Om Beach

Life is good! I think Paul and I are really made for this kind of life. We’re living on about $30.00 a day and that includes our accommodations and the occasional gift or personal purchase. We live simply. A luxury room is one with our own toilet. Real deluxe is a shower spout usually on the wall opposite the toilet. When you use the shower you have to close the toilet seat so the shower water sprinkles on the lid.

Occasionally we feel really extravagant so we ask the proprietor to heat up some water, which we use with a small pitcher with the running cold water. Honestly, the sun beats down so strongly during the day, that the cold water is usually room temperature anyway. And, anyway, our lives on Gabriola have conditioned us to shower less frequently!

We have been finding coffee everywhere we’ve travelled so far and the chai is wonderful too. Avoiding raw vegetables hasn’t been too difficult. I just order lots of cooked ones. Everywhere we go there are many ethnic choices.

Last night we had a fabulous grilled fish feast with our new Israeli friends Adar and Ella. Ella is a Yoga Teacher in Israel. They are going back to Israel to make another attempt to live in the Kibbutz where Adar grew up. Adar turned 30 yesterday, January 25^th. Another Aquarian! The significant thing about Adar for me is this…..Adar’s mother came to Israel in the 70’s from the United States. There she met Adar’s father. Her name is Amy. She has lived in Israel all her adult life. When I look at Adar, I think, “He could be anyone of my kids!” We will definitely meet up with them again. Next time in Jerusalem!!!!

There is a community that is created when we travel. Sometimes we’ll meet someone in one city and meet up with him or her in a small village or town many days later. Familiar faces are always welcome and the greetings are usually shared with big hugs. There is always the possibility that we will meet again soon.

We arrived in Gokarna early yesterday morning after a relatively uneventful overnight sleeper bus ride. With several beautiful beaches in the area we chose one called he one Om Beach. It’s called that because the shoreline actually forms the shape of an Om.

Our last overnight bus experience was such a disaster, I’m really glad it didn’t scare us off from bus rides. I know Paul wrote about it in his blog (paulgellman.blogspot.com). Just briefly though, it was an overnight trip that was supposed to be 10 hours long and it took 25 hours! The truth is, it wasn’t that bad and it also reinforced for us something that many people have been telling us, “In India, expect nothing. Anything can happen!”

“Holy cows!” That’s actually the way cows are regarded in India. The cows in India are like dogs and cats in Toronto. They walk down roads and wander in to restaurants and cafes. It is common to find cows on the sides of city streets. They are in homes all over the country. On Om beach Paul and I watch the sunset. The cows want to play with me. I think it probably just wants my pineapple and bananas. But I’m not sharing with her….that’s for sure!

Yesterday I was reminded that we are approaching the end of January. The weather in Southern India is perfect. The mornings are chipper and I throw a shawl over my shoulders as I walk on the beach. Afternoons are hot and sunny. Evenings, as we watch the sunset cools down the air. For the first time, I thought about our friends in North America having to deal with sub zero temperatures and snowy, blizzardy, windy days and nights. It’s so hard for me to fathom the difference. I am sending you all warm vibes and sunny thoughts. With love….