Saturday, November 22

It has rained continuously for 24 hours or more: heavy monsoon-style rain again. The rain will continue until late afternoon, and then come and go unpredictably.

At 16:00 I walk to the beach and the rain eases off as I start walking. It has almost stopped by the time I reach the beach. I meet Olya and Ajith and we sit and chat for a couple of hours or so in Rock Café. (They chose the venue.)

The rain starts again and the beach, understandably, appears almost completely empty. I have a ginger soda and a lassi. The others share a bottle of beer.

I start to walk home and pause to photograph the sea at dusk. As I approach Leo, to turn left towards the pond, the sky suddenly darkens and drops the heaviest rain I have experienced so far. I step smartly into Leo to become their only customer.