It is 31 July 2019 and I recollect pleasantly what a wonderful month of travel it has been for me
Began the month of July in La Havana being well looked after by my sister and then
Miami, thanks to J and J
Barcelona, thanks to L and A
A first time visit to Vienna, thanks to BB
Quiberon, France and as always LGBS
A delightful as well as delicious time in Fort Cochin in the company of my good friends RN and MP. I have to thank the staff at Bristow’s Bungalow for making the four day stay there very agreeable.
I welcomed some new friends and had to let go of some acquaintances who were too much of a drain. But was a good month to help people in many countries and on line!
It was full of challenges to the mind and intellect: architecture, food, cultural conflicts all the while accumulating so much knowledge.
So much contrast, between the West and the East; between enslaved minds and free minds, migration and personal sorrows.
The strength of affections that stand the test of time and those frivolous ones that flit away into oblivion.
Two sisters one in Havana and another in Miami
France with its love and hate relationship with my heart
Vienna was a total surprise, the ambiance, the gothic architecture and pleasantness of people. It felt like Europe that I remembered as a student.
How can Hotels become homes? For me, the list is slowly growing. Double Tree by Hilton in KL, Marriott Marquis in Doha, Qatar.. and just now, four days at Bristow’s Bungalow in Fort Cochin facing the Arabian Sea. I know all the staff at this hotel by name and sometimes the families as well. They treat me much more than a guest..and show genuine concern and shower me with food as well as gifts.. as has happened in the other two hotels mentioned..
My two delightful friends in Fort Cochin, one of whom took me to the backwaters to witness the trials of the snake boat race to be held on the 10th august, the other jovial gent with whom i had a lovely dinner at the Grand Hotel. Both of them are fervently pro-Israeli and we can make plans to include Israel in our future rendezvous’
Time to return to the passions of Cuba, where friendships have a deeper meaning than many other countries because of our peculiar situation.
On my long flight home, I would enjoy ruminating about the delights of the past month and look forward to an equally delicious month of travel and encounter and food to come
