After the roach-coach experience on my previous train ride, I wasn’t looking forward to the 11 hour overnight ride from Madurai to Cochin.  Kim, Charisse, and I were pleasantly surprised to find that the A/C 2^nd Tier coach was cleaner, didn’t stink of sewage, and was roach-free.  The prepaid taxi stand was closed when we arrived in Kochi, so we had to take a rickshaw at least 15km to Fort Cochin.  It was the craziest, bumpiest, scariest rickshaw ride as we weaved through back alleyways and hit some nasty potholes along the way.  At one point, the three of us all hit our heads on the top bar.  I still have a bump on my head.  Regardless of the rickshaw-induced head trauma, we made it safely to our hotel and rested for a few hours before taking on Fort Cochin on foot.  We walked to the coast where we watched the fisherman work the Chinese fishing nets, to St. Francis church, and to a catholic church. It felt strange to see westerners after so long without seeing any.  Before I got back in a cab to head to the airport to come home, we ate a final Indian lunch and went to a local spice market.  I might be one of the only ones in my group to miss the food, but I really will.  So much spice and flavor!  Hopefully Ms. Bhula’s cooking lesson and the spices I brought back will pay off.

It already feels strange to leave India.  I know it’s time to go back home – I miss friends, family, and especially Bryan – but there are so many things left undone in India. There is more I want to do to serve RTU and Russ, and there is so much more to see and do in beautiful, complex India. It feels like I started reading a book, and just as it started getting really good, I had to put it on the shelf.  The good news is this story isn’t finished and there will be more to come in the future.