16/feb backwaters 02 & matthew
Breakfast with Jorge, and then we took different directions. I decided to go to changancherry, an out of rout town, also in the backwater. And for that I took a local boat. RS 11, instead of RS 260, and only with Indian. I was the only foreigner. So the A9 boat was ready to leave at 1 pm to the labyrinth of canals. Only Indians, and after only one question I was one of them. Matthew sat next to me, to tell me that the trip would long 3 hours. And of course, that was only the beginning. We spoke for 2 hours, till the moment he reached his boat stop and home town. The landscape is like the one of yesterday, palmtrees and water everywhere, but more rural. It seemed also nicer to me, probably because I was in another mood, feeling as a pioneer again!!1 discovering new areas never explored before!!! I’ll be the connection to the world!!! … sorry, I use to have this problem everytime I see no tourists around! J
Matthew told me that those canals were below the sea level, like Holland, and that because of that (and I would add the latitude) they can not plant everything. People living here are fishermen or farmers. He complained about a bird that came from Cyprus, a black bird that is very good a fishing, and that is eating all the fishes!! He told me, close to my ear, softly, that with his brother in law they use to kill them. Even if they are protected. He is Christian, and sterilized, with one daughter and one son. In the ’70 and ’80, there were sterilization camps, were people was sent (willingly or not) to be operated to avoid the fast growing of the population. They got radios in exchange… The mafia (politicians include, of course) of the time was getting a great advantage of it. He thinks that was good for the country. And he don’t believe in condoms or stuff like that. And that’s because he’s extremely religious. From the Christian / sirian church. He told me that his ancestor arrived in India 2500 years ago, carrying this religion. They have been since then from the knanaya/Christian cast, only 10000 in kerala now, and he’s extremely proud of it. He is also very proud of the bright skin of his daughter. He doesn’t really like the dark skin (even if he’s quite dark). And as proud is he of his religion, that if his daughter or son wanna merry someone from another religion, they would never be allowed to touch or talk to him again. And of course, they could forget the heritage (?) (herencia). His race must be kept pure, like the one of his ancestors, he said. First god, that’s the reason to live, then the family, after the rest… But all this extremism was not easy to appreciate, as he had a very soft and sweet way to explain it. He spoke with the same passion about the plants, his other love. He has so many plants, and fruit trees, and palmtrees, and is growing lots of vegetables. He is also very familiar to alternative medicine, using plants and stuff. He told me many examples of plants curing epilepsy, dysentery, headache… Even snake bits can be cured this way. Like his ancestors did, he said. He said that he has been blessed by god in many ways, and one of them is that he can kill snakes; Cobras, king cobras… There seem to be many of those around the canals. And even if they are dangerous for people, mostly children, they are good for the harvests, because they eat rats. Harvests takes between 110 and 130 days.
He told me that Indians are extremely lazy, and that’s the reason why china is going to grow up faster and better. Indians accept everything. The minimum to live it’s enough for many millions of people. Chinese work harder, and control the population better. But… that’s India, he said before leaving the boat.
Now a second part, more contemplative, started. In this public boat, that is stopping every minute. But very silently. Everything here seems very relaxed. In the boat, men speaking and laughing with the women, without being mixed, ok, but communicating. Hard to see in bigger places. And this canal and its surroundings are full of people and life, that goes on quite slow, in another speed; Women washing clothes, beating them against big stones, children and grandmothers fishing together, lots of little churches… no mosques, nor temples. Only jesuschrist. Omnipresent. And full of color. Strange fruit hanging from the trees, and super-huge trees. People waving their hands to us, young and old, and green all around. Rice fields again. Everything is very suggestive!!! I had a couple of old ladies in front of me. Probably very old friends. I invited them to eat cookies. After accepting them, they had been offering me smiles during the whole trip. People going in and out, children coming from the school, revolutionizing the boat life for a while, the silence again… That was a great trip, much better than the other. After walking for a while in changacherry, I took the train to kochi (ernakulam station, twin cities again). In the train, the landscape was different, but the characters the same. Smiles and colors everywhere. More poverty. Loots of green. And children playing after the school, still with their uniforms, under the palmtrees. And beautiful girls living in dirty places, in poverty… like diamonds hidden behind the trash. And lots of mustaches!!! All men have mustaches here!! Always perfectly shaved. Once in ernakulam, noise and strees again. We have arrived to the city again.
19/2/05
Matthew told me that those canals were below the sea level, like Holland, and that because of that (and I would add the latitude) they can not plant everything. People living here are fishermen or farmers. He complained about a bird that came from Cyprus, a black bird that is very good a fishing, and that is eating all the fishes!! He told me, close to my ear, softly, that with his brother in law they use to kill them. Even if they are protected. He is Christian, and sterilized, with one daughter and one son. In the ’70 and ’80, there were sterilization camps, were people was sent (willingly or not) to be operated to avoid the fast growing of the population. They got radios in exchange… The mafia (politicians include, of course) of the time was getting a great advantage of it. He thinks that was good for the country. And he don’t believe in condoms or stuff like that. And that’s because he’s extremely religious. From the Christian / sirian church. He told me that his ancestor arrived in India 2500 years ago, carrying this religion. They have been since then from the knanaya/Christian cast, only 10000 in kerala now, and he’s extremely proud of it. He is also very proud of the bright skin of his daughter. He doesn’t really like the dark skin (even if he’s quite dark). And as proud is he of his religion, that if his daughter or son wanna merry someone from another religion, they would never be allowed to touch or talk to him again. And of course, they could forget the heritage (?) (herencia). His race must be kept pure, like the one of his ancestors, he said. First god, that’s the reason to live, then the family, after the rest… But all this extremism was not easy to appreciate, as he had a very soft and sweet way to explain it. He spoke with the same passion about the plants, his other love. He has so many plants, and fruit trees, and palmtrees, and is growing lots of vegetables. He is also very familiar to alternative medicine, using plants and stuff. He told me many examples of plants curing epilepsy, dysentery, headache… Even snake bits can be cured this way. Like his ancestors did, he said. He said that he has been blessed by god in many ways, and one of them is that he can kill snakes; Cobras, king cobras… There seem to be many of those around the canals. And even if they are dangerous for people, mostly children, they are good for the harvests, because they eat rats. Harvests takes between 110 and 130 days.
He told me that Indians are extremely lazy, and that’s the reason why china is going to grow up faster and better. Indians accept everything. The minimum to live it’s enough for many millions of people. Chinese work harder, and control the population better. But… that’s India, he said before leaving the boat.
Now a second part, more contemplative, started. In this public boat, that is stopping every minute. But very silently. Everything here seems very relaxed. In the boat, men speaking and laughing with the women, without being mixed, ok, but communicating. Hard to see in bigger places. And this canal and its surroundings are full of people and life, that goes on quite slow, in another speed; Women washing clothes, beating them against big stones, children and grandmothers fishing together, lots of little churches… no mosques, nor temples. Only jesuschrist. Omnipresent. And full of color. Strange fruit hanging from the trees, and super-huge trees. People waving their hands to us, young and old, and green all around. Rice fields again. Everything is very suggestive!!! I had a couple of old ladies in front of me. Probably very old friends. I invited them to eat cookies. After accepting them, they had been offering me smiles during the whole trip. People going in and out, children coming from the school, revolutionizing the boat life for a while, the silence again… That was a great trip, much better than the other. After walking for a while in changacherry, I took the train to kochi (ernakulam station, twin cities again). In the train, the landscape was different, but the characters the same. Smiles and colors everywhere. More poverty. Loots of green. And children playing after the school, still with their uniforms, under the palmtrees. And beautiful girls living in dirty places, in poverty… like diamonds hidden behind the trash. And lots of mustaches!!! All men have mustaches here!! Always perfectly shaved. Once in ernakulam, noise and strees again. We have arrived to the city again.
19/2/05
posted by Unknown at 19:40
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