Just back from Vacation from my Vacation...

The last week was spent in the midst of the Bay of Bengal, far closer to Thailand than to India. Being in the Andaman Islands, especially on Havelock Is. (where we spent 7 nights) feels a lot more like the Carribean and a lot less like India. Havelock has no internet connection. There are computers and signs that say 'Internet' but when you go to inquire, someone shrugs their shoulders and responds with a head bobble "no internet today". After a few days, I gave up trying. However, I have been looking forward to seeing a computer and getting connected again - its amazing how much farther I felt without internet. My western ways are showing through...
Because so much has happened in the last week I thought I would summarize with some highlights:
*Havelock Island is a 2 hour jetty from Port Blair. It is a true tropical paradise. The shore is thick groves of palm trees, ripe wiht coconuts, white sands, sea green ocean, puffy white clouds dotting and rolling across perfect blue skies. Inland is jungle, with a cloud of heat and moisture the farther inland you go.
* The lovliest sunsets I have seen at beach number seven (thats the name!)They seem to last forever and then just when you think you have seen perfection at the beach, the sun tinges the windey bike ride home through rice feilds a perfect grapefruit pink.
*Finding Lagoons in the midday heat and discovering the waters are almost hotter than the white hot sands - oh where does one find relief in such paradise?
*Village life: it bustles with travellers, stray dogs, childresn in school uniforms; the smells of thalis and chai fill the midday and the putting of motorbike and rickshaw engines fill your ears. And then, between 1pm or 2pm everything shuts down for an afternoon nap - siesta style - only to resume in full force at about 4pm or 5pm and continues well into the darkness.
*A note on time: The Andamans belong to India and share the same time zone so the sun rises at about 5am and sets at about 5pm; this makes things pretty interesting for your internal body clock. Everything is so laid back that it doesn't really matter though.
*A few evenings we laid out on the beach, the sand cool and damp as the tide had just let out, under a black sky littered with twinkling stars. There are enough shooting stars to solve all of the world's problems ten times over with wishes. My favorite evening was climbing into a fishing boat and laying on the bench, star gazing while the lilt of the ocean hushed my body and thoughts quiet.
*I have never seen so many pregnant dogs in my life; of course it makes sense but I had never thought about it before. Most guesthouses have a few strays that stick around the area which means of course, that there were puppies living at ours! Three floppy and playful little puppies lived at ours and one in particular took to following me around, chewing my sandals and biting my toes. She would regularly fall asleep in my arms. I named her Vanessa because she was adorable and clever.
*Our second or third day in Havelock we rattled our way on a fishing boat to a tiny lump of an island called south button for a really magnificent snorkel. The fish were brilliant and the coral reef was something I had never seen before - deep and surrounding this veritable lump in the ocean. Fish with phosphorescent skins and wild stripes swam and darted centimeters from my body. I literally swam through schools of purple, blue and yellow fish, of many sizes. I think I saw a Baracuda and Nadia, one of our friends, saw a sea snake with white and black spirals.
*And, as per usual, we've met some really spectacular people from all around the world. Nadia and Catrina from Denmark shared our Jetty ride and we had some good laughs over barbeque fish tikka. Lydia and Gemma of London made staying at Pristine guesthouse so much fun; those two have the most amazing sense of humor - and style. Noami and Yaya of Isreal made our last day a fantastic adventure and also gave a unique insight into the ever exclusive and insular Isreali travel scene.

Its hard to sum up what just happened in a week. There was a lot of sun and beach and laughter. I got one of the worst burns of my life on my nose - I look like a clown right now. I am recovering slowly with the help of Aloe, 60SPF and a new (but ugly) hate.
I don't know whether it was feeling so small on those little islands under all of those stars, or if it was being disconnected from the internet, but I haven't felt so far from home like I have here. Back in Port Blair it feels more like India at least - I am oddly comforted by the honking horns, the empty plastic bottles on the roadside and a dish of Dhaal. Maybe the next spot will have a similar effect. I'll have to wait and see...
Up next: Sri Lanka!