After a very eventful and fun few days in Calcutta, we head back to the airport for our 2.5 hour flight to Port Blair in the Andaman Islands, off the SW coast of India. I had been there last year but was anxious to go back and see it through Dick Grace’s eyes. When I was here before, Dick asked me to go and visit a family that he supports, which I did. It will be so wonderful to see them again.
As we get off the airplane on the tarmac at Port Blair, we are hit in the face with a blast of hot air. It’s tropical and muggy and feels like a furnace. A huge change from the cool days and cooler nights of Calcutta. We go through customs and get our special permit needed to visit the Andamans and collect our bags. When we go outside there are two happy faces there to greet us. It is Ramu and Jayanthi, longtime friends of Dick and Ann.
They met in the Himalayas in Nepal several years ago when they were all hiking there. Ramu is a Commander in the Indian Navy and Jay works at a bank. They live in Bangalore now but they used to be stationed in Port Blair so they know the area well. They have our hotels and transportation all arranged for us. I adore them right away and very soon we feel like we’ve known each other for lifetimes. They are both followers of the Guru Yogananda and are both very enlightened, very spiritual people. As it turns out, they are both Gurus of mine and teach me so much in just a few short days.
We go to the hotel to drop our bags and it’s like old home week. Dick and Ann have stayed here several times and the staff is anxious and happy to see them again. We are heartily welcomed and made to feel right at home. After we relax with fresh coconut juice and get settled in, we meet Ramu and Jay in the town center at the samosa shop. It is a custom for Dick and Ann to take a big box full of samosas to the family of Manisha.
Dick met 5-year-old Manisha around 7 years ago. She is mostly blind and comes from a family of 10 children. Two are blind and two have severe handicaps that make them unable to walk. They range from 3 years to 21 years old. The oldest is married and has one child of his own. They all live together in a very small house. And they have no idea we are coming.
We pile into two auto rickshaws and make the 15 minute drive to Manisha’s house. When we arrive, the family is getting ready for a birthday party for one of the sons. It is perfect timing. The kids are all dressed up and they and their home are as clean as can be. Of course they are just beside themselves when they see that Grandpa Dick and Grandma Ann have arrived. It must have been like a gift from heaven to see them appear.
We squeeze into their tiny home and share in the small birthday cake that is brought for the 8 year old boy. (My apologies for not remembering all the names of the children). It is a festive and wonderful evening. Many photos were taken, songs were sung and delicious slivers of cake were shared along with delectable samosas.
Dick told all the children to get ready to go shopping the next evening so they could all pick out a new outfit. It is something they do with the family each time they visit. The kids are so excited but extremely well behaved. I am so impressed with this family. There is a beautiful light in all their faces and their bodies. They are happy and adjusted despite the tremendous amount of things they face, physically, financially and I would guess, emotionally. They are all very close and take good care of each other. Father likes to drink a little too much on occasion and Dick gave him a somewhat stern talking to, out of earshot of everyone else.
Bright and early the next morning, we get in our van to go snorkeling on the other side of the island. Dick knows the captain of the dive company, who has am amazing story about being lost at sea for several months.
I was feeling a tiny bit uneasy about going snorkeling in the Andaman sea because of my experience last year when I was left out in the middle of the ocean by a careless dive company. But I felt like I had a chance to erase those memories and knew I would be very well taken care of this time.
14 people pile into a rickety wooden boat with a small motor and a bit of shade that we sat under. The boat rocks from side to side very easily and the weight has to be carefully distributed. No sudden movements please…..
The loud motor roars to life, shaking the entire boat and making conversations almost impossible. We sail for about an hour to another small island and everyone grabs their gear and jump into the water. I am the second to last one out and as I gracefully slide into the sea, my swimming costume (as Indians call it) gets caught on a nail, splits at the crotch and stays mostly on the boat as I slip into the water. After a stunned moment of a silence, the laughter can be heard all the way back to Port Blair. Gloria unhooks my suit, which is now up around my neck, and I tug it back down around my body. It is now a very short dress. Luckily Ann was wearing a pair of shorts over her suit which she let me borrow so I didn’t sunburn my ass and scare the fish away.
We have a glorious day of snorkeling, the sea life appearing in unbelievable colors, shapes and sizes. We motor back to the islands, have a delicious lunch and head back to the hotel to get cleaned up for an evening of shopping. We make quite a scene in this small town when we walk into the store with 10 children to buy and outfit but it all goes smoothly and we are finished in about an hour.
The next morning we pack up our gear and head to the ferry for an hour and a half boat ride to Havelock Island where we will stay for three nights. Just for R&R, something I have never known Dick to do. It turns out to be a very special three days. Life changing, really in the things I learn and the people I meet. I feel that my life will take a new direction after Havelock Island.
We spend the days romping around the island on motorbikes, going swimming and snorkeling in the glorious waters of the Indian ocean, eating good food and being amongst friends, old and new.
On the fourth morning, it’s time to go back to Port Blair and to say goodbye to Ramu and Jay. We have all become very close on this trip and it feels difficult to know that we won’t see them again for a while. After a tearful goodbye, the four of us, Dick, Ann, Gloria and me get on the ferry. We all feel a little sad, but the mood is soon lifted as all the workers remember Dick the Jadu man and want him to do some more magic for them. Before we know it, the ride is over and we are back at Port Blair.
Once there, we take Manisha’s family out for a lovely dinner of tandoori chicken, rice, naan, deep fried spicy cauliflower and orange sodas. Everyone is so happy and joyful and it’s a wonderful time with the family. These children are very special and I know I will have a long connection with them as well.
The next day is our last in Port Blair and I decide to spend it catching up on some work and going on a boat ride to Ross Island, a place with a very long history of British rule. It is the Ellis Island of India. After a quiet, reflective day exploring this small island, I board the boat to go back to Port Blair. There is loud Indian music playing from the sound system and a funny Indian man in his mid 50’s gets up and starts dancing and grinding his hips to the music. Soon he is beckoning for me, the only foreigner on the boat to come and join him. Everyone is cheering and pushing me forward and before I know it, he and I are Bollywood dancing together to the sheer delight of everyone else. It was another unforgettable moment in my travels.
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