Down and almost out

Well, it finally happened. I got sick on this trip. It started in Junagadh when I wasn't feeling well and had to take a day off. Still wasn't feeling great when we got to the coast and the temple of Somnath, supposedly the spot where the universe was created. Nice, but heavily guarded, temple and we took it easy and drank coconuts on the little strip of sandy beach just outside the temple. It reminded me a lot of Kanyakumari, the southern tip of India actually. I don't know if it was a state-wide problem or just a regional one, but it was really hard to find toilet paper there. Impossible to find in Junagarh and only one store in Veraval/Somnath. No tissue paper either so we were on some pretty tight rations before we found that one store....
From Somnath we started yet another transport marathon, this time involving multiple trains and buses and a brief stop in Bombay (damn it's huge and busy). After 50 hrs we finally made it to Hampi, a small village 8 hrs east of Goa.
Hampi is Khao San rd. or Thamel in the bush. Tons of people come and stay here, often for a long time, and I don't blame them. It's beautiful here. Once the capital of the Vijayanagar empire (14-16th century), there are lots of ruins scattered about in the surrounding countryside. Countryside consisting of hills of huge boulders, banana plantations, palm trees, a little river and lots of "wildlife" including massive mosquitoes. The day after Alysha left us, I got really sick again. My best guess is Giardia and after a couple days stuck in bed I gave up and got on the heavy duty drugs. Now, feeling better, we are planning to finally head down to Gokarna beach tomorrow. It's a little south of, and a lot quieter than, Goa. We'll be there for a few days before picking up Paul from the Bombay airport on the 20th.
Ammon