Our houseboat was amazing and before setting off we all got a load of Rum and Coke for the evening on the boat then settled down for the night playing s***head (cards) and getting quite drunk, we got a dinner which was ok nothing too special.

the next day we were up at 7am for breakfast which was omellettes and toast and the best Tea i have ever drank, really sweet but so good.

Spent the day floating through the backwaters which is the most amazing experiance evr it was so beautiful the most picturesque scenery with a great bunch of people watching the locals fishing in there little narrow boats and ladies washing there clothes and themselves in the river as we sailed on by i cannot explain how amazing it was so i wont try but it was good.

We stopped at a small fishmonger to buy the biggest prawns i have ever seen for our lunch which our chef prepared perfectly with garlic and lemon, rice, Fish Fry, vegetable palak, some pea dish whichg was good and poppadums it was an amazing meal one of my best in India and seeing as my stomach is working properly now i devoured.

A bit later we asked the owner if we could stop the boat and jump off the roof of the boat into the waters a few times he obliged and we had the most fun ever doing somersaults and the like for about an hour getting some great photos along the way, the deck of the boat got quite sloppy and we had a ladder to access the roof which fell as Nick was climbing it, i asked if he was ok he said he was so i laughed at him!

When we left the boat we also left Beau and Sally as they needed to get back to Goa and Will stayed on with us, we booked a room in Alleppey for the night and planned to head down to Varkala the next day until we met some Indian guys who offered to tske us to a wedding the next day so we were up at 6.45am for that all in shirts and trousers but the dude didnt turn up which was a bit of a wounder but we still had a fun night with them Nick and I driving his car about round Alleppey that was cool.

Headed to Varkala as the wedding didnt happen and once again got the local bus as it was super cheap, took 4 hours to get down to Varkala but we all had a seat this time so was ok other than the fact it was boiling hot and we were all a sweaty mess by the time we got off the bus!

We got off at Allombalom to then board another bus 10km to Varkala town where we would be met by taxi to take us to our accomodation called Skyline Tourist Paradise on Varkala Beach that bus journey was fun we all had to stand and were being stared at like they had never seen Westerners before it was kind of funny.

Varkala is beautiful we have been here 2 days now and it is the perfect send off from India, really chilled, beautiful place.

Yesterday we sat having a beer at luchtime watching the world go by when we saw the most Dolphins in one place we have ever seen just swimming about right in front of us it was incredible and amazing!

Not really much else to write about other than tomorrow we board our plane for Singapore so roll on Phase 2 of our epic journey we all cannot wait.

Love

Josh, Nick and Ricky

x x x