Kerala

Ooooooheyyyyyy. I’ve managed to transport myself to the southwest of India. It’s much more relaxed than the north, and I have not seen one cow since entering the state of Kerala. As a result I have not seen one cow pie. That feels kind of magical. I know the cows in India are holy and all, but sometimes I wonder if holiness equals happiness. Coming from Wisconsin, I’ve seen cows in many situations, but they usually involve things like hay, and streams, and munching on daisies. In India cows can be seen doing any number of things, from eating chips, cardboard boxes, and empty plastic bags, to holding up long strings of auto rickshaws and busses to sniff car bumpers as they meander through four lanes of traffic, sampling people’s library books on the beach, testing them for snackability, and fully lounging curbside in city centers next to taxi stands and giant piles of trash. They seem pretty mellow though. I suppose it’s all about their expectations. Maybe if you transported an Indian cow to the rolling green hills in Wisconsin she would lose her mind and break down into tears until you brought her a cup of masala chai and a plate of grocery bags with the promise that she could walk into town and lie down in the middle of traffic.

Kerala is the birthplace of Ayurveda, and after the magic that happened with their cure for my rash I’m interested to know more. Tomorrow I check into an Ayurvedic clinic for a two-week fixer upper session, skin treatment and healthy diet. It should be relaxing, but possibly slightly boring. I’m guessing I may not have much of interest to post about during that time, but you never know, maybe the physicians get crazy after hours and kick the clinic vibe into high gear. I will be sure to have my camera ready and my ears open.

That photo is my bag on the train’s luggage rack. I know it looks lonely up there, but don’t worry, about ten minutes later there were three girls sitting next to it, keeping it company.

Did anyone make a New Year’s resolution? Did everyone already break it? Tell me. I’ll see you soon. xo.

The food in the Ayurveda Hospital is really good, healthy vegetarian food. These are funny little noodle patties with coconut on top.

The treatment tools.

I left my room at the Ayurveda clinic for the first time in four days yesterday. It felt weird walking around. One of the ladies from the clinic showed me the way to the beach and warned me to not walk in certain places because young men would be shouting hellos at me. A voice in my head said very earnestly, “Oh yeah, dangerous.” and then I remembered I have been walking around alone with young men shouting hello for the last couple of decades. A few days alone in a clinic does kind of put you out of practice though. She was totally founded in her warnings. A couple of young Engineering students approached me and said they were shooting a short film and they wanted me to be in it. I declined and they pleaded “Please Madame!” over and over. They were very cute and polite, but I’ve been out of the game for four days now and just did not have it in me to pretend to be an actress in front of ten Engineering students. Then the guy in the photo above asked me to take his picture, and when I asked him if he was ready, he did that. Charisma, some people just have it. But really, the beach was littered with men and only one small girl asking me to give her pens, candy, chocolate, rupees, anything! So, I quickly watched the sunset and made it back for dinner with sandy socks, and tried to post this, but they turned the internet off. I think maybe they bill differently for it here, because everyone always turns their internet off. I’ve always just left mine on 24/7. I thought everyone did.
The treatment is coming along. I’m feeling healthy, and only slightly claustrophobic. They rub me down with a powdery substance that looks like sawdust for an hour everyday. I asked what it was and was told “Medicine.” Alright.