Mangalore

Our first port of call in Mangalore, and the locals do a great job of greeting us. A band  plays on the quayside - G suspects the trombonist is actually playing a different piece - and various troops of dancers perform as passengers make their way off the ship and through the hall full of Indian border control and security. 

I’m a little worried as to how I’ll take to being on a group tour - I always prefer to be on our own. But we’re a relatively small group, have an excellent guide and as with many things, you quickly adapt.  

We’re very definitely in southern India now - Karnakata. It’s not our first visit to this state; we stayed in an Ayurvedic retreat on the coast nine years ago. The vegetation is lush with palm trees everywhere, quite unlike that on our travels near Mumbai. 

We’ve opted for a visit to an artisan’s village where we watch various crafts and activities now dying out - pottery, carpentry, seed milling, jaggery making etc. It’s genuinely interesting and well set out - and provides great photo opportunities! It’s clearly a genuine attempt by the local government to preserve heritage - at least judging by the number of school groups visiting when we were there. One group of rather beautiful and self assured girls stop me and ask me to take their photograph, instantly getting themselves into a photogenic group. I’m wondering whether they’re a dance group or sports team - they’re clearly used to this! 

Then it’s the local market - this time with a focus on dried fish. I also spot the jaggery disks we saw being made in the village - the stall holder breaks off a piece for us to try and it’s delicious. Finally, it’s a Hindu temple  - very ‘golden’ but rather beautiful. 

We consider going back into the city by shuttle bus to explore on our own - and find some sunglasses for G - but whilst the spirit is willing, we just don’t have the energy. It’s very hot and humid, and staying in the coolness of the ship is just too tempting!


My main’s is a close up of stone carving at the village, followed by a collage of just some of the school children there. This is followed by a Hindu priest in the chapel, our welcome dancers, and the fish market. Finally there’s a portrait of one of the women potters and the buffalo being used in seed oil extraction.