Arambol to Hampi

Woah, I am a lazy bastard. Two weeks and no blog? Who the hell do I think I am? Don't I know I have friends and family who depend on this blog as an escape from the monotony of Canadian life?

Well faithful readers, what do you want from me? Can't I just have a little time to myself? Really? You're relentless.

What have I been up to? It has been so long I can hardly remember. Let me see...oh yeah, nothing.

I spent 10 days in Arambol, but it seemed like only a few. Arambol was quiet with not much to do but sit on the beach and drink fresh juices. I went to the same German Bakery every morning for breakfast, and the same Asian restaurant every night for dinner. All of my Israeli friends were a lot cooler/braver than me and all had motorcycles that they either bought or rented. I was way too scared/smart to drive in India so didn't get a bike. Because I didn't get my own bike I always had to ride on the back of one of the Israeli guys' bikes. It was emasculating to say the least, but it beat getting left out of the 'going places' action.

One interesting thing that happened in Arambol happened to my nipple. It now has a shiny bar-bell through it. I decided to go through with the piercing because my friend Noy was having hers done and it seemed like a good idea. I mean why have a boring old regular nipple when you can have a nipple with a little pizzazz? (I showed my mum and Omi (gma) on skype and they freaked out, but in my opinion they are just jealous that I thought of doing it before they did. I'm sure now that they've seen how good it looks they will both have bar-bells of their own by Christmas.) Noy went first while sat outside. I could hear her screaming and screaming which made me a little nervous. Nevertheless I sat down and before I knew it the whole operation was complete. It didn't even hurt and only cost 12 bucks. I'm now all healed up and thankfully infection free (I have seen some real nightmare nose and ear piercings that people have had done here in India which became super infected but apparently I take to piercings like a new born polar bear takes to the pure driven snow).

I made about a dozen new Israeli friends in Arambol and my Hebrew is coming along nicely. I was one of the first of the group to leave (in fact they are all still there if I'm not mistaken as they are sticking around to see Shpongle DJ tonight in Anjuna) and it was one of the best goodbyes on record. Everyone showed up at my favorite German Bakery to see me off. The owner of the bakery turned up Trance music really loud and it was bumping as I said all my "Shaloms" and "See you laters".

My departure from Arambol to Hampi was very spur of the moment. My friend Ayala got screwed by a travel agent and got stuck with an extra ticket which I was happy to take off her hands. The overnight bus to Hampi was uneventful. I shared a sleeper with a guy named Josi and chipped away on my book. In Hampi I stayed at a guest house called Bobby which also had a German Bakery which made me very happy.

Hampi looks like the town of Bedrock from the Flinstones. I had a yabadabadoo time. My first morning there, Ayala and I walked to the monkey temple on the hill and took in the beautiful boulder strewn scenery. On the walk back a man on a motorcycle did a drive by boob grab on Ayala and from then onwards I was always sure to walk in-between her and the road. My second day was spent sitting on a boulder doing some chanting and meditation in the sun. The third day I walked to a man made lake where you can do some cliff jumping into crocodile filled waters. Each morning I went to yoga and each evening I went to a Tibetan restaurant for noodle soup and a movie. The movies shown were always really good. I saw The Hangover, __________, Seven Years in Tibet, and Something About Mary. One night I mistakenly had a cappuccino right before bed and ended up staying awake until 6am. The next day wasn't pretty and I ended up coming down with a cold from which I have now recovered. In addition to eating at the German Bakery and the Tibetan place I also frequented a place called Shesh Besh which is Arabic for Backgammon. The entire restaurant was shaped like a giant backgammon board and if anyone so desired they could have played a life size game, but we settled for the normal sized boards on each floor-level table.

Hampi is a world heritage site with ancient ruins build into the rock. Very nice. Hampi is also home to a Shiva temple with an elephant named Laxmi that blesses you with her trunk if you give her 10 rupees. She takes it from your hand, passes it to her handler, and then bonks you on the head with her trunk. I didn't go for it because it seemed kind of cruel, but others did and it was quite something to see. She apparently can distinguish between 5 and 10 rupee notes and if you try to fool her with a 5 don't count on getting blessed.

I almost didn't make my bus out of Hampi to Gokarna because the clock in the Shesh Besh was wrong and the ferry I need to cross the river doesn't move until it full. Once across I asked the million rickshaw drivers who was the fasted and promised a tip to anyone who could get me to my bus on time. I found the fastest guy and made it with only two minutes to spare. The bus was a real piece of junk and broke down on the side of the highway for about an hour and 11pm. The driver tinkered with it, got it going, and off we went. We stopped at a roadside dhabba near midnight for dinner and I had the best Aloo Gobi I've had in India. The bus arrived in Gokarna, inconveniently, at 430 in the morning, well before any guest houses were open so I sat on the beach and watched the sunrise.

I am now in Gokarna at Om beach and miss my Hampi friend-family, but fill the void of their absence with beach volleyball. I leave India for Indonesia on the 13th and am really excited to see my new nephew.

Hope everyone at home is well. My gma Wally is in the hospital so if everyone can send her some good vibes I would appreciate it. The days are passing too quickly, but the bright side is that I will see you all soon.

Love you!!! Happy Hanukkah! Comments bitches.