Tuesday 28 August 2012

The final coastal drive

What better than to start the morning taking a leisurely stroll along the beach. It really wouldn't be India if you didn't have to dodge the cow patties along the shoreline. As we made it back to the hotel to prepare for the drive ahead there was a strange sight. A man in a wheelchair had been wheeled into the sea by his family and at one point neglected and left to fend off the waves crashing over him. A tad concerning as it started to pour with rain, but hey.... This is India! Anything goes!

With no breakfast on the menu at the hotel we stopped off in town to collect a supply of bananas. Ruth headed out to the local fruit seller to purchase the necessary fruits and nearly got caught in a heated argument between 2 crazy coastal dogs. Thank goodness for those rabie shots eh, Ruth?!?!?

As we left Murudeshwar with a trail of bubbles for the school children we made our way to Mangalore in search of the days challenge. The most amazing moustache of India!! By now we had been in India for a fortnight and each one of us girls had a revelation. Nearly all the men of India have moustaches. It would have been a much harder challenge if we had been asked to take a photo with an Indian fella who didn't have a mo.... anyhow!! Onward bound we headed in search of the best facial hair seen since 1985!

In the morning we came across fishing farms and our mission was to find out what they were farming to earn some bonus points. Automatically we assumed fish, however, as Ruth and Pia headed down to the local huts to find out, I manned the rickshaw. In there absence 2 crazed dogs started approaching the vehicle and all I was thinking was perhaps those rabie shots weren't such a bad idea and if these dogs attack me, this red plastic poncho isn't gonna save me. Thankfully it didn't take long for the girls to gather the necessary information and hurry back up the path to save me from the wild dogs of South India. And I know you all want to know.... they farm prawns!!

In search of the  most amazing moustache, Ruth spotted a man on the otherside of the road and like any good moustache hunter would do we u-turned, drove over a pile of pot holes in pursuit of the moustache of the century. Only to be told he didn't want to be photographed!!! What!!! Well back in search we go!!

On route we stopped at Kundapura to visit the temple. There we finally saw an Elephant, unfortuantely not as free as we would like, but still looking adorable. After a quick confirmation of the temples name for challenge requirements and some decoration purchases for pimping our rickshaw later down the track we made our way further southbound.

As we stopped to refuel our trusty mode of  transport we happened to have stumbled upon moustacheville. There standing amongst the employees was the ultimate Tom Selleck moustache, Indian style. Once again we encountered a camera shy gentleman, but when we were doing an impromptu photoshoot with the younger employees, the camera shy guy got snapped in the photo, having no idea he had accidently made an appearance.... hehehehe!

The remainder of the drive was encountered by our frequent road counterparts.... 'Moooooooooooo' and 'woof, woof, woof!' Along the way we
managed to have an entertaining photoshoot with a bus wreckage! Bus vs Rickshaw! 1 to the rickshaw ;) haha!

As we arrived in Mangalore the monsoon rains started to roll in. For some reason my driving shift had come around again. (By this time of the trip we had been rotating drivers every hour.) As we drove downhill we were trailing behind a hatchback and a local bus. In typical Indian style the bus pulled out to the far right, just when the hatchback and I wanted to overtake it. This meant both of us had to slam on the brakes, more so 'Missy' as she skidded downhill and drifted to the left. Thank goodness for the barricade in the middle of the road which clipped our back right wheel and knocked us back on track. Ooooo a heart stopping moment... All of us thought it may have been game over. Bravely the girls endured my driving as we kindly had a tuk tuk driver guide us to our final destination! Phew!

All that was left to do was take our last moustache photo. Thinking outside the box Pia and I agreed to a makeover. Oh the fun you can have with an eyeliner pencil, Team 2's rickshaw and a camera.

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