Because It's There 14
We turned in our rickshaw (Bernie) today and officially ended our adventure. As we pulled into Fort Kochi the odometer read 4036 kilometers. When we received the rickshaw in Jaislamer the odometer read 36 kilometers. So we drove 4000 kilometers or about 2850 miles. Doing a little research, that is the equivalent of driving from Portland Oregon to Cleveland Ohio. All at about 60 kilometers per hour or about 35 miles per hour. And unlike so many other rickshaw run teams, we never broke down. We punished our rickshaw in so many ways for over two weeks, and it kept going, and going and going. Seeing so much of India from a seat of an open rickshaw was an amazing life experience. We saw so much change in India's landscape, so many people living so many different lives. We saw deserts, mountains, hundreds of farming villages, huge cities, beautiful coastlines, extremely diverse fauna and so many beautiful and kind people and families. Both Liz and I agreed that there was or is no better way to see this country than through an open rickshaw.
So folks, thank you all for following our adventure and a big Thank You to all that donated to Cool Earth and Days for Girls. We/You exceeded our Days for Girls fund raising goal. Thank You. If you can or still want to donate, please point your donation to Cool Earth. If you need help from us to point you in that direction, please let us know.
Liz has created a much more detailed journal of our trip. I am sure she would share it with you all if you would like to hear more details than could be provided here.
Thanks to all of you again.
Elizabeth Greco, Jeff Rames and Bernie
Because It's There 13
Alappuzha, Kerala, India :
We made it back to the houseboat dock about 9:00am this morning. Not a very good nights sleep. The houseboat we rented was not as clean and bug free as we had first thought. We did make it through the night, but not without Liz getting bit by something that left 5 or 6 quarter sized welts all over her body. After a few errands we started our way back north to Kochi, the end point of the Rickshaw Run. The drive took about 3 hours and was primarily along the beach. We pulled in Fort Kochi at about 3:00pm and found a nice hotel. Easy day.
Because It's There 12
Kottakkal, Kerala, India :
We had a pretty crappy hotel in Kottakkal. No many options to choose from and it was getting late. Not very clean, pretty noisy and the bathroom was a mess. Dinner proved to be a challenge, they just did not seem to be able to follow through on a basic order. Salad last, forgot drinks and the food was mediocre at best. The people, as usual, were always kind and it was clear that they were doing their best. Again we started heading south pretty early and continued to drive through urban and very crowded areas. This was now our 3rd day and 400 to 500 miles where we were in constant and heavy urban traffic. We wanted to take a houseboat in the backwaters of Kerela. This was south of where the race ended in a town called Alappuzha. We got into town and used the Lonely Planet book to find a homestay. A very nice gentleman by the name of Tony had a family home with 3 or 4 rooms. We rented one for the night. Tony also was in the houseboat business but his boat was not operating that weekend. He provided good advice and down to the docks we went. As soon as we arrived at the docks, a couple from Australia arrived. We agreed to share a houseboat and began the search. There are hundreds of these houseboats at the docks and just about every captain wanting your business. We also had to deal with brokers that were trying to sell us on a variety of boats. Liz, with her deep and excellent researching and negotiating skills, found us all a good boat at a fair price. We got our stuff back at the homestay and jumped onboard. The houseboat departed out into open lakes and thin canals about noon. They provided lunch and dinner and we spent the afternoon and evening on the upper deck looking at the sites and villages. Good ending to a good day. We ended up driving about 200 kilometers today.
Because It's There 12
Kottakkal, Kerala, India :
We had a pretty crappy hotel in Kottakkal. No many options to choose from and it was getting late. Not very clean, pretty noisy and the bathroom was a mess. Dinner proved to be a challenge, they just did not seem to be able to follow through on a basic order. Salad last, forgot drinks and the food was mediocre at best. The people, as usual, were always kind and it was clear that they were doing their best. Again we started heading south pretty early and continued to drive through urban and very crowded areas. This was now our 3rd day and 400 to 500 miles where we were in constant and heavy urban traffic. We wanted to take a houseboat in the backwaters of Kerela. This was south of where the race ended in a town called Alappuzha. We got into town and used the Lonely Planet book to find a homestay. A very nice gentleman by the name of Tony had a family home with 3 or 4 rooms. We rented one for the night. Tony also was in the houseboat business but his boat was not operating that weekend. He provided good advice and down to the docks we went. As soon as we arrived at the docks, a couple from Australia arrived. We agreed to share a houseboat and began the search. There are hundreds of these houseboats at the docks and just about every captain wanting your business. We also had to deal with brokers that were trying to sell us on a variety of boats. Liz, with her deep and excellent researching and negotiating skills, found us all a good boat at a fair price. We got our stuff back at the homestay and jumped onboard. The houseboat departed out into open lakes and thin canals about noon. They provided lunch and dinner and we spent the afternoon and evening on the upper deck looking at the sites and villages. Good ending to a good day. We ended up driving about 200 kilometers today.
Because It's There 12
Kottakkal, Kerala, India :
We had a pretty crappy hotel in Kottakkal. No many options to choose from and it was getting late. Not very clean, pretty noisy and the bathroom was a mess. Dinner proved to be a challenge, they just did not seem to be able to follow through on a basic order. Salad last, forgot drinks and the food was mediocre at best. The people, as usual, were always kind and it was clear that they were doing their best. Again we started heading south pretty early and continued to drive through urban and very crowded areas. This was now our 3rd day and 400 to 500 miles where we were in constant and heavy urban traffic. We wanted to take a houseboat in the backwaters of Kerela. This was south of where the race ended in a town called Alappuzha. We got into town and used the Lonely Planet book to find a homestay. A very nice gentleman by the name of Tony had a family home with 3 or 4 rooms. We rented one for the night. Tony also was in the houseboat business but his boat was not operating that weekend. He provided good advice and down to the docks we went. As soon as we arrived at the docks, a couple from Australia arrived. We agreed to share a houseboat and began the search. There are hundreds of these houseboats at the docks and just about every captain wanting your business. We also had to deal with brokers that were trying to sell us on a variety of boats. Liz, with her deep and excellent researching and negotiating skills, found us all a good boat at a fair price. We got our stuff back at the homestay and jumped onboard. The houseboat departed out into open lakes and thin canals about noon. They provided lunch and dinner and we spent the afternoon and evening on the upper deck looking at the sites and villages. Good ending to a good day. We ended up driving about 200 kilometers today.
Because It's There 11
Mangalore, Karnataka, India :
We had a fairly nice hotel here. AC did not work very well, but we did have a view of the ocean. The day before our rickshaw started to get louder. After some research we found that the exhaust was falling off due to a bolt missing. We patched it up using zip ties and some rope. Before we left the B&B this morning we figured we had better get that fixed. The hotel called a mechanic which came to the hotel and fixed the exhaust with a new bolt. Cost us about a dollar fifty. We finally got on the road and again found that we were again driving in full on urban traffic. Now to give you and idea of the masses here, in two days of driving about 500 kilometers (300+ miles) we never left full urban type areas. Hardly ever drive through a stretch that was open or unpopulated. The populations here are quite amazing to witness. The traffic and our need to focus full time on it proved to be tiring. We drove until dusk, during over 350 kilometers today. We had to get a hotel and found one in a town called Kottakkal. Not a very nice place, but it worked.
Because It's There 11
Mangalore, Karnataka, India :
We had a fairly nice hotel here. AC did not work very well, but we did have a view of the ocean. The day before our rickshaw started to get louder. After some research we found that the exhaust was falling off due to a bolt missing. We patched it up using zip ties and some rope. Before we left the B&B this morning we figured we had better get that fixed. The hotel called a mechanic which came to the hotel and fixed the exhaust with a new bolt. Cost us about a dollar fifty. We finally got on the road and again found that we were again driving in full on urban traffic. Now to give you and idea of the masses here, in two days of driving about 500 kilometers (300+ miles) we never left full urban type areas. Hardly ever drive through a stretch that was open or unpopulated. The populations here are quite amazing to witness. The traffic and our need to focus full time on it proved to be tiring. We drove until dusk, during over 350 kilometers today. We had to get a hotel and found one in a town called Kottakkal. Not a very nice place, but it worked.
Because It's There 11
Mangalore, Karnataka, India :
We had a fairly nice hotel here. AC did not work very well, but we did have a view of the ocean. The day before our rickshaw started to get louder. After some research we found that the exhaust was falling off due to a bolt missing. We patched it up using zip ties and some rope. Before we left the B&B this morning we figured we had better get that fixed. The hotel called a mechanic which came to the hotel and fixed the exhaust with a new bolt. Cost us about a dollar fifty. We finally got on the road and again found that we were again driving in full on urban traffic. Now to give you and idea of the masses here, in two days of driving about 500 kilometers (300+ miles) we never left full urban type areas. Hardly ever drive through a stretch that was open or unpopulated. The populations here are quite amazing to witness. The traffic and our need to focus full time on it proved to be tiring. We drove until dusk, during over 350 kilometers today. We had to get a hotel and found one in a town called Kottakkal. Not a very nice place, but it worked.
