You May Ask--- What Have I Been Up To?

I have had a pleasant but busy couple of days. I have been swimming in the sea once or twice a day. The temp is about 87 F in the day and the water is just a tiny bit cooler than the outside air.

I do a two hour beach walk in the early AM

I enjoy my $20 a day cottage with sea view .

I visited the Coir Museum here near Mararikulam on the first day. Coir is the fiber that comes from coconuts. It is one of the main products of Kerala and a big export item. It is a great versatile, sustainable and biodegradable product. I will write another post about it soon. If you have a mat outside your home door- more than likely it is made out of coir.

Here I am at the Coir Museum posing in front of a big Ganesh made out of woven coir (natural coconut husk fiber)

Yesterday I visited one of my most favorite places in Kerala-the ashram of Mata Amritanandamayi in Amritapuri, Kerala.  It was about a two hour drive south of my cottage. I spent the day there and saw Amma in the early evening. She had just returned from her winter USA tour. The ashram is bordered by the sea on the west and the backwaters on the east. A bridge gets you over to the beautiful pink ashram complex.

On the way to the ashram we passed this huge Lord Shiva head at the entrance of a temple.

After the fishermen bring in their catch in the early morning, they sort the fish, collect ice from one of the many ice factories along the coast line and then display the fish along the roads. This is a common sight (and smell) as you drive along.

I spotted this ornate temple celebration vehicle going by. 

Can anyone guess what this is used for? It is made out of coir with golden beads. Email me with your guess at marie.viglas@gmail.com.