PART TWO: IN THE SOUTH WEST OF INDIA

A three hour flight from Delhi has brought us to a tropical climate and the usual heat as you step out of the plane.  Then an hour's taxi ride to the 'Green Woods Bethlehem' which is what is called a 'homestay'. In fact you get a bedroom and bathroom in someone's house. It is a favourite in the Lonely Planet Guide and therefore always full.
We are sleeping under a mosquito net for the first time. Tropical humidity.
Fort Kochin is where we are staying. In the old part of the town that the Portuguese colonised around 1500 AD. We walked along the beach next to what I think is the Arabian Ocean. They still use these old Chinese fishing nets and you can buy the fresh fish at dusk from them.

Nearby is the oldest church in India and the area is quite a mix of Christian, Muslim and Hindu.
The place is a far cry from the North. The roads are in very good shape, no cows on the road, no hassle to buy when you go past the shops. Kerala was communist for 40 years, so there is excellent literacy, much less corruption and an average life span 5 years more than other states according to a French couple we were chatting with in the roof garden. 

Yvonne and Moira are still pretty badly hit by their colds but a good night's sleep has helped Yvonne a bit. 

John.