Expect the unexpected ...

Today was our day out ... to the nearest big city Ermakkulam ... about an hours drive away.. We phoned for our regular auto (tuk tuk) driver, Sree, to take us to the local bus stop ... but he informed us that the buses were on strike today... aaargh .. should we cancel the trip .. maybe Sree could take us? He agreed.. It can be a bit of a ride all that way in an auto nevertheless.. first we needed to call into the phone shop to top up our dongles .. but the guy there looked blank and said he had to phone up somewhere else to do that and he didn't have enough credit on his phone!! "Might you have that credit later today?" "Yes" he somewhat uncertainly replied... On to Mr Jolly the bike man . to return the spanner we borrowed to take the flat wheel off the bike yesterday.. and on to Ernakkulam.. The roads were more than usually chaotic... with no buses.. hoards of children walking to school, bikes like bees fresh out of a hive, and road repairs especially on some of the tiny hump back bridges that span the backwater canals.. Dust and fumes... Good to have a big dupatta (sort of scarf) ... Into the city and to one of our favourite coffee shops for our only real coffee every week... and we ordered and we sat and we sat and the guy seemed to be arranging the samosas rather than making coffee... "10 mins coming" he shouted across.. OK 10 mins didnt' seem to bad although we had no idea what was causing the delay.. then frantic phone calls.. lots of Mallayallam interspersed with the words coffee machine.. and 30 mns later still no coffee .. the machine was broken... "Another 30 mins" he suggested.."No thank you...!" We left for our next stop with Sree who diligently waits everywhere we go.. so on to FabIndia, a wonderful shop that supports cottage industries throughout India.. Purchased one large tray and some wonderful smelling soap - Jasmine and Indian lotus ...On to the techie area of the city for camera case.. We eventually came to the conclusion that the locals rarely buy cameras and never buy camera cases .. so forget that one .. now hot and sweaty and dusty.. the norm for India.. So now to our regular lunch stop - the SreeKrishna Inn .. a north Indian food restaurant (as we are in the south this makes a change from what we eat other days) .. and what a haven that is .. once into the marble lined building a hush surrounded us and a cool like the cool you feel in big old churches ... Immediately served with room temperature water melon juice .. oh bliss.. and a North Indian Thali; a selection of small dishes served with naan bread.. nothing like the sort that you get in the packets in the supermarkets back in the UK ... just delicious... we were hungry.. well ravenous by now.. we cleaned the bowls out which is as it should be in India.. wasted food is frowned upon given all the starving people .. and a great coffee .. OK not Lavazza probably Nescafe but nevertheless.. and back to Sree and our journey back to our local town to top up our dongles. but Sree suggested we might get it done more easily in the local dhoti (man's sort of skirt thing) shop .. What?! You don't ask questions .. a little man called Lenin phoned up somewhere, took 3000 Indian rupees off us and said "All done!" .. well you either trust or you don't .. we do (oh and while he was on the phone he was dragging out wedding hats!, men's shorts for Sir, cloth bags for me .. "No just the dongle top up thank you!" ... We got back to our house switched on our machines and lo and behold .. 'you have received credit of 10GB' pops up on each of our computers.. It can only happen in India.. We love it ...

"Oh Sree do you know where we can buy a copy of The Hindu (newspaper) ... ?" " You want it every day?" "Yes ideally" "I have a friend - he can deliver every day. You want him to do that?" "Well yes that would be great". "OK I organise it .. it will start tomorrow". "And how do we pay?" "Oh we find a way .. at the end of the month .. no hurry".

Oh and the man in the photo.. this is the lobby of the SreeKrishna Inn and I saw his profile against the bright of the blistering heat outside just as I was getting up to wash my hands.. and at just that moment he leaned forward and pulled up his trouser leg... and ...