Breakaway Backpacker

Photo Round Up – Week 64 & 65

Jaime Davila — Fri, 25 May 2012 05:05:47 +0000

10 photo round up of what I saw/did these last 2 weeks.

Hope you all enjoy them.

WEEK 64

The KING OF GOOD TIMES... the Indian beer KINGFISHER. Y'all know I love to drink me some beer and well I must say that Kingfisher is a very good beer. I took this shot on a sunny day on the beach. Just enjoying a cold beer watching beach life pass us by.

I like this photo because I was actually taking a photo of her when she wasn't looking, because I loved that she is fully clothed at the beach. Sadly that is how you will see all the women dressed at the beach and even in the water like that. I like that she turned around to take a photo of me as I was taking a photo of her.

I love this... fucking love it... no where else in the world do I think I will ever see a cow on the beach. Yeah and I have now seen many cows on the beach.

I could frame this... I think it's beautiful. I love the cloros in this photo. They all just blend in perfectly from the cow to the home to the things hanging on it. This photo was taken while I was roaming the streets of Hampi moments after I arrived.

Also taken in the streets of Hampi. I like this shot because it has India written all over it. I love the women that comes around the town selling things from a huge basket on her head. I love the rick-shaw. I love the children in the back ground.

WEEK 65

When we arrived to Hampi, we were told that the elephant from the temple comes to the river and gets washed and bathed every morning. So one morning we made sure we got up bright and early to make sure we could witness it. Well we witnessed that and so much more. It was beautiful... we witnessed people taking showers, doing laundry, and some just swimming around all while the elephant is roaming the water...like nothing. I have a few photos that are more amazing this from that, but this one makes me laugh every time I see it and wanted to share it. I'm sure you can see why... I man a man is there with half his ass showing, while brushing his teeth watching the elephant go by. The elephant is in the water while children are just playing around looking at is like huh?

Moments after watching an elephant get washed I did this. Your looking at one of my favorite photos taken of me from this entire trip. I mean really need I say more? Yup that is a cow, next to me getting my beard shaved, with a view like that... all for $1. I hate shaving HATE IT, but I couldn't pass this up. I'll say no more cus I could go on and on... just amazing, thanks Dani for taking this photo of me for me!!!

Many times on the road you will see things that make you wanna cry, that throw you right back into the reality that is the world. This was one of them. As were making our way in Hampi to find a waterfall we came across a few kids carrying a huge load of would on their shoulders. WHen they saw us they got excited and said hi & we did too. We asked if we could take their photos and they said yes. They later asked for money so we gave them 2Rs (about $0.04). I hate giving children money because I know it will most likely end up in someones else's hands. Well when I saw these children carrying these things I thought of my nephew who is about their age and just couldn't imagine him doing it. It also just made me think of all the small things I complain about and well how others have it much harder than I.

I hate posting photos of food on my round ups because well I feel like I could post others, but I must share a photo of this amazing Northern India Tali I had in Panaji. It was so freaking huge and only $1.80. Yup all this cost that much. I didn't even know what half those dishes were, but oh were they amazing. Indian food is great.

Y'all know i love sunsets, well this is one of the 2 amazing sunsets I had in Anjuna, Goa. This is from the roof top of the terrace of our hotel.

THIS WEEKS UPDATES

TUESDAY – 05/15/12 – The beautiful, bright, yellow & cute TAXIS of Kolkata, India.
THURSDAY – 05/17/12 – A stroll through Fort Kochi, India.
TUESDAY – 05/22/12 – Gray sky beach hopping.
THURSDAY – 05/23/12 – The Kerala Backwaters by Houseboat (an experience no one should miss).

PREVIOUS PHOTO UPDATE

The Kerala Backwaters by Houseboat (an experience no one should miss).

Jaime Davila — Thu, 24 May 2012 05:05:00 +0000

It almost didn’t happen… I was ready to give up. We had gone from gray sky beach hopping to Kollam one of the oldest ports in the Arabian Sea so we could try and find a houseboat to spend 2 days on exploring the backwaters of Kerala. When we arrived the only accommodation we could find was a dungy very dirty hotel. We hardly wanted to spend anytime in it so once we arrived we had lunch and then got our search on for a houseboat. We must have visited about a million different people and each one was not budging on the price and some of the details they were telling us were not what we were looking for. We also wanted to make sure we saw the houseboat first before agreeing to anything. We were all getting frustrated. It had never taken any of us this long anywhere to book any type of tour. At the end we ended up agreeing with one guy that we would come back at 9am the next day to see the houseboat and book just one day/night with him. That night it ended up raining non-stop. It was like monsoon rain… hard, strong & scary. The next morning it was cloudy and still semi-raining so we agreed to forget about renting a houseboat from Kollam and head up to Alleppey and try our luck there.

We got there and once again were having a hard time finding concrete information and a houseboat to rent. We were about to give up when finally it clicked we will just have to wake up early the day we want the boat and go see them and book it straight there. First we started with a houseboat our hotel owner said he could get us for a reasonable price. We saw it and were not happy; it wasn’t what we wanted. I was heartbroken again, but then everything changed. We went to where all the houseboats were and a guy that had seen us the day before called us over to show us a houseboat. It was just what we were looking for a two bedroom, two baths with a nice living area on the deck and a terrace with lounging chairs on the top deck. It would include all 3 meals, a welcome drink 2 days/night of exploring the backwaters of Kerala. We asked the price and it was out of our range, but then our bargaining skills kicked in and we basically pleaded with him to give it to us at a price we could all afford. He gave in and we all felt relieved… I was excited all over again and so happy I hadn’t given up. We had about an hour before it was time to check in so made sure we got everything we needed that would not be included like sodas, chips and junk food and then made our way to the beautiful boat and started one of the most amazing experiences our lives.

Oh yes that above is our boat… we arrived settled in and had our welcome drinks. We were all excited that after 2 days of searching we were going to enjoy 2 peaceful days/nights unplugged and enjoying life how it’s meant to be enjoyed relaxing. We spent the next two days reading, chatting, drinking, eating some awesome food, but most of all we spent most of our time just observing. We starred out with a gaze from the upper deck of our boat at life in the backwaters of Kerala. We watched palm tree after palm tree pass us by, we watched people use the river as their shower, washing machine, pool, source of food and everything in between. We watched people carry things on small boats I didn’t even know was possible, like bikes and bricks. We watched nature at it’s best, beautiful birds flying around, cows roaming the narrow strips of land that made bases for homes along the palm trees. We watched literally about a million ducks floating along in a single file through an alley of the backwaters (must have been a migration), we heard all types of animals on and off. When we would occasionally bump into another boat, that wasn’t tourist, but Indian family they would wave at us and we would wave back. It was bliss… we couldn’t get over how amazing, beautiful, relaxing and peaceful this was.

We were living the life, waking up early to have an amazing breakfast, relaxing for a few hours then lunch do more relaxing have a nice cup of tea and snack, then be called for dinner. Oh and the food, man oh man the food was some of the best I have had in India. The truth is, it was a routine we loved and not once did any of us ever get bored… you just couldn’t. Your options were to read, chat or just stare out let your thoughts run through your mind and watch life pass you by. Many times we would just sit there not say a word to each other, but know we all felt the same; awe struck at the experience we were having. We loved it so much we extended it for another day and night. Yup so in the end we did 3 days and 3 nights. Oh it was worth it… and during those 3 days/nights I took over 400 photos, it was just too damn beautiful and well now I’d like to share just a few of my favorite photos with you. I hope this gives you an idea of how it was.

I know right beautiful??? If I could describe this experience in one word it would be BLISSFUL. I don’t even know if that is a word, but it was. Okay I just looked it up and yes it is a word. Anywho it was blissful… it was an experience I honestly think everyone should experience at least once in his or her life. I am also happy that I had the chance to do this with friends, not just people I met a day or two before. Not that their is anything wrong with that, but it just made it more special. I am glad I was able to do it with Val, Jessica & Dani.

On my trip around the world I have done and seen many amazing things. I have had more amazing experience then I think any human should be allowed to have in their life, but the only other time I felt this way about an experience I have had on the road is when I went on a Sahara Desert Expedition in Morocco. I just feel that some experiences are experiences everyone should have. I know my time in India has been tough with many ups and downs, but aside from volunteering for two weeks in Setrawa with some of the most beautiful kids in the world this is going to go down as one of the best moments in India and of my whole trip around the world.

Gray sky beach hopping.

Jaime Davila — Tue, 22 May 2012 05:05:06 +0000

After strolling through Fort Kochi for two days it was time to move on. We were all excited because our next town was going to be a beach town. I know I was way excited… because after two months in the North I was ready for beach & beer time. Plus it had been a while since I went to a beach. We made our way to the bus stop and got on an over crowded bus to Kovalam. It was a long & tiring ride down there, but we made it. We arrived to a semi beautiful beach with gray skies… We walked around saw some of the other beaches near by and hoped for a sunny day the following day.

The next two nights it rained like crazy and we woke up to more gray skies. None us wanted to layout or even go in the beach. So instead we made the most of it, by walking around and seeing some of the sights. One of the days we woke up bright & early… to see the local fisherman bring in the fishing nets. It was interesting to see how they use these nets and I thought it was crazy how it took so many of them to bring them in.

What intrigued me the most about this town, wasn’t even the beach or fisherman. It was a lime green mosque we saw from a distance when we visited the lighthouse. From the moment I laid eyes on it I knew I had to visit it. I have seen many mosques on this trip, but never a lime green one. It looked like it was going to be an exhausting long walk that luckily wasn’t. It was a nice walk along the beach cliffs. Sadly it rained a bit while I was out there photographing it and well the sky was a dark gray. Regardless I took like a million photos of it and can’t help, but love it.

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Even though every day was gray skies… we did end up having a bit of sun one evening and had well a semi nice sunset.

After 3 nights in Kovalam our plan was to head to the tip of India. Yes the Southern most tip of India Kanyakumari. I already had a million ideas for the title of the post… you know me with dirty blog post titles (I can’t help it). Well sadly it didn’t happen. We arrived to the train station with tickets in hand but were told the wrong time. It’s a two hour journey that we thought left at 1pm which would have given us plenty of time to get there check in somewhere and watch the sunset over 3 seas that meet at the tip. Well the train really didn’t leave until after 3pm and that would be calling it close. So we decided to screw the tip and head to Varkala. It was a smart decision because when we arrived it was a beautiful sunny day. We were excited and made sure we caught some rays as soon as we could. Ahh it was nice and knew we could spend a few nights here.

Sadly we spoke too soon and the following two days were not so bright and kind of filled with gray skies again. I didn’t take many photos of the beach because it just wasn’t pretty with the gray skies. I did however take a photo of man cutting down a palm tree and semi nice sunset again.

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After 3 nights there it was time to hit the road again. This time not to a beach town, but to Kollam to try and rent a houseboat to explore the backwaters of Kerala. Little did we know what was awaiting us and the trouble we would have to rent a houseboat, but then it all paid off and we had one of the most amazing experiences of our lives. I’ll stop at that… I don’t want to give it all away. Aww look at us below… so cute & stress free waiting for our train.

In the end we did some gray sky beach hopping. It’s like the clouds and rain followed us around. I also would like to apologize for using the word semi to describe things. I think traveling too much spoils us. When you have visited some beaches with crystal clear water and blue skies or see many amazing sunsets… you come to expect that every time and when you don’t get it a part of you is disappointed. It’s sad, but true… even though the beaches weren’t perfect and neither was the weather I had a good time hanging out with the girls. So tell me have you ever had gray sky beach hopping? Where it seemed like no matter where you went it was gray skies…

A stroll through Fort Kochi, India.

Jaime Davila — Thu, 17 May 2012 05:05:14 +0000

If you’ve been following along it’s no secret that I haven’t been the biggest fan of India. One of the things everyone has told me though is wait till I get to the SOUTH it’s so much better and different from the NORTH. After two months in the north I was ready for a change and excited to finally make it to the famous SOUTH (Kerala, Goa & Mumbai). Luckily Val & I booked a plane ticket from Kolkata to Fort Kochi early on. We had looked at the train option and it would have saved us about $90 each but taken us like 2 days to get there. So we splurged bought the $100 tickets and flew. It also worked out great because that is where Jessica and Dani from Globetrotter Girls would be arriving an hour later than us. Yup I am traveling with them again. Traveled with them for two weeks through Costa Rica & Panama and loved it. Now we are together again doing 5 weeks through the south of India.

We arrived on time got our bags and then waited for the girls. We happened to arrive before a huge thunderstorm and noticed that the girls plane would arrive late. We waited & waited and wondered where in the world is MUSCAT? So many planes were arriving from there and neither of us knew where it was. I thought Russia or maybe Saudi Arabia… come to find out the girls knew and well it’s in Oman. Now you know… in case you ever need to know that. The girls finally arrived and we caught a cab to our hotel… that cab ride ended up being the longest cab ride of our lives. 2 hours to get to the hotel that is only 30 kilometers away. Crazy traffic and crazy rain meant slow driving. We finally arrived and the hotel was amazing… it had free wifi and hot showers… something I hadn’t had in a long time.

The next 2 days were spent blissfully enjoying the beautiful town of Fort Kochi. We strolled around enjoying the town. I loved that it was different than the north. It was way more calm and aside from the few down pours of rain we managed to have a good time exploring the city. Here are some shots of what we saw and did there.

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I really liked Fort Kochi and wish we could have spent more time seeing more of it. I enjoyed watching the men catch fish using the chinese fishing nets, I enjoyed taking photos of the silly trash cans all over the city, I enjoyed watching the guys play cricket (a sport I still know nothing about), I enjoyed walking on the set of I have no clue what a Bollywood movie or commercial, I enjoyed the random street art and just really enjoyed the relaxed vibe that was everywhere. It was just what I needed after 2 months in the North. As for the rest of my time in the South so far… well it’s been filled with many highs & many lows… but more on that later.

The beautiful, bright, yellow & cute TAXIS of Kolkata, India in photos.

Jaime Davila — Tue, 15 May 2012 05:25:49 +0000

“IN PHOTOS” is a series I will use to share many of the hundreds of photos I have taken during my travels. It is a series I have thought about for a while now, but did not want to start until I got back home from my trip. However after spending a week in Chefchaouen, Morocco I couldn’t wait any longer. “IN PHOTOS” will not have a set schedule like my “MUSIC MONDAY” or “PHOTO ROUND UP” series. “IN PHOTOS” will be a post with several photos with no limit. The only restriction this series will have is that it must be about a certain subject or theme. I will write a brief paragraph or sentence describing the subject or theme of the photos and then post the photos. I will not caption the photos like I do on my “PHOTO ROUND UP” with my thoughts. I want to use “IN PHOTOS” to share my photos and let you come up with your own thoughts about the images and hope you share them with me.

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I have seen many TAXIS on this trip… in Panama City, Paris, Berlin, Barcelona, Istanbul, Cairo, but not once thought I would ever become obsessed with taking photos of them in any city. Okay maybe NYC, but seriously I arrived in Kolkata and it was love at 1^st sight. These cabs are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen in the world. I mean really they are so damn bright, yellow, clean and cute. I couldn’t help but go crazy photographing them. I didn’t think I was going to ride one because I honestly didn’t want to deal with fighting over a fair price. On the last day though we pre-paid to have a TAXI take us to the airport and guess what kind of TAXI shows up. YES A BEAUTIFUL BRIGHT, YELLOW & CUTE one! It helps that they are so photogenic. I must have taken over 100 photos of just the TAXIS alone. I went through all my shots and picked my favorite to share with you. I’d like to know if you agree with me or not. I mean come on aren’t they cute? I just love all the yellow in these photos.

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