After an extremely long travel day of going over the river and through the woods, I made it to Marari- a super shanti, relatively tourist-free, blink-and-you'll-miss-it town in northern Kerala. My "bus", which was really a bunch of pieces of metal held together with tape, glue and chewing gum, nearly crashed more than a dozen times. It was a loud, hot, sweaty, smelly, and incredibly dangerous ride, but I arrived with all ten fingers and toes, and only a few bruises....smiling from ear to ear. I love India! I feel so comfortable here, which is wonderful, because most people wouldn't use the word "comfortable" to describe their experience in this full-power, face-paced country of extremes. Though my training is in southern Kerala and doesn't start until March 15th, I flew in a bit early so that I could catch John De Kadt. We decided to meet up (and officially MEET...all of our communication up until this point had only been on Facebook, viber, and a single phone call) and collaborate on a bit of music, and to enjoy some fun in the sea as well. John is a brilliant musician, and more importantly, he was one of the rare few that plays the "hang drum" which has to be one of the most magical instruments that I've come across. It sounds like it's from a fairy tale. And so, here we are, two people from the east coast of the USA, meeting for the first time in a small town in India, to inspire one another and create some amazing music!
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