We have just arrived in the town of Kollam which was about a two-hour bus ride away from Trivandrum. Here we will stay two nights and then travel on to Allepey further up the coast on a boat through the backwaters. The town is rather small and quite easy to navigate, although the mad traffic, the noise and the fumes still really make me mad sometimes..!
It is very interesting to see that things are quite diffrent here in the state of Kerala in terms of progress: there seem to be many more essential things like health care facilities, for example, more readily availabe or they seem to be more easily accesible. The bus ride was quite good to see these things along the road: small hospitals and specialised health care centres, stores with lots of household goods. It is wonderful to see so many craftsmen sitting , working and selling in front of their shops or huts on the streets. There are tailors with their sewing machines, shoemakers, basketmakers, woodcarvers etc. And what they make seems to be of really good quality and skilfully done!
More tomorrow and all the best to all, Anne