Home at last!!!

Well actually we have been home for about four weeks now but been very slack in finishing our blog!!! So although there are no photos this time we thought we should end our adventure properly :(

After Mysore we spent a few days in Hyderabad in the cheapest but most welcoming hotel we have ever stayed in. we've got to say it wasn't one of our favourite places but we had loads of fun visiting various historic sites including tombs and a fort.

The final night we treated ourselves to a night in a nice hotel in Mumbai and although it was lovely we couldn't quite get over that slum just over the wall by the swimming pool. Boy have our perspectives on life changed!

The flight back was great, although fully book David did a great job of insisting we needed seats together and as a result we go a slight upgrade with foot rests and much bigger seats. Sadly the dismal aeroplane food was still the same!

So now we are back home! In some ways it feels like our travels are distant memories and like we have never been away. But we have been changed in so many ways our lives inevitable feel different. Zoe is back teaching at St Matthew's and David is busy looking for a job. Currently we are back living in Histon......for the time being anyway!!!!

No plans so travel for such a long time again although we do have some very good friends in Africa so you never know............;)

Thank you so much to everyone who followed our blog and cheered us up with the many comments. We hope you enjoyed it and now we aren't writing it we hope you'll be able to find other things to fill the big whole it leaves!!!!!

PS. Mrs A hope this is enough!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bye

Bangalore, Mysore and beyond....

Bangalore

We spent about 14 hours on an overnight bus and actually slept pretty well! We the found a hotel and went to explore the botanical gardens thinking it would be a nice way to spend a quiet Sunday afternoon - ha ha! Turned out it was the final day of a rather big flower festival so it was heaving with people! Still we saw some beautiful flowers, a glass house modeled on Crystal Palace and sat down and had an ice cream on a 3 billion year old rock! We have taken in other local sights like markets, parks, aquarium and an art gallery. Eating has also been quite a big feature of our visit! one of the best places was a restaurant where we were served the food on a banana leaf! On our final evening we met up with the lovely Butler family and the friends they were staying with. We had a great time catching up and comparing stories of India.

Mysore

We headed out to Mysore which is about 3 hours from Bangalore. We thought we had booked a simple straightforward bus journey (then we remembered we were in India!) and it turned out to be a tour! So we stopped at various places a long the way which included a Hindu temple and a Catholic Cathedral. We arrived in Mysore about 5 hours later! We found ourselves a very nice hotel which had a rooftop restaurant and it even had hot water shower - luxury. We really enjoyed Mysore, a much smaller place than Bangalore but quite touristy. Highlights included going to the largest Zoo in India which was fantastic. It had a white tiger, lions and the only gorilla in the country. Best off all the animals were all really well cared for and had nice big cages. The following day we went for a walk which involved climbing up 1000 plus steps to the top of a hill to see a temple. A really great walk, especially seeing all the monkeys roaming around. On the final day we went to see the Maharajah's Palace. It really was beautiful - the only down side was having to pay 10 times more to get in because we were foreigners!

And on to Hyderabad

The next leg of our journey took us to Hyderabad. Unfortunately due to state rules we were unable to travel on a sleeper bus which meant we had to spend about 16 hours on a normal bus with reclining seats. Didn't seem too bad of an idea at the time but we soon discovered that we didn't have the best driver (far from it) and the roads from Mysore had more pot holes and speed bumps than we anticipated. So it was far from a comfortable night. We ended up in Hyderabad with various bumps and bruises but glad to have made it in one piece!

Goodbye Goa!

Our final week in Goa has been quite an eventful one......We hired a bike for a few days and took off to explore more of Goa.

Bondla Wildlife Park
Well after a 2 hour ride (which included covering the mining section of Goa were we have never seen so many huge trucks or potholes on one road and as it was so dry we arrived covered in a film of orange dust!!) we reached the wildlife sanctuary. Set at the foothills of the western Ghats it was a beautiful place. There was quite a range of animals (including elephants, a leopard and bison) but our favourites included a porcupine, a king cobra and at last a crocodile! All that for the bargain price of about 25p!!!

An evening on the river

Upon recommendation from our Indian friends at the shop we went on a trip on the river at sunset. we were told that it would be a cultural experience -and it was - just not the kind we expected!! Thinking it would be people dressed in traditional Indian clothing performing traditional Indian dance we were slightly surprised to find a DJ and flashing lights. We then began our one hour cruise up and down and up and down the river watching Indian people dancing to the latest rocking Bollywood beats!!! Needless to say it was a trip we won't forget in a hurry!

Saying goodbye

Our final day at Little Angels was really good fun. We arranged a tea party for the boys. David filled up balloons with water and we all had great fun getting each other wet! There was a presentation of gifts and they boys loved the skate board and new balls (since we bought them a cricket bat they have lost on average about 2 balls each day!)amongst other gifts. It was quite hard to explain that we were leaving and we're still not sure they fully understood as when we left a few of them said see you next week! A great final day.

Everyone asks 'When are you coming back?' Our reply 'Never say never!'

Messing about on the river!

This week we took a brilliant trip out onto the river to try and spot some crocodiles! A friend of our neighbour took us out in his fishing boat - a traditional canoe! Mush to the amusement of several onlookers Zoe wobbled quite a lot as she attempted to get in. Amidst the giggles and shouts of "sit! sit!" she finally made it in without getting wet! It was a gorgeous day, very sunny and we saw some beautiful birds - kingfishers, peacocks. eagles and a rather strange looking white bird with a funny shaped head! David tried his hand at paddling while Zoe sat back and relaxed. All in all a great time - except David is now nursing very aching shoulders!

Our anniversary

We had a wonderful day that began with a trip to Panjim the the five star hotel for breakfast. Eggs made fresh to order and lovely waffles. We followed this with a dip in the pool where we struggled to swim since we made the most of the all you could eat breakfast! As we got out we were greeted by a very polite man who enquired our room number for poolside registration! Zoe made a quick exit and when he told David that we would have to pay David informed him we were leaving! The afternoon was spent in the cinema and then back to Little Angels for a surprise party! They had made us cards and got us a very delicious cake. What a great day.

Social Events

This week we were invited to a birthday party for the local shop keeper. They are a lovely family and we had a wonderful time sharing food with them - and of course Kingfisher beer! Vincy (see pic) is a firm friend of David and they have spent many evenings chatting together while sharing a glass of the local hooch - cashew feni! Yesterday our neighbour invited us out to a lunch party. Never people to turn down free food we gladly accepted. The 'party' turned out to be the one year death anniversary of a lady in the village! So we ate some very spicy food and paid our respects!

Out and About in Goa!

Since the Monsoon season is now well and truly here we have learnt that a little rain never hurt anybody!!! except when your on the bike and then it blinds you. In fact it isn't as bad as we thought it was going to be. It always rains overnight and then usually first thing in the morning and at some point in the afternoon. If you can wait long enough you usually get windows of dry spells and then make a dash for it! David has been taking the boys from the house on walks to the river whenever it is dry enough. Occasions always enjoyed by all - as you can see usually enjoyed the most when it involves getting wet and muddy!!!! D says The walks have now come to an end. On one walk the boys asked if they could have a swim in the river. There was the risk of crocodiles but we were near houses so I thought it would be OK. The boys jumped in and sadly one disappeared under. He was the one who spoke no English and sadly I did not know how to ask whether he could swim in Hindi. If I had asked he would of said No. It was at that point I went swimming!!! All are well just no more walks.

There is far less to do during the wet season so we have been taking in the sites of the local area on our trusty bike. The island of Charao is really quite beautiful especially since now everything is very lush and green. We have also been to the local Miramar beach - which shared with some buffalo!

For a few days there hasn't been much rain at all so we decided to make the most of it and pay a visit to the historic Old Goa. Probably the most touristy area we have come across in Goa and it had some very beautiful old building which Zoe really enjoyed looking around! The most exciting part (for David) came on the journey home. As we travelled along the highway towards Panjim we were pulled over by the police. We should explain at this point that this is not uncommon here and they generally fine you for something (anything they can think of) and then send you on your way. David was asked for his licence and dutifully handed it over to be told it wasn't valid in India! This led to discussions about who owned the bike and then being informed we had to appear in court on the 29th!!! We refused to hand over documents as we would probably have never seen them again and rang an Indian friend who advised us to wait for him. So we enjoyed the sunshine at the side of the road while the police continued to pull over any vehicle that drove past - including bikes with about 5 people on and lorries with people packed in the back - all of whom paid and were soon sent on their way while we continued to wait. Finally after about half an hour the police called David to the back of the van and they did a deal!!!! We paid a fine for the invalid licence, Zoe had to sign to say it was her bike and had let David ride it illegally, which was another fine, and then the policeman told us we should be thankful because he was helping us out!!! We think the policeman made quite a lot of money that day!

Pune and back to Goa

Our second week in Pune we went to another children's home. This was a very different home as it has been up and running for 17 years. It has a great structure and people who know what they are doing. The best part is that they had a flat above the office where we could stay on our own for the week. It gave zoe a chance to cook her own curries! The house was made up mostly of street children and the children of prostitutes. Some have families and part of the programme is to help them become reunited. There was a girls and a boys house in the same area. The children did not watch TV but loved to play games and had long periods of worship and dancing. They were even treated to a few David sermons and story times! we had a art and craft time which was complete mayhem and left Zoe quite frazzled!!! We should explain that they don't really do art and craft so it was very exciting for them and they were all very loud and quite hyperactive!!!

The food in the house was true Indian and required us to eat with our hands, which caused much amusement to the children until they showed us the correct technique!!! We did have a treat each morning not just being opposite the mosque and hearing their many calls to prayer but an even earlier wake up as the water was not working in the boys house and they came to the flat to shower at 5 am!

After our week at the home we returned to adore India and went on a trip to the city of Aurangabad. While we were there we went to the mini Taj. This was built by the son of the man who built the Deli version. It was very grand and now we do not feel the need to make the long trip to the big one! As we were closer to the mountains we went to some 3rd century caves. After our time being tourists we we went to the village on the outskirts of the town. They are in the process of buying some land to build a church for the area. At the moment the church meets in a field. There was a big turn out for the service - obviously they hadn't been warned that David would be speaking!!!. Luckily there was a translator which made it easier for him and them! Some even came forward for prayer at the end!!

We are now back in a very wet Goa. When we first came back we found the clothes we did not take with us had gone moldy in the draw. So David fixed the broken washing machine and zoe washed!! The tiles in our room have gone mouldy and the roof leaks it so much fun here! But on a positive note the rats have gone!

St Peter's School and Adore India

Sorry Blog fans, we have been on the move again and have been very slow at updating the blog.

We have left Goa for Pune curtesy of a overnight sleeper bus. Like the name states it's a bus you sleep on. They have taken all the seats out of the bus and built compartments with beds in. The only problem is the bed was too short for David and he's not even that tall!! The roads were very bad and as we went though the mountains they seem to speed up for the corners. So after a night of very poor sleep we arrived in Pune in the early morning.

In Pune we are staying with another Brazilian couple. When we got over the initial luxury of MacDonald's and other fast food places such as pizza hut and KFC we decided we best do some work so we went to the school in Rupee Nagar, a slum area on the outskirts of pune. This school was set up by an Indian and his wife as there was no other English speaking christian school in the area. The school is now supported by the charity AdoreIndia (run by the couple we are staying with). It has now been open for 3 years and the school is growing every year, there are now 360 pupils!

Our duties at the school have included leading morning worship we even managed to teach them a new song (we should point out that most of the children don't speak English!!!) and they taught us a song in Hindi. Zoe has spent some time training the teachers as the teaching in this country is very different! The schools are like those from the Victorian era . As long as you have a good memory and lots of patience you'll be fine! David has taken to the nursery class especially because none of them speak a word of English so it is almost guaranteed they will find his jokes funny! The tiger impression has been a great hit, even managing to get the crying children (of which there are many) to pause from their wailing to wonder what this strange white man is doing! As art and craft is done very rarely here the excitement of making paper lanterns was barely containable, especially the boys!

Not only have we been he;ping with the education of children but we have been practical as well. Due to lax health and safety regulations in this country David has rewired the computer room and put electric ceiling fans in all the classrooms - it should be fine unless they need to user the computers or turn on the fans!

India

Mumbai

We arrived in Mumbai on 10th May and what an arrival it was! Due to the swine flu outbreak we had to fill in a health form - all very official - until we arrived at the airport. We had to fight our way through crowds to be checked by medical staff who because of the amount of people couldn't even see our faces but passed us as healthy anyway! Our first impressions were of a busy, hot, noisy, smelly and dirty city. Not one of our favourite places! However, we spent a lovely day sightseeing which included the Gateway of to India, the fish market, Taj Palace Hotel, a boat ride in the harbour and eating Thali! Never the less we were quite pleased to be leaving for Goa the next morning! We arrived at the train station to catch a 6.30 train but sadly it was delayed by 4 hours - quite normal we were assured by others who were also waiting. So we joined them on the platform for the wait. We finally arrived in Goa just before midnight.

Little Angels

We are living in a small village called Calvim which is in north Goa. It is actually on an island that is acessible by ferry 0 always fun negotiating the many scooters that come on an off at the same time as cars and people! We are living with a Brazilian couple, Pedro and Genilda, who have been here for 10 years. They also have an adopted Indian daughter - Owie. We are getting very involved with a project which has just opened called Little Angels. This is a home for children with Special Needs. At the moment there are two boys living there - Kumar and Gabriel. They are both lovely and we are having lots of fun getting to know them! There should be three more children arriving when school starts next week. Deepak is a young guy who used to live at the previous children's home they ran and is now helping out at Little Angels. David and he have become firm friends and have enjoyed building fires in the garden! Which leads us onto the work we have been doing. So far it has been very practical. David has been gardening and cementing part of the house. Zoe has been painting, teaching and trying to learn to cook some of the delicious food that Owie prepares. Amongst the work there has also been lots of fun which include a visit to the beach and playing Carrom (a great game flicking counters around!) - more often than not India beat England but we are getting better! We hope to go to Pune soon to see some of the projects that are begin run over there.

Goa

We have had some free time to explore some of Goa on a moped - which seems to be the main method of transport here. We have seen up to five people on one moped but we have only managed the two of us! The markets are amazing, full of fresh veg, fruits and spices! We took a weekend to see the northern beaches and so far our favourite has to be Bogmalo. Some of them were very busy as although it is the end of the tourist season it is now holiday season for Indians. We love the sea although it isn't that refreshing as it is generally like getting into a very warm bath! It is a really beautiful area and we are assure that it is just a beautiful but just a 'little wetter' in the monsoon season! It is due to start raining next week so we will let you know!

Well that's all for now! We are off to church in Panjim where David has been asked to give the sermon!

Leaving New Zealand

So the weather has become colder and wetter which can only mean one thing it is time to move on to a warmer climate! It has become quite cold I have even started to wear trousers over shorts in the last week. But when we think about the seasons May here would be November in the UK. It has been a near perfect Autumn, with bright sunshine which warms you and lovely golden leaves that fall to sit crisply on the ground. We are back in Auckland and staying with our friends the Websters. Last Sunday we sold our good and trusty van. We were shocked at the amount of vans that were on sale and as it is now out of season there were not many buyers. But we did manage to sell her on that day. We are now trying to get ourselves ready for India which we leave for on Sunday morning.

Highlights from New Zealand

1. Walking - we have done some great walks or tramps as the natives call them. We have managed to see some great parts of the country. We have seen incredible wildlife and of course we even manageded to get lost!

2. Fishing - we have both enjoyed the fishing. Sitting on the rocks in the sun was so much fun. But also was catching and eating the fish. I also enjoyed it when the line got stuck on the rocks and I (David) would have to get naked and dive in to free the line.

3. Friends - we have met some great people. Everywhere you go in this country you meet lovey people. This could be at church or on the bus or even fruit picking.

4. Weather - it has been so nice to have proper seasons with not much rain. The only drawback is the sun is so bright. We need to wear sunglasses almost everyday.

5. White water rafting was so much fun. I loved jumping off the cliff but the water was so cold.

Native speak

Sweet as!! Roughly means Very good. A term of approval

Good on you!! You hear this everywhere. Another term of approval

She'll be right!! Don't worry it will be OK.

Food and Drink

Sausage on a stick is great you can get it everywhere. If your lucky they dip it in red stuff.

Ice cream they then dip in hot chocolate sauce giving it a hard coat.

L and P a drink that can only be bought here a little like 7up.



Good bye from New Zealand and we are about to start the return trip with a "little" stop off in India.

Diary of the South Island!

Here goes......a quick summary of the last few weeks............

4th April

Travelling on we headed to the west coast. Now lots of people have told us about how much in rains on the west coast and now we know they definitely weren't kidding! However, it did stop long enough for us to view pancake rocks (a geographical marvel) and the blowholes. Now the sign did say not to cross the barrier but as you can see not all of us adhered to this rule!

6th April - The Glaciers
We were going to go walking on the glaciers but sadly guess what.....it was raining and was forecast to do so for the next 3 days! So sadly we didn't have that adventure but instead we walked to the edge and were able to see a great view. Not as great as it could have been because the river had flooded and we could only do the first fifteen minutes of the walk!

7th April

We finally decided we had had enough of continuous rain and headed inland to Wanaka. A smallish town that has a great place called puzzling world. Fantastic fun with lots of optical and clever illusions. We couldn't quite capture it on camera but we had a go!

8th April

Mount Cook - amazing! The most impressive thing we have seen so far. The weather was great when we began our walk out towards the glacier at the base of the mountain. In fact it go so warm we had to take of ski jackets and jumpers. We arrived in time to see a stunning view and for David to go for a paddle in the lake.....that had huge block of ice floating in it. Within minutes of taking the photo clouds began to roll in and literally a few minutes later it began to snow! We were then very glad to have the jumpers, jackets and hats! We were so cold when we got back to the van we decided to pay a $1 for a hot shower at the department of conservation shelter. Sadly the shower turned out to be luke warm and then really quite cold - needless to say we ended up feeling colder than when we started!

9th April

Lake Tekapo - another beautiful place! It had snowed overnight so it was just beautiful.

10th April

Today we had great fun enjoying a day of white water rafting on the Rangitata River. It had 350m of grade IV rapids. The river is glacial fed so the water was a little on the chilly side! The day involved a little bit of training and then being let lose! We both had a swim voluntarily - yes we are mad. Then after negotiating and surviving the rapids we were offered the opportunity to jump of a 4m rock into the river. Both of us went for it but when it came to the 12m Zoe bowed out and let David complete the challenge - which he did!

Easter with Esther!

We arrived in Christchurch to spend some time with the lovely Esther! And what a host she was - she even let use sleep in the van in the drive!!!!! We had a great time looking around Christchurch which is a lot like Cambridge, it even has punts! We spent a sunny Easter Saturday at the beach and the Easter Sunday involved a sausage sizzle, a fantastic roast lamb and watching Charlie and the Chocolate factory. We all set off for a tour of the rest of the South Island and to give Esther the joy of life with Sheila!

15th April

We stopped further down the East coast to see the rather strange Moeraki Boulders. They are a cluster of strange boulders in the middle of the beach. It was rather alien like! Continuing on to Dunedin Esther made us go to taste some cheese and the whiskey - David just about managed! And then with two rugby fans in the van Zoe was dragged to see the Carisbrook Stadium. As we headed out of Dunedin we noticed there were quite a lot of police cars around and then we realised we were being pulled over! Fortunately we were all wearing our seat belts and the effects of the whiskey didn't show up on the breath test - we only had a little!

16th April

We camped out by Parakanau beach in Catlin National Park and the morning walk on the beach revealed two seals coming out the ocean for some time on the beach! There were brilliant to see but the sand flies were eating us so we left quite quickly! We finally made it down to the most southerly point of New Zealand - not much there really except lots of tourists and a sign post!

17th April

An early start to drive to Milford Sound. We went on a great boat journey that took us down the sounds and then out into the Tasman sea and back again. We saw some stunning views as you can see and some of us were a little silly! But is was great fun.

18th April to Date

We have been hanging around Christchurch enjoying using a kitchen, being taken out on the town and having lots of laughs as adopted housemates of Esther and Jenna! Heading back up north tomorrow.