post. India is home to one of the oldest civilisations and more than 1 billion people. It is also a very young country, both in its population and it's recent independance. Kerala is a socialst state (the only state previously to democratically elect a communist government) with high literacy and an active civil society. It's language is Malayallam and is home to 35 milion people squeezed into a small land mass. It has a range of mountains (Western Ghats ), a narrow strip of land then the Indian Ocean. Known as 'Gods Own Country' the name Kerala means 'land of coconuts'. The backwaters region is unique and beautiful as seen by the first photos. Elephants might be seen in the game reserves, temple 2 festivals or even the street! Kids attend school smartly dressed - even if the transport is crowded. Food is light, tasty and unlike any 'Indian' takeaway you have tasted. Here is masala dosa - one of my favourite breakfasts. Lfe is always colourful, often frustrating, run on IST (Indian stretchable time) and invarably surrounded by warmth and friendlieness. Close your eyes and imagine hot moist air, spinning fans, scents of jasmine and spices, endless coconut palms, sunset over the Indian Ocean, tooting horns, crazy traffic, a cow causing a traffic jam, no personal space, ready laughter, bustling cities, vibrant colours of saris and the smile of a beautiful woman, and you have a glimpse of where I am. Come and see for yourself sometime!!

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