Vacation Villa in the Jungle in Kerala (Kumarakom Lake Resort)

We saw this elephant from the car while we were driving to the resort. It was pretty amazing. The kids loved. Our driver told us that he is used to pull lumber.

Our vacation villa

Sarah's henna tatoo. It wears off in 1-2 weeks.



MK's henna. I got one too, but only on one arm!  





MK posing in front of the rice paddy.





Our new friends that we went on the house boat with. Their dads all work for Timken in India.



Our houseboat is right behind the girls

The pool outside the villa. The view of the lake was really nice.

Fishing Village Next to the Beach Resort (The Leela Kovalam Resort)

The Beach in Kerala

Jonathan at the beach. He loved it!



We watched the sunset every night.




Our hotel was on a cliff. We had great views of the ocean.




Jonathan right outside our room.



Vacation to Kerala India!!

We took a vacation to southern India, along the coast of the Arabian Sea at the beach for a few days and then inland in the jungle along the backwaters for a few days. It was very nice to get away from the chaos and craziness of Bangalore. Both resorts were quiet and relaxing. I think we liked the beach resort the best, it was a five star almost even by US standards. We took long hot showers, which we haven't done in awhile! We ate bacon and sausage everyday for breakfast. The kids loved. It's been a few months since we've had those things. Our resort was very interesting as it was right next to a traditional Indian fishing village. There lterally was a line in the sand that divided the resort from the fishing village.There was a security guard that would not let the fishermen on our beach, yet we were able to walk on their beach. This didn't seem quite right to me. Anyway, the fishermen were very willing to let us see their catch and watch.

The jungle resort was a bit more Indian like. We stayed in a villa on a lake. We took a house boat trip out on the lake for a day and saw more fishermen, rice paddys, and all kinds of interesting birds. We also saw an elephant on our way to this resort, just walking down the road with his owner. Our driver told us the elephants were used to pull timber and other heavy stuff. The kids loved this.

Our boat shipment has arrived in Bangalore!! Of course, it is currently held up in customs. We are hoping to have our stuff by Friday. We can not wait. It has been almost three months. We were packed up on August 14.

We also got a surprise care package this week from one of the marketing guys visiting India from Canton (Doritoes, Oreos, Bubble Gum, Mac and Cheese, etc. etc.). The kids are in heaven. He also brought us some weather stripping. Bye Bye Lizards! We will forever be greatful to him! Because there is only about a 50% chance we would recieve any packages sent to us, we have asked our family and friends not to send us anything. Timken has been great about forwarding all of our paper mail from the US but they can not accept packages. So having something hand delivered was so so nice.

Timken Office in Bangalore, Dasara Holiday

Timken Office in Bangalore



Kids in the Timken Lobby which was decorated for the Dasara Holiday




Our car decorated for the holiday. Our decorations were pretty tame compared to most.




Decorated for the holiday




It was so fun driving around that day and seeing all the cars, trucks, and motorcycles decorated for the holiday.



More Mysore Pics

Chaumundi Hills Temple in Mysore



Lots of cows walking in the crowds around the temple, everyone just gets out of their way




This statue was keeping the evil out of the temple. Jonathan thought he was a pirate and loved his sword.




Brindavan Gardens, right outside our hotel in Mysore




Jonathan and Brian playing chess at our hotel. Jonathan's new favorite game! He is in the chess group at school.




MK and Jonathan getting their pic with some Indians.




We got stuck in this spot for awhile, people took turns getting their picture taken with MaryKate.




Our hotel in Mysore




There was a light show at night at the Brindavan gardens outside our hotel.



Mysore, India

Lots of monkeys in Mysore



Mysore Palace (It was hot and crowded inside, but the kids like the golden thrown. We were in and out of the palace in 15 minutes)




Chaumundi Hills



Lots of monkeys, the kids loved but we kept our distance. The monkeys weren't nice.



Old temple on top of Chaumundi Hills



Trip to Mysore, India and other stuff

Last weekend we took a trip to Mysore, India, which was a three hour drive south of Bangalore. It was an interesting time. We were quite popular there, as we were the only light skinned people for what seemed like miles. We are used to getting stared at when we are out in Bangalore, but this was a little more then normal. We couldn't get too far withour someone asking to take our picture.Our driver, Stephen, was with us and was quite helpful navigating the crowds. It was hot and crowded. The Indian people seemed to want to touch our kids faces and hair, especially MaryKate. Our maid, Rosey, told me that some of the Indian people think blonde hair/blue eyes are lucky so they want to touch the kids to get some of their luck. The kids are actually usually quite nice about it, but after awhile it gets old.

It was an Indian holiday, Dussehra, around October 5. On this holiday, the cars, busses, trucks, bikes, etc. get a blessing and decorated to help keep them safe. So, all over Bangalore the cars, trucks, busses, motorcycles were all decorated with paint and flowers. The Timken office here had a little ceremony at which the cars were blessed. So, our SUV got a blessing. I figured it couldn't hurt! The kids loved this too. 

I'm getting a little braver. I am now walking out of our compound about 1/2 mile to get to my exercise class. While walking, I have to wear long pants and have my shoulders covered (in 85 degree heat) so not to draw any more attention to myself. But I like being able to get out on my own and I feel a little more independent.

There is another Indian holiday coming up next week. We are taking a trip to Kerala, India, which is on the southern coast, along the Arabian sea. The kids are off school for a few days and Brian has meetings in Kerala, so we are tagging along. We will be staying on the beach for a few days. I can't wait!

We are still struggling with the lizards in our house. MK and Sarah are sharing a room, which I thought would never happen, but they don't want to sleep by themselves with lizards loose. I would give anything for some weather stripping, not a common item in India.

Oh....found out today that our boat shipment has made it to Sri Lanka. It is getting closer! Still probably two weeks away. I've had visions of our container on the ship that is stuck off the coast of Venezula, so I'm glad it has made it safely to Sri Lanka. I can not wait to have our beds. We have been sleeping on air mattresses for about a month now.

Missing everyone! Kelly

Our new trampoline and stuff

Making cookies

More pics of our house

Jonathan swinging at the park right across the street from our house



Our house




Jonathan's room




The girls eating Dominos (it's not the same, but not bad)




Patio furniture in the family room




MK in the kitchen with chocolate cake




Our washer (which is in the kitchen) with MK. We do not have a dryer. Everything gets hung outside to dry.




Our little fridge with MK




Making cookies