Well, not too much has changed or happened in the past few days that I've spent on the beach in palolem, goa but I feel like I have so much to say, probably because real life conversations (and not just the ones in my head) have been few and far between as the antisocial European couples on romantic holidays continue to dominate. It's okay though, a lot of relaxation trumps a little bit of lonliness.
First of all this is the only beach I've ever been on where there are cows. And piglets for that matter. Just chilling in the sand, sometimes even under an umbrella. There are plenty of beach dogs which makes me so happy. I think between the resort restaurant's leftovers and all the dog loving tourists, they have a pretty decent life. Right now, my hotel's dog, Dolly, is having a snooze on the porch of my beach hut. It seems she has adopted this as her new home. The local cat has also warmed up to me and even jumped into my hut through the open window the other night demanding some love (just like another cat i know!) The dogs are so sweet though. They like to sleep under people's beach chairs and dig themselves little holes in the sand to stay cool inbetween improptu swims in the ocean. They are also very territorial. It seems that each dog considers a hotel/restaurant and a few beach chairs as their own turf. If another dog gets a little too close you start to hear the cacophany of barks to let them know to back off.
Yesterday I embarked on a real indian adventure traveling through rural goa on local buses for three and a half hours (and then another three to get back) to get to GAWT which is goa's animal welfare centre. I helped out with all the dogs and cats for the day which was amazing but enough to break any animal lover's heart! They had kittens who were literally one twentieth the size of Spike. And the dogs! Oh my god the dogs! I gave them all as much love as I could and I even got to walk some of the puppies they had. I also had a real Ceasar Millan (aka the dog whisperer) moment. They had this really aggressive and scary dog named Bobby who no one could get near because he would bark and growl and show his teeth. But I figured he was just unhappy because he needed some exercise after being cooped up. So I stared him down and let him bark at me for a while while staying completely calm and eventually he calmed down enough for me to put a leash on him and I took him out for a but of a run around. It was like he was a whole new dog afterwards! Happy, panting, and wagging his tail. It was really great to see. The shelter is doing great work. Everyday they take in strays and neuter and spay them. They also run camps at local beaches and in towns where people can bring their dogs to get vacinated and can adopt dogs and cats. It's really amazing. The dogs just broke my heart though. They're so nice and lovely and so many people don't care about them. I think I've decided that I hate people that don't like animals. Like honestly! I wish I could have adopted all of them! If you're interested in learning more about what the shelter does, please check out their website and think about donating. It's a really great charity.
Just google GAWT Animal Care Centre
Because I'm not connected to the net right now and don't have the website handy.
I didn't know when coming here that all the kids are on school holiday. They must be on the same school schedule as Kenya. And this makes for a beach full of Indians who all swim fully clothed. So bizarre! It also means that trying to book trains anywhere is a nightmare because everyone is traveling and on holiday. It just took me about an hour and a half to book a train out of here for Sunday morning (I'm not taking the bus because a couple in the travel agency told me they just got off it and it was full of cockroaches. I can deal with a lot of things but cockroaches scuttling over me during the night is just too much!) So, I'm staying a day and a half longer than I had planned which is fine because who can complain about sun, surf, and sand? I can also finish the new book I'm obsessed with called One Day. It's so good! Such a frivilous beach read. I know they've already filmed the movie version with Anne Hathaway as the lead, so I'm excited for that. I just finished an indian novel that won the Booker prize in 1997 called The God of Small Things. It's set in Kerala which is the southern most state here and where I'm headed for my last week in India. It was really good, but incredibly depressing, so I'm glad to be reading something light and fun now.
Speaking of light and fun, I'm going to try and watch the royal wedding tomorrow somewhere if they'll turn off the cricket for long enough. Seriously, I asked at the one place I eat dinner at everynight (on account of the free wifi) and the guy straight up refused saying they will only show cricket. Crazy! I'm sure I'll figure something out. All the Brits I've talked to said they couldn't care less about it (except for darling Jeni who has already given me her predictions on what Kate will wear) but as dumb as it may seem, I'm rather excited about it. I kinda wish I was there, or at least at home so I could follow all the smut on tv. Anyway, go ahead and judge me if you will, but I'm excited! I think this is a once in a lifetime event! And I cannot wait to see what she's wearing! Did you know they banned beer and liquor from the reception and are only serving champange and wine? And also that Pippa, Kate's sister, wants to decorate Buckingham Palace like a disco for the after party? Loves it!
Hope the weather in Canada and elsewhere is getting nice! A couple more days on the beach and then off to Hampi, Bangalore (the silicon valley of India where hopefully I can post some pictures), and then probably Cochi in Kerala. I can't believe it's almost May!
P.s. Don't forget to VOTE!!!!!!!!!! I'm Sending my positive energy to Paul Dewer in Ottawa and Peggy Nash in Toronto and the rest of the NDP.
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