There's only one thing that could have improved this Valentine's Day in India, and that will happen soon enough. I woke to another blistering forecast plastered on the front of the Hindu Times, 'Sunny skies, 35C, 84% humidity'. Finally, I think I've acclimated because it just didn't feel that hot. Nevertheless, after a belly bloating western style breakfast in the hard to leave Hyson Heritage Hotel, I shoved off from Calicut as early as I could.
Exiting Calicut was nothing like the trauma of cycling in. The main road north was nicely shaded with a generous shoulder and light, light traffic. So light that I seriously considered that perhaps Valentine's Day could be yet another Hindu holiday. At a road block 2 clicks further on I learned that I was blessed with a major bridge failure necessitating a long diversion. I'm not really sure where the diversion went because with a little smile and pitiful plea, the traffic officer waved me through. For the next 20 kays it was completely surreal, an entire Indian road all to my own!
After the bridge (which hadn't failed but was really just being painted), I took a very worthy 10 km side trip to Kappad Beach. I've always had a fascination with the world's great explorers and this is where Vasco de Gama landed in 1498. If there was a memorial or rock for him I never found it, but I was equally thrilled to find a gorgeous little beach and the lovely Kappad Beach Resort (for future trips).
Between Tikkodi and Verdakara I had somewhat of a respite where I could ride safely, while letting my mind wander. I covered really important and puzzling topics like,
How could Vasco de Gama have 6 children when he was out at sea for years? And,
What exatly do they teach at that Indian driving school? Finally, I focused in on the imminent end to my journey and my goals for the Challenged Athletes Foundation. I'm still nearly $1,000 bucks short so I best spend some time on email for some last ditch fundraising. Just as I finished that thought an Indian hand-cyclist passed me by. Now that's a true challenge!
From Vadakara to Thalaserry (also referred to as 'Telicherry', or if that's not enough, 'Pondicherry'), constant vigilance was required. There are a series of 'weak bridges' over the backwaters of Kerala all funneling into a single lane uphill mess. At either end of each bridge there was a queue a mile long, with most buses completely ignoring the queue and trying to overpass to the front of the line. As you can imagine, this created several instances of total gridlock where I was forced to wait or, more often than not, walk Ganesh along the very narrow strip of dirt where every other walker and motorcyclist was trying to maintain forward progress.
Five hours passed faster than I thought and, with all the activity, I forgot to have lunch. Just as I was keeping an eye out for a sliced watermelon, I saw an unusually well-placed sign for Muzhappilangad Beach. I won't even attempt to pronounce it and it's not a place I would have thought to go, but for a tip given to me by some British backpackers 12 days ago in Madurai. They told me about an empty beach and off-the-beaten path homestay where the owners cook and clean and cater to your every needs.
So with the thought of staying in another big Indian city wholly unappealing, I rode Ganesh directly onto the beach. I've never been there, but I imagine this must be what the Seychelles are like: 4 km long crescent shaped white beach, coconut trees, hard sand for running, no hawkers, no gawkers and no development. In fact, the place was entirely desolate. I was able to find a few guys just hanging out under the shady palms who pointed me another 2 kays down the beach (there is no paved road to get you there). A few kilometers later a really dark and friendly Indian man in his dhoti offered me up one of four beach side bungalows for 400 Rs($9)/night. It was a bit pricey for the rudimentary room but I suppose that's the price you pay to hear waves crashing on the beach.
I wallowed away a fast afternoon stretching my legs doing cartwheels on the beach. Following the sunset feast, I devoured another delish veg curry meal with three other exclusive guests. Not a Valentine's Day I will easily forget.
Love and miss you all!
Ride Strong!
www.ridestrongbiketours.com To make a tax-deductible donation to the Challenged Athletes cause please go to:
http://raceforareason.kintera.org/julie
