The Road East to India

by Devika A. Rosamund

  I have had some adventures since I left Aragum Bay – now at least I have time to write in this diary and catch up with my news.

  Today I was entertained at lunch time by the customs officers I met at the station. They gave me a huge lunch of rice and crab curry. I don’t like eating crab actually as I can picture them alive on the beach and I am not sure whether they boil them while they are still alive. I have decided I am never going to eat crab again. Also, my body has become so fit with all the swimming that I don’t want to eat big meals that make me feel bloated like the one they gave me. These customs men are coming to visit me again at the Rest House this evening. I suppose it will pass the time – I am the only one staying there.

  After leaving Aragum Bay I had a long, hot journey with three changes of buses. It takes a ridiculously long time to travel only a few miles.

  At about three o’clock in the afternoon, I was waiting for the next bus which probably never came. Suddenly a car stopped at a nearby cafe. Three German men were travelling in a chauffer-driven car. They gave me a lift to Trimcomalee. The biggest, fattest one squeezed in the front with me and pushed his arm around my shoulders so that I sweated throughout the whole trip – although less than I would have done on the bus, I am sure, and I was grateful for the ride. They invited me to travel around the island with them for the next three days sharing petrol costs but I decided against it. It was too expensive anyway.

  I stayed in Trimcomalee for two nights. It was a lovely little town but not half as nice as Aragum Bay though the water was beautiful for swimming – so calm and clear. I had a room to myself in a guest house. On the first night the hotel boy (who looked about twenty years old) kept knocking on my door.

  Thursday, 17th June 1976

  My diary writing yesterday was interrupted by some Naval Officers who came to talk to me while I was sitting writing on the beach, looking longingly at the sea. They told me that bathing was safe after all, so I stripped off (I had my bikini underneath) and went in swimming with them for half an hour. It was lovely – I tried to forget about the spiky shellfish! But anyway, I never saw any until I came out of the water and then I did see one empty large shell with sharp spikes lying on the sand. It is beautiful and I have kept it as a souvenir. We swam until sunset and then I went back to my guest house. They treated me respectfully.

  I must finish writing about my experience in Trimcomalee. The hotel boy kept knocking on my door and eventually I opened it to tell him to leave me in peace. He had brought me some bread and jam, of all things! I then realised I was famished, as I have been practically starving myself in order to get fitter and fitter, living on curd and fruits and a few nuts – although I also ate eggs and ‘hoppers’ occasionally. I accepted the bread and jam with thanks which was a foolish thing to do, because after a few minutes he was at the door again with ‘string hoppers’ but this time I did not open it, telling him through the door that I was tired and wanted to sleep.

  The next day he was a bit of a nuisance and hurt his foot when I was pushing the door closed on him. He pretended to be angry at that and said, “I will stick a knife in your stomach.” He said, “Maybe tonight.”

  I suspected that he was trying to frighten me. I ignored it, but that night I inspected the doors in my room and discovered that one of them (two doors together) pushed open quite easily into the dormitory room next door where no one was sleeping. This gave me quite a shock. I then put the bolt down and felt safer though I suspected that the bolt was not very secure. I was quite right – it wasn’t!

  In the middle of the night I awoke suddenly feeling the presence of someone leaning over me and a hand was shoved over my mouth. I knew immediately who it was. I let out a piercing scream and then shouted at him to get out of my room hoping that someone might come to my aid. (I knew there were other travellers in the hotel.) The boy tore out of my room afraid that he would be discovered. I groped about the room looking for the candle. I had no light because they had given me a fan – by request – and it was plugged into the light bulb! I grabbed my skirt and put it on, giving up the idea of finding the candle.

  I went along the corridor to the next room where I knew there was a young American traveller sleeping. I had shared my curd with him at midday in exchange for some of his pineapple. I knocked on his door and then discovered that his door was locked from the outside. There was a large key in the lock! It was obvious that the hotel boy had locked him in! I unlocked the door and called out. My friend opened the door and I explained what had happened and asked if I could sleep in his room – I knew there was another bed in the room. He agreed at once and I went back to fetch all my things. He came to help me.

  I was curious as to how the hotel boy had entered my room but after inspecting those two doors again I discovered that the one I had not bolted, opened from the outside. The bolt was on the outside and it swung open easily. The boy had known about the door obviously, and had planned this! I was just collecting my bags and my friend was helping me when the hotel boy appeared again and for a second switched off the hall light which I had switched on! Then he noticed, when I said in a loud voice, “I am not staying in here tonight”, that someone else was with me. He turned on the light quickly and played innocent saying, “What happened?”

  I replied, “You know perfectly well what happened. I’m moving my things next door. I will tell the manager.”

  Next morning the American guy had to leave early, but before he left, the hotel boy came into our room and convincingly acting so innocent – offering to go to the market to buy the cloves for me that I had enquired about the day before – that my American friend said, “I really don’t think he knew what was going on – he was trying to be helpful.”

  I told the boy that I could get the cloves myself! He whispered to me, “Don’t tell anyone.”

  Later when my American friend had gone, I asked the boy why he did it. He didn’t have any answer to give. He merely looked at me timidly and asked whether I had told the American. I said, “Yes, of course” and that I might tell others too. I said to him, “I won’t come back here again.”

  Afterwards I went out to the market to get some curd and fruit for my breakfast – I did not feel guilty about bringing it in from outside – and then I went swimming. When I got back, the hotel boy brought me some coconut milk, and wrote down the names of shops in which I could buy cloves.

  When I left in the afternoon, he shook hands with me and smiled timidly, wishing me a safe journey.

  I realise now that I should have reported him to the manager for the sake of others, but I didn’t. I don’t know why I didn’t. I just said to him, “What you did to me, don’t ever do to anyone else.”

  After I had left the hotel I realised how much it had shaken me up. I always check all the doors at night now, although last night in this hotel where I feel safe, I did open the door in the night because I felt so hot and longed for some air. It led out into the garden.

  I stayed one night in Anuradhapura and then I went to Polonnaruwa and hired a bicycle for a couple of hours so that I could ride out and see some historical ruins. I saw a gigantic statue of the Buddha lying on his side surrounded by trees – the Gal Vihara statue. It is fourteen metres long and was made in 1200 AD. It is a wonderful statue. When I got there, I met some American girls that I had seen in Aragum Bay chatting to Len and his friend. I felt a bit awkward with them because I had felt jealous at the time. It was silly of me but I did not want to take the train with them that night to Talaimanar so I stayed and took the bus next day. Now I am glad because I would have arrived here even earlier!

  Chapter Eleven

  A Boat Ride through Kerala and on to Goa

  Saturday, 19th June 1976

  I am now back in south India on a bumpy train journey from Madurai to Quilon on the south-west coast. I don’t think I’ll be writing much tonight unless the train starts travelling more
smoothly!

  The boat trip across from Sri Lanka to India was delightful – I love boat trips. However, I felt sad to leave my beautiful island. The customs officers who had bought me lunch before also ordered lunch for me on the boat – a big curry – and there was also curd and chocolate for dessert. There was so much that I could not eat anything else for the rest of the day. I thought to myself how ironical it was – I had been scared of going through Customs because I lied about my money situation when I entered Sri Lanka. Perhaps they would not have let me in if I had told them that I only had two hundred dollars. I bought my boat ticket with cash and I wrote on the form they gave me, that I had five hundred dollars in travellers’ cheques. I was afraid that they would ask to see them, but luckily they did not. Now I have brought some cloves from Sri Lanka to sell in India. I have brought the legal amount (one kilo) plus one extra pound which is a risk, so I was cheating the Customs all round. Then I was met by the very officers I was fearing and I was entertained by them!

  Going through the Customs when I arrived back in India was more of a hassle. They inspected my carrier bag of books in which I also had my extra pound parcel of cloves! The other kilo was inside my rucksack. I think if they had found that I had brought more than the legal limit, they would have confiscated them or perhaps made me pay a fine. I can’t afford to lose forty rupees. If I can sell them, I should be able to make a good profit, especially further north, but I must not tempt fate by getting too greedy.

  How I appreciate Sri Lanka now I am back in India again. It did me so much good. That heavenly island was one of my dreams come true. When I was there I experienced an inner tranquillity, a stillness, and I no longer desired to keep travelling. It was as though I had found what I had unconsciously been searching for, and all I then had to do was stay in one place and drink in that wonderful joy. My soul came to rest. Now I wait for a future date when I can return and stay longer. I feel happy just to know that that place exists.

  I have written a song about the island:

  Song of the Island of Serendipity:

  I searched every temple,

  the teachings, the creeds,

  to conquer my thirst

  and to answer my need.

  But island of beauty and island of love

  in you I have found what I sought from above.

  Not in the temples of Hindu and Jain.

  Not in the churches, again and again.

  But there on that island

  my spirit found rest.

  The treasures of Heaven

  there answered my quest.

  Sunday, 20th June 1976

  5.30 a.m.

  It is still dark. The sun has not yet risen. I arrived at Quilon about an hour ago – 4.30 a.m. I read in my guide book that there is a boat going up the coast to Cochin at 5 o’clock but they tell me here that there is not one until 10 o’clock so I must wait in this cafe by the waterside. I have already eaten a large breakfast for the sake of something to do.

  When I arrived at Rameswarum, the first town in India, I spent the evening with an American couple there. We looked around the interesting town and incredible tiered temple with its bazaar inside. There I bought some cheap handicrafts and a set of woven palm-leaf baskets – there are five of them – each of which fits inside the others so that the very smallest one is inside them all, like a Russian doll. This set of baskets only costs two rupees! Such a lot of work for the craftsman for so little money! I gave him three rupees which also isn’t much.

  Interesting as Rameswarum was, I felt a bit depressed after leaving lovely Sri Lanka. India feels strange and foreign now I have come back to it, whereas Sri Lanka never did. I am again conscious of the very many people crowding the streets here. Sri Lankan towns are never overcrowded like this. In Indian towns there are so many people that I start to feel that the human race is like a swarm of insects crawling on the Earth everywhere destroying the planet – there are too many humans and this seems to reduce the feeling of the value of individual human life.

  I have seen such horrific sights in India – poor people living in makeshift shacks with roofs of filthy rags, women washing their clothes in dirty half-dried-up pools of water, deformed beggars, starving dogs – the list goes on and on. I have been so shocked that I can never forget what I have seen.

  In Sri Lanka where the population is much less, I did not see even poor people living in such awful conditions. Life seems to be a wonderful treasure on that island. Nature is unspoilt. There is room also for wild animals. Not so in India, where human beings are everywhere and poverty is so evident. It shocks me that human beings live in unthinkable conditions after all these thousands (or millions) of years of being on the Earth. You never see birds living in poverty or overcrowded conditions, nor have I ever seen wild monkeys living in such a way – all the monkeys I have seen in India look well-fed and healthy. They do not live in poverty!

  One thing Sri Lanka seems to lack, however, is handicrafts. They have shell necklaces, and painted masks used in devil dancing (to scare off evil spirits) for sale, but not much else. On the contrary, India is rich in handicrafts. Labour is so cheap here and there is so much competition for jobs.

  I took the train with my American friends to Madurai. That is also an interesting town with another incredible temple – there are some wonderful temples in south India. Meenakshi Temple in Madurai is enormous, with thousands of figures of gods carved on the outside of the building. Inside there is an enormous tank of water, a bazaar and a temple museum, as well as the usual inner sanctuaries where unfortunately non-Hindus are not allowed to go. Strings of scented jasmine flowers and sweets are sold as usual on stalls in the temple courtyards for the pilgrims to buy as offerings to the gods.

  The market stalls and shops in Madurai town are very interesting. I spent all morning and half of the afternoon walking around the streets and then went back and rested in the hotel room which I had booked, thinking I would stay there the night.

  When I discovered that there was a night train to Quilon, I was annoyed that I had taken the room, and I tried to get my money back, but the hotel owner would not give it to me. I had an argument with him. People stood and watched, but anyway, I am used to them watching everything I do! However, complain as I did, it did no good – I still had to pay for the room. Afterwards, however, I was glad that I had it, for I was so tired and hot by 2.30 p.m. that I was glad to go back and take a shower and sleep. I caught the train at 7.40 p.m. and had a very pleasant journey. In my carriage where I had a reserved seat, there were few people and I could lie down.

  9.30 a.m.

  I am now sitting on the ferry boat. We have to wait another half an hour before it starts.

  This morning I left my luggage in the cafe and took a rickshaw to the beach where I walked for two hours. I was hoping I could swim, but I attracted too much attention merely by walking along the beach, which even at that early hour, was quite filled with men, women and children from the fishing huts all along the sand. Many of them were doing their morning toilet in the sand! Everyone stared at me, but I am used to that. Some called out to me but I didn’t speak to anybody until the very last moments, when I was just leaving the beach. I communicated by sign language to a group of women and then drank a cup of chai in a little teashop. The people there seemed pleased. There were no westerners anywhere in sight at all.

  These huts on the beach are similar to those in Sri Lanka, but there are so many of them here crowded together in dirty conditions on this long beach. There is rubbish strewn about everywhere. The scene is not as picturesque as it is in Sri Lanka; there is a totally different atmosphere in these Indian fishing villages. In Sri Lanka the beaches are so deserted with just a remote fishing village here and there. It is said that everybody can have a beach to himself in Sri Lanka. That could not be said of India. However, Quilon is a pleasant little town with rivers lined wi
th dense palm trees and a few saw mills. I saw many logs waiting to go up the river. I also saw an elephant transporting logs. There are quite a few little shops here. I walked all the way back from the beach to the river ferry as I had so much time.

  Now the boat is moving. It is going to be a beautiful trip along this waterway – so many palm trees and wooden canoe-like boats all along the banks, and a pleasant breeze is blowing.

  Friday, 25th June 1976

  That trip through the winding waterways was beautiful, but after ten hours of it I was quite pleased to get off the boat, and I was exhausted. I slept at the bus station that night in one of their Rest Rooms – five rupees a night – quite cheap and very clean. Next day I got up late after a good rest, caught the train from Cochin to Bangalore, spending a night on the train, and then spent the day in Bangalore before continuing my journey to Goa.

  In Bangalore I was searching for the Spiritual Museum which is mentioned in my guide book. I went to enquire about it in a college in the town. One of the students offered to take me there on his motor scooter. After that he spent the whole day with me which was pleasant because I did have another ten hours to wait for my train which was not leaving until 8 o’clock in the evening.

  We were shown around the Spiritual Museum by the ‘Sisters’ who are in charge of the place. I think they live there. They all wear white saris and live like nuns but say they don’t belong to any religious order. One of them who could speak good English explained everything to me. She said they aim to live a pure life and practise Raja Yoga, a form of meditation, which they say gives them peace of mind and spirit and will ultimately lead them to the Divine.