Chennai was getting hotter and hotter, baths were becoming increasingly useless. I was waiting for the trip to Kerala, hoping that the cool breeze from the backwater sides and the sky reaching coconut trees will offer some reprieve. The usual excitement was missing, it was just desperation, to get out of this oven called Madras for a while, from the monotony of daily life and see some different places and faces. And Kerala did not disappoint. On Sunday morning, my mom and I sat in the train to Coimbatore, flagging off a long long journey train and then by road in 3 buses to our destination- Manjeri, a town near Calicut. The whole journey takes about 10 hours, that's practically a day, given all the stops and breaks for food. It was such a transition, from the barren lands and short, well trimmed and organized fields of Tamil Nadu, to the lush greenery, uneven terrain, bumpy roads and the tempting fish curry smell from the houses of Ende Keralam! Aaah, the good days had set in. My brother met us up at Coimbatore with a new phone ( ^_^ wohooooo ) and from there, with a good start to the holiday, we set off to our tharavad :). Reaching there at around 8.45-9pm we were exhausted! There was absolutely no strength left to carry our bags or do anything. But yes, our stomachs didn't share our exhaustion and were all waiting for refills. Disappointment wasn't written for us, as shawarmas made their way into our hands, after which we had quite a deliciously simple dinner, complete with the puffy pappadam. Kerala and its essences were here to stay.
The next day was the family Puja, an annual puja where representatives of all branches of the family tree congregate and pray for all our welfare. This year was no different. Loads of people, so many relatives to catch up with., so many kids, yummy food, it was a mini celebration. So many stories to shared, so many laughs, many more silent tears, each moment had its own specialty, its own beauty and depth. The best part of the puja was yummy chicken gravy and kadai chicken as prasadam. The men got toddy too! Bhagavathy as your family god comes with its perks, especially in kerala ;) Our next stop was Guruvayur and an appointment with the little naughty Krishna there. It was a good road trip with cousins, their two extremely naughty kids and a good good car. Good darshan and good food marked the day. But probably the best part of our trip was in Kannur, when we visited the ancient Shiva temple at Taliparamba and the bhagavathy ksethram at Madayikaavu. Two amazingly beautiful and scenic places, so typical of the state in which they are located. Oh and how can one forget to mention the beautiful Kannur seaside where one can see the backwaters and the sea merge, with waves gentle falling against the rocky shore. Beautiful isn't strong enough a word to describe that sight.
However breathtaking these places and scenes were, it got tiring, with all the sitting and bad necks and backs. In a way it was a huge relief to see "Chennai Central" first thing when I woke up in the train this morning, because it meant my bed, my home, back to that routine once considered mundane. It is a relief nevertheless from all the work, to be able to sit around lazy doing nothing.
Through this entire journey, and through the various people I met and heard about, I realized that we all think we have problems that are the biggest and trickiest in the planet.We often want to give up in the face of adversity. But I saw people living with troubled circumstances but one wouldn't be able to tell looking at them. Their bravery, their strength despite such neglect and loneliness in their lives is really intriguing. How they face their worries and still manage to keep a cool face is something all of us in the city must learn. It's a trait one truly imbibes from the countryside. In an age where we have numerous media to rant about our life, this silent resilience stands as a striking yet very amazing contradiction. The second thing that stood out was that, in Manjeri and for that matter everywhere, peoples lives were no secrets. Everyone knew everyone else, their stories, their gains and pains. There was so much interconnection and interdependence. Simplicity was the dominant trait everywhere. Such simple lives but such complicated stories these people have. It was something that truly caught me surprised.We see and go through so many things, we get caught up in our own lives and problems. Often we forget to see the brighter side and never really try to make ourselves and our lives different. But I guess a few days in this beautiful and simple state will change your perception of things, bringing in a serenity and loads of wisdom.
I guess it isn't called God's own country for nothing.
