Bad Memories

What would you give to be able to forget all those bad memories?

I heard about this on the BBC New website here. Crazy isn’t it – a pill that makes you forget just like the wine that you can drink in ‘Ashes of Time’ that makes you forget, the notion of being able to ‘magic’ those bad thoughts and memories into nothing seem so appealing.

Maybe you would rather forget about a bad clothes choice, hairstyle or when you knew you wasted too much money on a pair of shoes. Or maybe the bad memory is because of something you did and it hurt someone or something you didn’t do. It might even be because something bad happened to you and you just want to forget about it.

Someone I knew a long time ago had something bad happened to them and even though she turned out pretty all right in psychological and physical terms she told me it was always at the back of her mind. In the press, you hear about other people who have been through what she has been through and it’s never a happy ending.

This type of question is right up there with what you would give for eternal life or what you would give to turn back time. By the sounds of it the drug is nowhere near perfect and in trying to wipe out bad memories you risk losing all your memories.

I know at least one person who would still like to try.

Indian Summer…

My best friends from University and I have this tradition of going on holidays together. At first it was Barcelona, Crete and Paris and the last holidays was Barbados and now we’ve done India…
What can I say about India? We traveled to the region in South India called Kerela and it’s a beautiful, almost untouched area along the coast with beautiful sandy beaches and lush greenery that takes your breath away.
1. It’s full of coconut palms – everywhere even in the cities. Most dishes are made with coconut – coconut with dhal, coconut with potatoes, coconut with okra – you get the picture right?
2. You can’t eat anything else apart from curry and if you have the infamous ‘Delhi-Belly’ like I did, this means a dry, tasteless diet of rice and chapattis.
3. The trains are very long and only stop for 3 minutes at the station – try dragging on 4 suitcases and baggsying seats in 120 seconds flat.
4. The sun is very beautiful and the sun sets / sun rises are magical.
5. They do not openly sell alcohol so after 9 days of drinking duty free mango vodka (damn the bottle was heavy) we check in a 4 star hotel and find a basement bar where we literally camp for the last day drinking cocktails that cost the equivalent of a weeks wage or GBP2.50.
6. They take security very seriously. It took us an hour and a half of security checks in order just to check in on the way back.
7. Indian people think oriental people are funny. They like to take photographs and point and stare. They don’t think it’s rude either.
8. On the subject of rude, they have no concept of queuing. Several obnoxious people at train stations endured the wrath of Harajuku’s hand (note  to  self, must stop referring to myself in 3rd person. Feedback just a tad narcissistic).

9. Hindu temples are beautiful and one of the highlights of the trip – but the neo-Classical Christian Churches wouldn’t look a miss in France or Italy whilst the Muslims Imans chanting the faithful to prayer, 5 times a day was a bit annoying especially when you’re trying to sleep!

All in all India is amazing,the beaches are beautiful and the waters are warm & clear. Most people are friendly and charming and some of the unspoiltness of it takes your breath away. Would I go back? Not sure as yet, a different part maybe but curry isn’t my strong point and coupled with my ‘illness’ (you try surviving on nothing but Imodium for 5 days) I’m not going back in a hurry!