Varkala, Kerala, India 2012 - Morning Ride

I rise early this morning; the air still cool from the night and the sun yet to clock on for the day shift. First breakfast of tea and toast at Coffee Temple - unadventurous I know, but I'm off for a ride. I have been graciously lent a bike while the owner is at his morning yoga. It will be interesting to see how my legs and lungs cope after a five-day hiatus.

From the cliff tops, the land rises slowly up to the town and the passing railway. It is so pleasant to be moving under my own steam again, cruising through lazy country lanes, past rural life in all its forms. At the northern end of the tourist strip, Indian life slips back to normalcy again; fishers ply their trade as they have for centuries, maybe millennia. They ignore me as I play 'Terry the Tourist' and photograph them hard at work.

Ride complete, legs and lungs feel OK. I rode for about an hour with small climbs and fun flowy downhills back to the coast.

Second breakfast, this time coffee, fruit salad, oats, honey & curd. The bike owner has teed up a massage for me at 1pm. Hopefully this will relieve the leg soreness I have from the days spent sitting on transport, and walking on the least forgiving of surfaces in less than supportive footwear.