January 22, 2015 -- Uncle Linnaeus Tripe's Madurai

Hi all

 

We are back in the apartment in Mohali after a fairly epic tour of Jim Corbett National Park, the state of Kerala and, lastly, Madurai in Tamil Nadu. Hansi has written (or will write) about much of the journey so I'm focusing on the adventure in Madurai, home of the Meenakshi Temple Complex and Madurai Palace.
 

I have quite a few photos so I'll send several e-mails with a brief overview of each 'batch', beginning with this one.
 

As you will doubtless recall, my great, great, great, gr. . . etc. Uncle Linnaeus Tripe, a Captain in the East India Company, journeyed to Tamil Nadu in 1858 taking photographs as the official photographer to the Madras (now Chennai) Government. Two of the cities he visited were Tanjore (which I wrote about last time) and Madura. In particular, he photographed the great temple of Meenakshi in Madura along with the Madura Palace (aka Thirumalai Naickar Mahal). Since we were in the neighbourhood anyway, we decided to take a side trip to Madurai to try to capture some "then versus now" photographs and visit Uncle Linny's old stomping grounds.
 

As with Tanjore, the fact that I, a Tripe, was re-visiting the same grounds as another Tripe had, only 156 years later, is just amazing. And, to be standing in close to the same spot as he must have stood, gazing at the same scene (well, sort of) is a unique experience - I am so glad to have had the chance to do this and only wish all of us Tripe descendants could have been there together.
 

The Temple complex is, in a word, awesome! The sheer size (city blocks long on each side), complexity of the carving and art work and architecture are a tad overwhelming. If you add the crowds of people (the Pongal festival was in full swing, look up Pongal on Google) filling the narrow side streets in addition to the vendors spilling out onto the sidewalks and streets - it was both a bazaar and bizarre atmosphere. We walked to/from the temple complex on the day we arrived (Thursday, January 15 after lunch) and just drank in the hubbub. It was about a 25 minute walk to the complex and, if you add in all of the walking around the perimeter, we were nackered by the time we got back to the Hotel. It was good to stretch our legs after the drive from Pariyar, though.

 

Cousin Janet is the guru of Linny's travels and provided me with copies of his photographs, a map of the temple and palace complexes and a written thumb-nail sketch of each photo! Without them we would have been completely lost and this venture would not have been the success that it was. So, a huge THANK YOU. (By the way, the Ade family Aunty Marion, Uncle Harry, Barbara and Janet have done extensive 'Tripe' research over the years - documenting the Tripe family back to Devon, England a few hundred years ago.)
 

We decided to circumnavigate the complex on Thursday afternoon to get shots of the exterior and the Gopurums (aka towers) along with the temple entrance on the East side. Linny's photographs show a deserted countryside and interior shots devoid of humanity - either he had the countryside cleared or the population simply "wasn't" (I'm sure it's the latter). Today, the complex is surrounded by narrow streets and shops and humanity. To add to the photographer's problems, some of the interior is also filled with shops so duplicating Linny's shots isn't possible. In any case, we did pretty well on the exteriors. Oh, by the way, the temperature was a very pleasant 30C . . . it was 16C and overcast here in Mohali yesterday and we don't like it so much (I know, I know - it's -4C in TO so stop your complaining, Rob).

Photos: Map, Complex plan, Nos 17, 18 and 20 from Plan

 

 

January 11-14, 2015 -- Periyar

Car trip from Alleppey to Thekkady about 5 hr. and uneventful, but we passed many tea gardens (where it is grown) and rubber plantations along the way.  We had to stop for a tea and pee break mid-morning – The Roof  Garden Family Restaurant –  "break  fast and lunch”  - Murinjapuzha.  On the building itself read Kizhakkethalackal.  Was this the town, was the other name the town?  Was one the proprietor?  In Kerala, the language is Malayalam (there may be three others) and in Madurai, Tamil but in both States, the names are Whacky long by our standards and hard to get our tongues around.

Aside from our hotel costs, we paid a daily park entry fee even though our resort was inside the park, and even if we didn’t go out.  Like our daily usage fees with Parks Canada.  Of course, hike and boat ride were extras. 

This place claims to have many tigers in the reserve, and I hope that is true.  But,  we were not led to believe  we would see one and we did not.  We did see wild elephants down by the water way out into our boat cruise, and we did see Gaur (like a big water buffalo (don’t think Rob got a good picture) deer and wild boars on that boat ride.  BTW, coming back into the park after dark by auto rickshaw (returning from Traditional Kerala Tribal dancing) (Don’t ask!) we saw a huge family of wild boar, shuffling along in the darkness keeping just ahead of us and our rickshaws lights - giant boar and sows, many little bristly piglets, all hustling eerily and almost silently  through the underbrush.  Tails up.

We were lucky enough to spot a Malabar Parakeet – only found in this area of India, (no good picture, the Indian Golden Oriole and the Malabar Trogan WITH Mrs. Trogan.  What a bird!  We also saw -maybe 4 times - the Malabar Giant Squirrel.  He is very colourful (I don’t think Rob’s pictures show just how colourful he is) and VERY large with   a l  o  n  g bushy tail.  Despite his size, he was HARD to spot and moved quickly,high up, through the trees.

Also here were two different monkeys.  The Bonnet macaque looks a lot like the one up North (Rhesus Macaque)  but he has his hair parted in the middle – even the babies - like some religious sect I see in St. Catharines.  This kind (like the Northern cousins) are cheeky, found in large numbers, will approach to steal food and can be a pest (like come in through your window is you leave it open.  No, we didn’t do that, but a couple from New Jersey did, and found Mr. Monkey on their bed. 

The other is the Nilgiri Langur – a black langur with an indistinct goldenish ruff. around his head.  This one does not seem to hang out in large numbers, and is much shyer of humans.  Their tails seem to hang down 6 feet.  Must Google that!



Nilgiri Langur

During the day, from before 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., people flocked in huge numbers from outside the park gates (maybe 3 km down the park road) in tuk tuks, cabs, tour buses, private cars – all to take the boat cruises which left from the dock behind our resort.  Birding in this area was marred by the smell of exhaust fumes as car after car after car sped past in both directions, then clattering over funny culvert covers made from a collection of old spoons, by the sound of them.  About .5 km from our resort was where all these vehicles had to park (NO VEHICLES BEYOND THIS POINT), so then all the people IN these vehicles had to get out and walk to the dock – happily LAUGHING, CALLING to each other, TALKING TO EACH OTHER AT THE TOP OF THEIR LUNGS – all things to be expected of happy revelers out for a nice boat cruise.  But not so great for two people (us) trying to sneak up on elusive, exotic birds.

Also, we were not allowed outside the hotel gates after 5, which also meant we could not walk down to the water’s edge (the resort sits right on the water) after 5, because this would then be considered INSIDE the PARK – which was closed after 5 p.m.  That really limited our birdwatching/viewing, because once all the (noisy) visitors from outside the park had left, the resort grounds would have been ideal - peaceful, quiet and full of birds. 

Anyway, we made the most of it. .

Hansi

January 8-11, 2015 -- Alleppey Beach Resort

After leaving the Lemon Tree, we were at the Alleppey Beach Resort for three nights.  It was only 17 km south of the Lemon Tree, and had we known that, and known what the Alleppey Beach Resort would be like, we would have stayed put and moved on to Periyar Tiger Preserve from there.  Anyhoo…

I had specifically booked the Beach Resort to be ON the beach, (you know, sand, waves, frolicking) and we were.  It was probably a three- star if a person were to be generous – A three-star OK in Canada but dodgey here.  

We weren’t the ONLY people in the place, but almost.  I think there were two male staff (the waiter – who knows – maybe he was the cook too) and the Manager on the front desk,. plus two women – maybe Mom and Daughter – who cleaned the room and toted the luggage.

The Manager did not seem to have anything written down about our arrival – and kept asking me to check my reservation  (saved on the iPhone) because there were two places with similar names.  I asked repeatedly, Are you not expecting a Robert Tripe today, and he would repeat for US to check our reservation.  This was the place where (in Chandigarh) we had to deposit 50% of Rs12000 into the ICICI bank.– bank account number but no name - before the place would confirm my reservation.

The waiter did not pick up his feet when he walked, so shuffled /dragged his feet along the corridor from the kitchen to the dining room at every meal  - an eerie sound in an almost-vacant place - making me think of Igor from Frankenstein. Very creepy.  But I think the thing that set the tone for the whole stay was that I found not one, but two stewed flies in my first meal there. 

Bird-wise, right on the beach  (the Indian Ocean) as we were, we saw MANY crows  (very raucous) but little else.  We were lucky enough to see a pair of Lesser Goldenback woodpeckers right out back, and the Coucal, which has been elusive so far on this India trip, began to flaunt himself at every opportunity – in our yard, on our wall, as if to say – “Ah come on, don’t give up.  Take my picture!”  So we did.  Rob also managed to spot and snap a Koel – a VERY loud bird with an ascending shrill call – that just CANNOT be found in the trees.  Turns out he is black like a crow with red eyes.  So, nothing much to see, but impressive to hear.

Southern Coucal

Asian Koel

The sandy beach was mostly deserted in either direction except for fishing boats, pulled up on shore . Rob and I had some fun in the waves, walked up and down the beach, and had fun watching little Sanderlings and Greenshanks foraging in the surf.  These birds  all run down to the water’s edge on a retreating wave, peck away in the sand for little tasty treats, then run up the beach again as another wave washes up and tries to lick at their feet.  Up and back, up and back – AND they seem to know when it is going to be a big wave or a small wave because they do NOT run all the way back to the water’s edge when the next wave is going to be big as they seem to know they wouldn’t have time to get out of its path, I guess.  

Hansi catches a wave

The ghost crabs ran up and down the beach and would shoot into a hole in the sand if scared.  Some were quite large and some the size of skittering insects.

We did see a new bird, the Western Reef Egret at this location.

Ghost crabs

One day, we decided to get away from the food at Alleppey, so walked down the beach road to another restaurant.  Unfortunately, the food items we ordered were not great, but they had a rocking crib/cradle as well as highchairs for visiting babies.  I thought this was a GREAT idea.

Cassia Restaurant cradle

We hired a cab to drive us to Periyar on Jan. 11^th – about another 4-1/2 hours.

Hansi

January 10, 2015 -- A Little more Fort Kochi

I guess I forgot to talk about a great restaurant we found -- front to the little lane, and back to the beach - open-air - called The Ginger House.

 

On the tables were little wooden signs stating "Today's Special - Ginger Ice cream" and  "Today' Special - Ginger Prawns."  How on earth could we not stay.  BTW, we had the ice cream first, while the prawns were being prepared.

 

Actual pieces of ginger root -- not candied

Rob and ginger prawns

Rob and Ginger ice cream

I decided to attach the book store picture to this supplement, because there was a bit of a story.  The driver knew we wanted a book store and what book we were looking for and he was aware that there was a good bookstore in Fort Kochi.  He enlisted the help of a youngish kid with very good English (should have set off our tout alarm) - in front of the basilica - to direct us to this store.

Rob at Indian "bookstore"

We drove where we had been told, with the youngish kid following behind on his scooter.  Of course, what awaited us was a handicraft store - NOT a bookstore - and the kid was a tout, hired to bring in tourists..

In good faith, thinking, "Well, MAYBE they have books here," we went on in and all the way to the back of the shop.  Gifts, gifts, gifts of all kinds, but no books.  Not even a book about books. The proprietor kept saying, "Books, yes, yes!  One minute! I will check!  Please just look around," as he headed for his phone.  We could clearly see that there had NEVER been any books there, so we cleared out, but I honestly think he was going to phone that bookstore which WE finally found and have that book sent over.

 

BTW, we are no longer in Hindi or Punjabi speaking territory.  Malayalam is spoken in Kerala, and the writing looks completely different.

 

Kerala sign

The number of languages spoken in India varies greatly on the web, but somewhere between 778 and 220 languages are spoken here - and look different on paper, obviously. 

 

If you all keep getting the same pictures, over and over, it's because I'm confused - and let's leave it at that.

 

Hansi

January 7 and 8, 2014 -- Kochi Synagogue, Basilica, and Crows

We drove to Kochi on Jan.7 and spent a fair amount of time in Jew Town.  (Yes, this is what it is called).  The oldest synagogue in Kochi (and India) is found here, as well as charming little winding lanes, lined with merchant after merchant, shop after shop – all hoping  (nay, begging) that you will "come inside and just look”. Aside from clothes – like kurtas, pants, sarongs – there were shops full of Indian handicrafts and many spice markets.  I did not see any just selling spices out of burlap bags in bulk (though there might have been) but I settled on a fragrant shop (not only the great smell of every kind of spice, but also essential oils wafting out) which purported to employ a collective of women from many villages to prepare and package these items, as well as make soaps and the beautiful fabrics and clothing for sale there.  Women were weaving on a huge loom near the back of the store.  This kind of co-op store (like we enjoyed in Delhi) has fixed prices which get passed back to the village women – and no haggling. 

The synagogue was very interesting.  It was built in 1568 though Jews existed in India long before that (and before the Christian era)  Jewish settlements in Malabar and Ceylon  were mentioned in the 1400s by a Venetian merchant though their history there goes back way further.

Synagogue Interior

Detail of synagogue floor

We had to take off shoes to enter, like  in every other place of worship here – Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and EVEN a Catholic church in Mohali – and then were treated to a very animated explanation of the history of the synagogue  by the female tour guide of a large group also inside.  Unfortunately, it was all in Hebrew.  But it SOUNDED very well-informed.

There is also a large, beautiful Basilica in Fort Kochi.  St Mary's Church of Kochi was built in 1676 and contains a famous picture of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This picture was installed here by Portuguese missionaries, who had brought it from their native land. It is believed to have some miraculous powers.  It is believed to have miraculously saved the lives of many from shipwrecks and storms.

Basilica interior

Basilica exterior

We wanted to track down a new bird book (like the one we gave our friend in Mohali) which covers the entire continent of India – not just the North, like our book.  Believe it or not, we found a good bookstore in Fort Kochi called Idiom, and even more unbelievable was that the vendor had plenty of THAT book and had just sold one to the British guy standing at the register.

I’m sitting outside of our room on the beach right now.  Meanwhile,  Rob – camera and tripod in hand -- is out somewhere by the water.  Will take a few pictures now. OK.  So I just did that, and here’s what happened.  I took a picture of the table, turned around, snapped a picture of the “yard” and then walked up the steps (it is like a stile) to the beach.  Photo snapped and back to table.  In that TINY AMOUNT of time, crows (there are many in the palms - and LOUD) had been onto this table, pecked and peeled some of the bananas, wiped banana goo onto the table cloth and departed, I guess, when they saw me coming back.

Beach in front -- Where's Waldo now?

Front of our room

View from the front of our place

WELL!  Lesson learned!  So I examined the damage and concluded that one half pecked, half peeled banana had to go but rather than throw it away, I carried it to outside the boundary of our “space,” set it down, came back to the table and sat down. By gum, that banana was GONE.  Mere feet away, behind my back, there was absolutely no sound of a crow having come for it, or even snagging it with a claw on a fly-by.  Now I want a crow.

AND an elephant.  A real Pet Elephant.

Hansi

January 9, 2015 -- The Massage

I was looking forward to my Ayurveda Massage. My only massage before this one was a wonderful experience at a lovely spa in St. John’s, Newfoundland with my daughter.  We were given fluffy terry robes, lemon water, and tranquil, meditating music played softly in the background.  The faint scent of some essential oil in the air was intoxicating and soothing….. Back to reality –

When Rob returned from HIS massage, I told you he was all greasy.  He told me only that he was given a diaperish thing to put on, but absolutely nothing more about the massage, which, if his experience was anything like mine, only meant that he dragged the whole memory of it into his cave, never to be talked about again.

My 8 o’clock appointment was postponed to 10 a.m. because my masseuse was stuck somewhere on a bus.  At 10, I presented myself, and followed her up to the top floor, through a door with a hanging sign which read, “Treatment in Progress.  Do not enter.”   She did not lock the door behind us.

I stood around on one foot then the other, sucking my teeth, while the masseuse, Saji, prepared her surroundings -- turned on the hot plate, put out towels, oil , iPod and then decked herself out in an oilcloth (this should have triggered a warning) apron.  Finally, she turned to me and said, “Take off your clothes.”

I think I squawked, “Right here?  Now?  All of them?” Yes, she nodded.

I thought, OK!  I am not a modest person, so how hard can this be?  I carefully took off my clothes, one by one, as she stood one foot away and continued to stare at me.  Lordy!  When I got to the underpants – “These too?” and she shook her head NO, I nearly wept with gratitude.  

“Sit here,” Saji indicated a backless bench and when I perched on it, she drizzled some dark oil on me and began a very thorough breast exam.  And arms, hands, feet, legs, back, belly, face and hair.  And if I weren’t already wretched enough, she peeled my undies down to bikini size, under my flubber .  Oh brother!

After 5 hours – I mean minutes – she told me, “Get on the table.”  I was a greased pig by that time, right down to my toes but I shussed my way over to the table and then tried to climb up onto the polished wooden surface.  I couldn’t get a grip with either oiled hand, nor purchase with the knees either which were slithering right and left.  Finally just slopped down in a heap and Saji had to sort out what was arms, what was legs.  On my back. With eyes tightly closed in an attempt to keep the stinging oil out of them.  Not working… Towel!  Quick!! My eyes are burning!

Massage Table

Massage Table

Well, she was not quick.  She slowly wiped off  her hands, (and then possibly went for a coffee) and then gave me a cloth for my eyes and forehead.  She was totally unfazed by this.
I knew that the oil Saji was using was very dark as I had seen her pouring it before I lost my sight.  Hoping for patchouli or sandlewood, what I got instead was an unpleasant mixture of coal tar and Lysol disinfectant.  Laid out as I was, blind and practically naked on the hard wooden table, I was a helpless cadaver.

Time for Saji to really go to work.  She turned on her music, not tranquil at all but a lively folk tune for guitar and zither - poured a cup of warm oil onto me, and then began The Washer Woman’s Lament on my body - top to bottom, again and again and again  - with the heels of her hands as though hoping to rid me of some evil spirit.  Every so often, I had to say, “Don’t do THAT”, when she was whacking my head all over with the ball of her hand,  or thrubbing my upper arm where I hurt it in a fall, or when she bent all my arthritic fingers double and then tried to crack the knuckles.. 

Then I had to turn over.  No mean feat,  let me tell you.  I was a hideous, greasy flounder.  Same routine on the back… and then I was done.  Now she wanted me to simply get off the table.  A mud wrestler climbing out of the pit.

She had me “rest” (how? I ask you), still naked , back on my backless bench, while she slowly folded up her towels, turned off the iPod, put away the oils, and then laboriously scrubbed down the table, once, then again before handing me my pile of clothes.  “Put them on.”  This gal had a real gift for the gab.

BUT I’M ALL GREASY, I squealed.   She gave me a towel to rub some of it off.  Dressed, I slithered back to my room.  I see that the black oil has toned down my pesky blond hi-lights to an ashy gray.  Hey, who doesn’t love a massage?

January 5-8, 2015 -- Two Things

Two things.

In the South of India, one sees many men wearing sarongs.  We noticed this to some degree south of Chennai, but it is VERY common here in Kerala.  A very practical garment, it can be worn long (more formal) or folded up more Gandhi style - like shorts.  Anyway, as we walked along the very rural road to bird-watch the other day, a businessman walked past with his computer case - on his way to work.  Seems incongruous to me.
 

Sarong with briefcase

Also, I keep seeing plants that are so impossibly coloured or shaped that I keep thinking "fake".  This red palm - all over the Lemon Tree property- is a good example - but don't worry, I have plenty of others. (I just heard a communal GROAN from you all...)  

Hansi