The Shifting Sands

One day I said to my Mum "When can I get a bird,  I love birds,   I really love animals too".  And then my Mum said "Why don't we go look at some birds,  maybe you deserve it, you have been wishing since you were two."  So we went out to get 2 birds.    I named them Harry and Lara.

One of the challenges in Mumbai is quickly escaping the crush of life here.  One of the great ways to escape is the sea kayak.  Despite the murky brown of the water close to the beach, a couple of kilometers off-shore there is a very distinct line where the water starts to look cleaner.  What is surprising is the amount of marine life despite the unimaginable things that are flushed into the ocean. There are always fish jumping and there is a large pod of around 30 dolphins that you often encounter off-shore. One the favorites is to set a westerly heading and after about 4km, Mumbai disappears into the smog, the sky is a brighter blue and apart from the occasional fishing boat you are alone which a great feeling in a crowded city.  Paddling along the shore gives you the opportunity to view the many Portuguese Forts that dot the coastline from the Arabian sea. The other escape is to go bouldering...

Our next escape was to Fort Kochi in the State of Kerala, a long standing trading port with Dutch, Portugese and British history woven into the long standing South Indian culture.  This history, combined with Kerala’s long history at the centre of the spice trade,  makes for some great dining.  From a perspective of economic development, Kerala is one of the most developed State in India with high median incomes, GDP per capita, literacy levels, a large Catholic population and, ironically, a history of communist governments .  The coastline in Kerala consists of islands separated by tidal “backwaters” which are heavily vegetated and provide a beautiful tropical backdrop. Chris's Mum, Doreen, was visiting Mumbai for two weeks so the trip was coordinated with her stay.  We booked into the Tea Bungalows, an historic private bungalow converted into a small hotel with eight rooms.  The service and food was excellent and it had a small pool which is...

One of the great positives of Bandra, our suburb in Mumbai, is that it is close to the airport.  Now normally this is not a selling point for a suburb but Mumbai always questions orthodox thinking.  The reality is that the noise of the planes is drowned out by the traffic noise, continuous honking, fireworks, marching bands, ceiling fans, air conditioners and poor plumbing that are a fact of life in Mumbai.  The best thing about being close to the airport is that it is quick, easy and cheap to escape Mumbai.  For your sanity it is always healthy to be planning you next escape. View from the City Palace Our first escape post-monsoon was to Udaipur, a popular tourist city in Rajasthan with some friends and their two children.  We were travelling with Ada as Lucy had conveniently scheduled herself a Badminton tournament in Delhi.  The lengths teenagers will go to to escape their parents! ...

Todays post is about things you can do in India, specifically Mumbai, for under two aussie dollars (about 200 rupee)...sounds easy enough but as I started to write this I thought more deeply about the social aspect of this post....my first list was: Ride a rickshaw for an hour at least Drink three or four fresh coconut waters and eat the meat, all road side Watch a Movie in a fairly nice theatre complete with national anthem, and an interval! Bribe a cop or two! Run a red light...or two and again bribe a cop... Take Puja (an offering) to a Ganesh in someones home....basically worship a colourful elephant with six arms...upon invite only! And then I got to thinking about what I do with my two dollars a day...and truthfully some of the above and even more truthfully I... buy a big bunch of bananas and take them to a new group of street children laying on the roadside near my house, of course to feed them, and to see them smile give my maid the equivalent ...

Jammu and Kashmir represents everything that is both right and wrong in India. It is s State that is beautiful and extreme in its physical and ethnic diversity but it torn by national and religious conflicts. The Vale of Kashmir and its capital Srinagar is the 'jewel in the crown of India'. A verdant valley with a series of lakes at the heart surrounded by snow capped peaks. A predominantly muslim population that is ethnically aligned with Pakistan and a burning desire to separate from India and form an independent Kashmir even though the Indian occupation was in response to a request from the reigning Kashmir prince as a result of an invasion of north Kashmir by Pakistan. Dividing the Indian and Pakistani Kashmir is the Hotly contested Line of Control over which wars have been fought and artillery duels are exchange. With two nuclear powers, Bill Clinton called Kashmir the 'most dangerous place in the world. The semi autonomous region of Ladakh...

A lot can happen in three months, the length of time since my last post, and even then not much changes, at least on the surface of where we live. It seems that living in India teaches one more about what is on the inside rather than an outside in approach to learning. We have been back home in India for two weeks, after almost two months in Australia, Thailand and Singapore. It is Monsoon time here and the Girls summer holidays so Mumbai was not the place to be. Getting back to school has been great. We were all immediately busy and engaged in our worlds of friendships and education. I am the Parent Technology Representative at the school now which is an evolving feast but thus far more social than anything. Chris has been in the northern state of Ladakh for the week. He is climbing a mountain there with a some ponies, a cook and a guide. We have not heard from him which I take as a good thing. So I promise that I will restart my blogging but now instead of long stories a...