Tango beneath the Trees

Our time in Varkala was rapidly coming to an end.

Ippy's new bag was now finished and the pile on the bed was growing each day as Ippy found just 'one more thing' to pop into it!!

Shanti had settled well into her new restaurant life and was even entering her teenage phase of going back down stairs for a few hours to patrol the grounds and party once we had all gone to bed!

Ippy still wanted to return to Cherai Beach before we left India for good and as Dalia was due to leave Varkala on the 18^th to go to Kochi, it was decided the three of us would travel together. 

Dalia researched train times and for once Ippy was happy to leave the arrangements to someone else!

We had recently been joined at the Jairam by a wonderful Italian couple who were doing amazing things with the plants and grounds. 

Chill out areas had been created, bottles had been painted and displayed and Ippy had made one final large mobile that was eventually hung outside the Art Studio

With the last of the orange and lime skins threaded together Ippy now had time to spare, so she decided what the place now needed was a few games for people to enjoy.

We looked at the pile of bottle tops that had collected on the balcony, Ippy had experimented with them for mobiles. 

As we turned them over in our hands Ippy realised they would make good markers but if we were going to make them into Checker and backgammon game markers, a lot more would be needed.

Instantly our daily walks took on a new dimension as discarded bottles were picked up to have their tops removed before being placed in plies beneath the trees. 

Blue and green seemed to be the dominant colours and soon we had quite a good collection but we still needed an strong opposing colour.

As we sat on the balcony one afternoon, sorting the tops and designing the layout of the games onto some board offcuts we had found, Ippy heard some commotion downstairs.

Looking over the edge of the balcony she spotted the family who called around to collect the plastic from the rubbish tip behind the resort next door.

In their search someone had found a plastic wind mill and given it to the young boy in their company.

His delight was immense and shrieks of laughter could be heard as he raced back and forth making the tiny blades move in the breeze.

Suddenly there was a cry of pain as his older brother, deep in the rubbish pile, stood on something! 

His mother lifted him out and searched his foot for signs of injury before returning to the tip to collect the rest of the plastic.

Ippy and I watched as people in expensive cars pulled up and walked past. 

Same people, same country, yet their lives couldn't be more different.

When the family eventually left with their bags full of crushed plastic bottles, Ippy had an idea. 

The bottles of water at the Black Beach Resort had white tops! 

We could become tip raiders instead of skip raiders and get all the markers we needed right on our doorstep!

As the boys emptied the bins that night Ippy could barely keep herself from racing down to search. 

I however, remembering all the other things, both living and inanimate that could be found in the rubbish pile at night, recommended a daylight search and luckily Ippy decided that a glass of Brandy was probably a better option for the evenings activities!

Our walk the next day was a short one. 

Over the wall into the rubbish pile and back again with a bag of white bottle tops ready for washing!

By mid day the games were complete and ready for the Jairam chill out area!

The rules to Back gammon and Checkers were explained to Kim and a few of the local boys but within an hour they were in use, mainly by ourselves.

It had been nearly 3 weeks since Peter had left and Ippy was desperate for a game of Backgammon.

Laura and then Andy gave her a challenge and by late evening the games had become a fixture at the Jairam.

With only a few days to go before we left, Ippy and I went to spend a day with Baloo in the shop. 

Ippy had already polished the jewellery in the shop and now wanted to polish all the stone work but Baloo had said she needed to understand the stone better first and the only way to understand the stone was to make something with it!

When we arrived Baloo had a small rectangle of dark soap stone ready for us and asked Ippy to design something. 

Ippy looked blank for a moment and then glanced down at the tattoo on her foot. A Manta ray! Simple but meaningful!!

She quickly sketched the shape onto the stone and passed it to Baloo for inspection. 

Bit by bit Baloo explained the techniques used to make the basic shape handing the piece of stone back to Ippy each time so she could do the actual work.

After the basic shape was achieved the shaping of the body and wings began.

For three hours I watched as Ippy stroked the stone with the various files and rasps until she was covered in a fine layer of dust and her fingers had begun to cramp. 

There was still a lot of work to be done so we promised to return the next day to finish it.

It took a further two hours of shaping and then polishing before Ippy's Mantra ray was finished and to say she had a better understanding of the stone by then is an understatement. 

Unfortunately we were leaving the next day so Baloo's statues never did get the polish Ippy had threatened them with!

As we gathered that evening for our final meal at the Jairam we were amazed to realise how many good friends we had made during our three week stay there. 

Even without Nanda and Emma, Ramesh and Baloo, we ended up with 11 of us for our final meal!!

Kim helped us choose a selection of vegetarian dishes, recommending various rices and breads to compliment the meal.

We ordered freshly squeezed juices, mint teas, jasmine teas, lassies and more before piling the fabulous array of food onto our plates and eating our way into oblivion!

With so many dishes even a small amount of each filled a plate!

We ate with fingers, we ate with forks until we cleared the table then we simply split the vastly reduced (by Kim) bill between us.

Even Shanti got a new friend as a small nervous and hungry black puppy of approximately the same age came searching for food.

Once their initial differences had been sorted by Ippy, the two young dogs began to play and then raced around the grounds as the rest of us got up to dance!

Nicole and Andy performed the most amazing Tango before, with musical accompaniment by Andy, they attempted to teach the basic steps to the rest of us.

Together as a group and then in pairs we slowly copied the steps until with much laughter, some serious concentration and a lot of corrections, we each managed a basic dance while being expertly guided by either Andy or Nicole.

It was an amazing last night in Varkala and we were truly saddened to go to bed that evening. 

Addresses had been swapped, e-mails exchanged and promises of a reunion made.

As we climbed the steps Shanti's new friend climbed up too and crept silently into her bed.

It seemed we weren't the only ones not ready to call it a night.