Tag: Beach

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n.19 ”The surprising virtues of a poor muslim man with the heart bigger than the indian ocean”


We met at a street corner quite by accident about two months ago. So many circumstances had to come together for the stars to align for us to be at the same place, at the same time. Chance had nothing to do with it.

It was destiny. I am sure of it.

Our friendship deepens each day that passes. In his company, I agin in dignity and personal sovereignty. Abdul, an old ayurvédic doctor as poor as an old rusty nail at the bottom of a drawer but such richness emanates from this man, I am perpetually taken aback by it.

A smile going up all the way to his eyes. Constantly benevolent there’s no other like him.

Everyone from around here knows him. They all say he’s an honorable man with a good heart. Always happy to be of service. A mala in hand, prayer is never far from his lips. He’s got such a devotion towards his god, it’s contagious.

We throw at each other an endless amount of ‘’Inshallah’’ and ‘’Devam anygrèykète at each occasion. (To the rhythm of God and God bless you)

Last week, he showed me around the neighborhood. The first day, we walked for 7 hours straight. At last some exercise worth mentioning. I’ve been waiting for that one.

Once at Kovalam beach, a prayer of mine got answered: a true double espresso.
It’s hard to describe the effect of a double espresso in a body that hasn’t seen any real coffee in over 3 months. It’s as if my body and mind fused perfectly whilst being jolted by 35 000 volts of lightning.

I could not hold myself. I whipped out my banjo and played ravenously for an hour and a half straight without stopping. All that in front of a magnificent beach, tenderly cradled by sea winds and the sound of waves.

Paradise.

Abdul’s sister, Fatima, is the owner of a house on a mountain overlooking the ocean. It never got finished due to lack of funding and left to itself. Me and Abdul we’ll build a bathroom, a shower and a bedroom. The house shall be mine for my time here.

There are encounters that change us, that won’t allow us to remain the old and pushes us towards another level of personal freedom. My meeting with Abdul is one of those.

The kindness, generosity and unconditional love is contagious. I am now infected and for sure will propagate this fever to all those who cross my path.

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N.6 The Cowboy Monk

I ain’t here to reinvent the wheel.
When my friend told me ‘’let’s go the naked beach’’,
I said yes.

The dude abides as they say. The dude abides.

So here I am, butt naked in hot sands.
Never before have I seen so many balls.
Oh well, and so is life!

Now that I put my glasses on, there’s about 40 people on the beach, 37 of them are men.
So much for ‘’fair representation’’, this beach could’ve been called ‘’The land of cock and balls’’

Or better yet, ‘’Of Mice and Men’’

Ok, enough with the schlong jokes. We both got better things to do.

Flash forward 3 hours later.
We are at an ecstatic dance party in a hostel.
There’s a jacuzzi, a sauna, loud music and beautiful people.

We got in ye old broke cowboy way.
Walk fast, act as if you own the place and voilà!

Free party.

As I take a look around, I see the same people in different bodies from back home.
Sure, everyone has its unique flavor but the dish is the same.

I guess we can’t reinvent the wheel; people want to dance, laugh and fuck.

I get that.

Although I’ve had my moments, my years of parties are long gone.
I’ve always been more of a monk than a rockstar anyways.
I’d rather share a cup of coffee with a friend in the afternoon and look at the stars at night.

There’s a silence. From inside it grows.
I don’t know where it’ll take me.
Since we’re friends, I’ll be fully transparent and honest with you:

It kinda scares me.
I do not know the way back

Have you ever been to a place where there’s no color,
no judgment,
no preference,
no thoughts?

Since no description applies, I couldn’t even call it ‘’beautiful’’.

That place calls me.

I don’t know why. Maybe the freedom of it, maybe I’m just curious.

When I stay there for a time, everyone becomes the same. It’s hard to put into words but I’ll try to paint a picture; The beautiful woman and the lowdown bum on the street; I love them equally. My mom or a stranger? I don’t see any difference: they both are as deserving of love and respect as the other.

Truthfully, I think I’ve hit the road to dive into that place. To see where it’ll go.

Anyways, excuse me, I got carried away a little.

I’m currently hunched over my notebook at a party.
Maybe it’s time to go and sprinkle a dab of rockstar on that monk to even things out.

So long, friends!

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N.4 ”Taking a shit on the Beach”

There was a party here last night.
By the looks of it, many nights before too.
The table is half burnt but if it still stands, it’s good enough for me; it’s hard to write while squatting like the Indians do.

And so, while also forgetting my hat on the plane, I left my shoes in my room. IIt’s early in the morning I thought. I won’t need them, I told myself. The ground won’t be that hot this early.

I’m about to pay the price for my ignorance.
Sitting here on the last remnants of shade, the sun keeps eating away at its carcass.
I look in the distance at the scorching hot sands and I know;
I’ll have to walk that valley of death pretty soon.

The dogs out here are pretty friendly, the hippies are being hippies, mosquitoes aren’t too bad and I’m good friends with a cat.
I like this place.

As I watch a dog taking a shit further down the beach, I make a mental note of its location. And then I’m reminded of a story.

Ok. Get this.

There’s this beach with black sands all over. The sand is magnetic. If you run a magnet through it, the ground moves and you’re amazed at the simplicity of life.

As my friend tells me the story, she says that a local pointed it to her while also asking, half jokingly: ‘’don’t tell the white people’’

Have you ever been to a place that you could undoubtedly call paradise? Only to go there years later to find its spirit mangled by tourist development and gentrification?

I have.

Even though I’ve never travelled very far yet, I’ve seen it.
Now, to be fair, I’m happy the people of this place can make businesses and thrive, although I have a hunch most of the hostels belong to ‘’foreigners’’.

But in truth, I don’t know.

That’s a complicated matter for complicated minds.
I leave it to wiser people to unravel

As far as I’m concerned, I prefer to tread gently wherever I go, give thanks often, mingle with the culture and most of all, never to take a proverbial shit on the beach.