First days in Kovalam, Kerala

The one thing I always look forward to when being in an airplane is the food! Gosh, I don't think there is anything better than getting served some mutton biriyani by a pretty Indian lady. Not once, but like 3 times on my many flights across the globe :)

So after a 40 hour journey of flights and waiting endless hours in the Mumbai domestic airport reading Angela's Ashes, I finally arrived in Trivandrum, Kerala...where animal rescue shelter owner, Avis Lyons, met me at the airport and took me to the animal shelter. To describe this state of India in one word...I would have to say that it is "beautiful!" I am finally getting used to the heat, but it has actually rained a good bit, which has helped cool it down somewhat. I love looking out of the house here and seeing nothing but palm trees and mango trees! It actually seems very similar to Goa.

Thankfully I slept here and there on the planes so that I was not really affected by jetlag. The next morning I spent about 10 hrs at the animal shelter, which is just across the road from the visitor center in which I am residing. This place is a dreamland to me! I never thought people in India could take so much care for animals. This place was started about 4 years back to help reduce the population of street animals by sterilizing dogs and cats. From the few days I have been here I have witnessed this and much more. In the mornings the dog catchers will go out on the streets and find animals that have not been sterilized (as seen by the lack of a tatoo or a clipping of the left ear). They bring the animal back to the shelter, where Arun (the veterinarian) spays or neuters it and gives the appropriate vaccinations. Once the dog has been sterilized and is in good health, it is returned to the street in which it was found (the specific streets are documented when the animals is caught, so that it can be returned to that same location). I have been helping him a lot during the surgeries already and observing the main differences between surgical procedures as compared to in the states. Also, I was surprised at the food that the animals are given. In the mornings, a huge pot of rice, cooked with tomatoes, beans, and cabbage, is prepared. Also, eggs are half boiled and fish is cooked. This food is so cutely given to the animals in thalis all over the compound!

One of the most priceless aspects of the rescue shelter is that when you walk in the front gate you are attacked by about 20 dogs who just want to jump on you and lick you. These are all dogs that have been saved from the streets and medicated. The puppies are kept upstairs and are constantly monitored for viruses, infections, and also to make sure that they are eating right. Most of them are given bread soaked in milk, as well as dog biscuits and bones.

To tell you the truth, I could keep on writing for days with the amount I have learned thus far and the aspirations I have for the next couple of weeks.

Oh yeah, I live for the food here! I've been eating masala dosas, idles, biriyanis, and much more! Those of you that know how I eat Indian food will understand.

I will try to visit this internet cafe on the main road (about 20 minutes walk from the shelter) a few more times so that I can keep writing to you all. Right now, I'm going to get some Naan and Sada Dosa from Flora's Restaurant down the street and walk back to the animal shelter to help with the last canine neuter operation. Tata.