Our annual trip

I’m away with Kaveri for a few days with Naveen and his mum Sowbaghya.

Manjula’s Mysore supports their education and now we’re on holiday together.

At Chera Rocks
Splashy Chera Rocks
Shabaz, our wonderful friend always on hand to make it a great success.
Time to go home
Who does the washing?
Where have you been?
This might become a new thing!
If we don’t get lost

Summer Camp 2024 – one

It’s the third year since meeting Kaveri.

School holiday is a great opportunity to spend wonderful adventures together.

In our first week, this year we’ve visited Kodagu, Kannur and Wayanad. A great mix of countryside, sea and sand.

Kodagu in the western ghats is a couple of hours west of Mysore.

I’ve been many time to Kannur, further west in Kerala, and taken quite a few friends. Radhika Kaveri’s sister (auntie) couldn’t join us as her mother had an accident and needed support. Lucie a French workawayer helped out at the school and stepped into the breach. A great help.

Finally Shabaz our wonderful friend from Kannur dropped is Wayanad for a final night before returning to Mysore.

Back from our weekend away

SB was all prepared for todays big puja.

Today!
I’m uncertain my T shirt was appropriate wear.

After our ‘family’ weekend, that’s Me with the girls…. Kaveri, her mum Chandrika, sister (aka auntie) Radikha together with Lucie at Chera Rocks in Kannur,

We introduced body boards to the beach, work and play. A fun weekend together.

New season begins.

One of Manjula’s favourites.

Antoinette, Ani (USA) with Jeroen and Sanne.
Out with Carol and Michael at the Lalith Mahal hotel bar.

As we enter October more guests arrive. Our next big adventure is Kaveri’s school holiday.

I see her most weeks at school but staying here plus a trip to the seaside is icing on the cake.

Kaveri’s Summer camp

It’s been a gas.

A challenge.

Kaveri stayed with me, for the summer school holiday, almost two months. We were ably assisted by the wonderful Ilaria, our workawayer from Italy

The idea was to engage her with a whole series of activities to see which worked.

They all did

With her sister aka auntie

Our second time in 2023

Finding our space

The holiday was a thank you from MAnjula and I

We just had to build castles as it’s such a strong English tradition

It was a real joy spending time with good friends who are all so interesting and different.

Great food
Local friends like Shabaz
Families coming together
Making new friends
Chera Rocks guard dog.
Directors of Manjula’s Mysore being monitored
I’d already spent 30 mins on Kaveri’s hair and Sowbaghya had to finish the job. How do you girls manage?
Bringing in the catch
Contemplating
Lucie becomes communist, she explains that vegetarianism is a step too far.

Eleven plus an Englishman and a dog go mad in Kerala

On MAnjula’s death anniversary, we came up with a great idea to celebrate her— even more — by going on holiday to one of her favourite places.

It may provide material for an Enid Blyton story

Kannur is where Manjula and I first went on holiday together after our engagement in 2015.

Maybe we’ll find treasure, or at least get wet.

It’ll be a great adventure with MAnjula giggling from the antics of the loosely formed team.

It’s a challenge, anywhere, to bring together fragments of four families with two additions of an Englishman and his dog but this is India. It’ll be OK.

Thankfully we’ll not be cycling.

It’s a great way to thank Sowbaghya, Tanuja and Satish for the help they’ve been in so many ways, including setting up the new business.

It’s also an opportunity to spend fun time with Kaveri and her young auntie Rhadika.

That’s Rhadika dressed up for ethnic day in the midst of her exams.

We’ve got the go ahead from Kaveri’s mum, Satish has worked it out with the school and Jo will definitely have completed her term.

So we’re good to go…

Wonderful

So which amazing place is going to host this motley crew?

A visit to Kannur

I’m sitting with Lucie in our room, at Chera Rocks, which opens directly onto the beach.

It’s been another hot day which cools slightly as we pass 4 0’clock.

We have been visiting our wonderful friends Sally and Shabaz, before Eastenders Sally sadly returns to the U.K.

Together we’ve retraced Manjula and my steps during previous holidays, including Manjula’s deep desire 😉 to visit the drive-on-beach.

This morning Sally and I walked along the beaches to visit Rosie and Nazir of Kannur Beach House and share my photos of Manjula.

Rosie, Nazir and their family became good friends after we visited many times.

Manjula and I in Kannur to celebrated our engagement in 2015

Manjula’s look of absolute bliss laying on the beach by Kannur Beach House on that first holiday together.
Our very last trip exactly three years ago, shortly before she died, here we’re catching up with Rosie and Nazir.
with me in many ways

It’s time for a last swim. We return to Mysore tomorrow.

We’ve bonded on this trip after I’d been away for almost three months

We did it, followed by a shared shower, Lucie thinks it was all too much. She waits until carefully positioned next to cascade her water drops on my clothes and bag. Ha bloody ha …

and a final walk before dinner.