Saturday, January 4

On Saturdays we do laundry and if we feel less than energetic that can take most a relaxed morning. As it did today.

Late in the afternoon we decided to go and see Appu at Oyster Bar in Samudra, and so off we went. To our delight we did not play the role of his only customers that day, as we did in October. The embankment has received a coat of paint, and some levelling work. Oyster has received a fresh coat of white paint, and customers sat on the embankment ordering food. We sat in our usual place in the sand.

Stephen Greenfield and Frida passed by bestowing greetings on us, and others present. Mary Musgrove joined us and spent her hour’s break (from singing at the Raj hotel) telling us bizarre but true stories, including the time a fire engine crashed into the stationary rickshaw in which she sat in an evening gown after singing at a formal event and the firemen and locals fought a pitched battle having left her at the side of the road for dead.

Sunset came and I couldn’t resist one more sunset image. When I looked at it later it just looked like one more average picture of a sun setting. Luckily I had taken a photograph of Appu’s bottle opener on the table cloth a few minutes earlier.

Phew!