Beach life continues apace…..  or rather, there is no pace…. this is simply the most relaxing place in the world.

Gianna and Clare have left Patnem today and gone north to the very tip of Goa.  Hope they have a lovely last few days of sun.

The beach was lovely today.  Sea limpid.  No big strange waves to surprise me.  Bob spent the morning watching the England vs Ireland rugby match at a friend’s house.  A great result for England.

I had a successful meeting at lunchtime with someone who is helping me organise for Bob’s birthday celebration.  All totally secret so no more to be said!  Watch for future blogs…

Tonight we all ate on the beach at Namaste.  Really good food and excellent cocktails.  Bob and I had margaritas.  I went European tonight and had chicken breast rolled around pesto and mozzarella cheese.  YUM.  Bob had a particularly delicious curry: mushroom and pea with a savoury fried rice.

When we left the beach, we did a bit of window shopping on the “high street” and heard chanting and music coming from the little temple that is deep in the lanes behind the shops.  It was a puja, a celebration of some sort.  John, Sue and Gloria headed off to it and then I decided I would go too.  I followed down the narrow alleyway I thought they’d taken and found myself stumbling through people’s backyards and farmyards, the ground underfoot definitely dodgy… couldn’t work out how to get my phone torch on in the dark….. a great cow with horns loomed up!!!! Anyway, eventually broke out into the temple area and met John and co coming from a totally different direction!

The temple was small and packed with people.  The music totally deafening.  I mean, dangerously deafening.  Anyway, the locals were clearly very pleased to have visitors and we were welcomed with flowers and pigment dots applied to foreheads and then we had food brought to us.  It was all very lovely and we sat and enjoyed it for a while.  Then we left John there, afraid a bit for our ears.. it was that loud.

Came back to Eve’s for a nightcap and a last chat.  You really feel part of the community here in Patnem.  It’s a small village, no big hotel at all and everyone is very familiar.  I love that about it and hope it is a long time before it changes.