Settling into our new house


Sunday was "move in" day at our new house. That meant loading up our seven large bags and numerous smaller bags and toting them to Aswathy Gardens where we'll be living. Lekha, our landlady, was there waiting for us when we arrived. She had taken care of most of the things we asked her to (e.g., providing a few more furnishings, cookware and flatware). We couldn't complain since she had less than 24 hours between us seeing the house and moving in.

Most importantly, she delivered for us a driver. That might seem odd since as of this writing (Tuesday) we still don't have a car. But it has been really helpful having Rahul around. Claire and Luc have both taken to him, and we're told he comes from a family with many children. Today, in fact, our neighbors took us to the nearby town, Kazhakuttam, to do some shopping and Claire decided to stay home and play with Rahul. Right now as I type, Luc is out front laughing with Rahul. This is nice since Luc's nap was cut short by the wind slamming a door very loudly and neither Marion nor I wanted to deal with him in a cranky, sleepy mood.

On Sunday, a van picked us up from the guesthouse and took us first to the temple in Trivandrum. We did a bit of sightseeing, which is all you can do in Kerala, or India for that matter, before 10 a.m. Later the driver took us to Kerala's version of a department store so we could buy bed sheets and towels. Then we stopped at "Food World" for some groceries before heading for the house. Since moving in simply meant unpacking, we were moved in by the afternoon. Claire and Luc were able to enjoy some water play on the front patio.



After water play they got dried off and played around on the second story landing (which is large enough that it was previously used as a library or office).



We quickly realized the danger in this activity, since the posts on the railing are at least 12 inches apart. Luc, being curious but not so aware of danger, would surely at some point slip between them. So on Monday we had Rahul go out and get some rope, then he and Marion created a makeshift barricade to add a modicum of safety.


Rahul makes coffee and tea, and helped cut up some watermelon, but doesn't really cook. On Monday night Marion cooked but quickly became frustrated as ants began attacking the food before she could even cut it up and get it in a pot. We've also had encounters with a few cockroaches. Last night we turned on a bathroom light and 3-inch granddaddy of a cockroach froze in the light. I was barefoot so Marion chased it into the shower. It eluded her and began scampering back towards me. It tried to slide under the vanity just as Marion stomped on it. She then bravely picked it up with some toilet paper and flushed it down the toilet.

I suspect that bugs are an inevitable part of life in the tropics. Our encounters have made us realize the importance of having more help than just Rahul. Luckily, our kind neighbors secured us someone, named Suchitra, who knows their cooking/cleaning person. She'll cook us something tonight and we'll see how it goes. The goal for tomorrow is to secure a car. We have a couple of leads, and I'll write more after tomorrow when, hopefully, something is finalized. With a car, we can send Rahul and Suchitra off to the market to shop.

Except that it is still uncomfortably hot, I think Claire and Luc are pretty happy here. Claire keeps asking where her friend is when Rahul goes into another room. She's embarrassed to say his name, so she just calls him her friend, our "our friend." Sometimes she calls him "Raroo."


Posted: Tue - December 20, 2005 at 12:51 AM          

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