Varkala
Took the overnight train departing Madurai at 11:30pm for an 8am arrival in Varkala.
At daybreak, I was awake, the train was moving at high speed with a steady and soothing hum. To the rhythm of powerful diesel engines. It must have been 5:30 a.m. and we must have been close to the southern tip of India.
Feeling cold, I put on a fleece. I left my bunk and headed for the door. The doors remain open at all times. I sat down on the coping and the cool morning air hit my face. Pleasant feeling.
Then, I looked at the landscape and amazement seized me… green, green and more green. Banana trees, coconut palms, various bushes, trees and all that as far as the eye can see. What a contrast with the aridity that I have encountered since my arrival.
Varkala is a small seaside resort which welcomes many Indian tourists. Since the covid, non-Indian tourists are very rare.
It is a beautiful place, the town is set back from the coast by about 3 km. From the town center, starts a small winding road which goes down a narrow steep-sided valley and leads to the beach.
The sun sets over the Arabian Sea…
I really like Vietnam and Pondicherry but both have a disadvantage: the ocean is to the east. The sun sets behind the mountains. It is true that a sunrise over the sea is beautiful but fast. In less than a minute the sun appears on the horizon.
A sunset over the ocean is announced well in advance, it takes its time. You could almost call it sensual.
Every evening the same delight, the same magic.
Click on the picture to enlarge
The story of the trunk
This evening, I came back from the beach, a nice surprise was waiting for me on the way.
I see a van, 4 men, a trunk already loaded and 2 other huge trunks waiting. I watch, I wait and I film.
While filming, I said to myself that I should help them and then an inner voice told me: “don’t take any risks”. I filmed until the end.
Then the turn of the third trunk arrived and there I said to myself: “to hell with the risks, do what your heart tells you”. And I helped them.
What happiness to feel the effort and what happiness, once finished, the handshake and the happy smile of the 4 men…
It’s a situation that could have happened in France in the 1970s when I was a teenager. Afterwards, assurances came and fear restricted the actions of men, so fear restricted their freedom…
Of course, insurance companies are not solely responsible. They gave direction and time and culture did the rest. So that today in Europe, without realizing it, because it happened little by little, people no longer live. Little by little, they find themselves forced everywhere, with more and more prohibitions. Imagine that the same scene happens and that I am with my partner. Seeing me doing that, she would have said to me: “but why are you doing that?” – “It’s not your problem” – “Let them manage” – “You’re crazy! You’re taking risks for nothing!” … (As if the other was “nothing” !!!).
It’s like riding a train sitting on the curb, your legs hanging out. What happiness ! Freedom found again…
See the blog ” Live ” and the blog ” Act for free “
Note: This morning, I went down to the beach to drink my milk tea (“Chaï”) like all Indians. Going back up, the van was parked again and the man who held the rope the night before was there. When he saw me, his face split into an ear-to-ear smile and gave a thumbs up. I smiled. We didn’t exchange a word, I passed. Some silences are “heavy”, but this one… the silence was full, consistent, human.
See blog ” Silence “