the changing face of a tourist trap

Things turned around for me in the past week thankfully as far as having people to hang out with.

I spent my final night in Kanyakumari with a super fun group of all solo travelers. That is the best! I love meeting groups of people who traveled alone from home and who hang in groups that have evolved along the way.

On Valentine’s Day I arrived to Varkala which is one of the nicer beaches in Kerala. The natural beauty of the red cliffs looming over the sand and surf were gorgeous. The tourism that was densely packed atop these cliffs really put me off. I have no problem with destinations that have a large quantity of foreigners who are more there to party than to get that traveling interaction with other culture. I am tolerant of this sort of scene because it fulfills a need for me when I need to take a break from the travels. But the particular Varkala tourist niche is not MY scene. The restaurants play music like Jack Johnson, the layout does not have a thoughtful urban planning with buildings stacked up against each other…and then there are the tourists. These just aren’t my kind of people. These are folks who prefer to be safely distanced from interacting with the culture of the country they are visiting. If you take a look at the photos from Varkala you cannot really see any signs of what country they take place in.

The two best parts of Varkala are the natural beauty of thick coconut tree forests and the red cliffs. And the other was my guesthouse. Somehow I lucked out and found a budget gem back behind the throngs of up-market rooms butting up to the cliffs. Nice travelers stayed there…people unlike the generic tourist-folk strolling along the cliff who I cannot imagine would ever be found sitting on a local bus or at a street side chai shop munching on a crunchy samosa from a nearby cart.

Anyway, I just wasn’t feeling this place so I felt strongly about leaving after only one night.

And I woke up to the sound of the guesthouse mama showing a room to a new arriving backpacker. I poked my head out my door and said that I would be leaving today so my room can also be available to take. But instantly I caught a glance of the man with the backpack and an overnight train ride scruffy appearance and mere seconds into my announcement I realized…I wasn’t leaving anywhere. This smiling hottie’s eyes met mine and I saw this was worth sticking around for…

Anyway, Georg, my new next door neighbor and I were inseparable from then onward. And suddenly Varkala was much more enjoyable and all those things that bothered me before about this tourist trap seemed to fade into oblivion. Georg and I had a rapport that was a natural flow of fun, including our mutual appreciation of this corny tourism scene here and making fun of it while reveling in its offerings.

We left Varkala together to head north for a canoe trip through Kerala’s backwaters. At the end of the day, despite the new location, our chemistry proved to last and we had a blast together.

And no matter how awesome or hot and heavy it had been and had increased to, it suddenly came to a screeching halt

After realizing he felt conflicted Georg decided to inform me that this cannot go forward he has a girlfriend at home.

Hmmm… uh-huh. I see.

How did I feel at the moment of getting this information, you may ask?

Well, have you ever been walking down the street, or in the park or the shopping mall and from far away some person “recognizes” you and shouts out and waves? And even though you don’t recognize this person you match their enthusiasm and give a wave in reply. Then suddenly this person gets a better look and realizes that he/she actually doesn’t know you at all and had mistaken you for someone he/she really does know and like. And since you are not that person, the waving hand drops, the smile disappears and they walk the other way. And you are left there with a goofy grin and feeling like a horses ass.

Well,

That’s kind of how I feel.

Maybe I’m making a bigger deal out of this than I should.

I guess I wouldn’t make a big deal out of it if the connection and chemistry wasn’t true.

But it was there.

I guess I don’t expect this kind of thing to happen to me because I give the benefit of the doubt that people will have the integrity to fix a problem in their current relationship…or to leave the relationship altogether before reaching out for the temptation that exists as an indicator of something missing in the current relationship.

Anyway, I guess this little blip on my road is temporarily a tough one for me to move on from because this amazing friendship I had with Georg was coming right after a period of feeling pretty lonely. And then to have it end up like this is…well, it’s a drag.

And luckily a drag ain’t so bad…

And there’s always tomorrow.

Kanyakumari http://www.flickr.com/photos/meredith415/sets/72157603902240718/

Varkala http://www.flickr.com/photos/meredith415/sets/72157603934536761/

Backwaters http://www.flickr.com/photos/meredith415/sets/72157603934710919/