Manu in Paradise

Manu greets us at the gate to Clouds Land and shows us to our room. His welcome is short and sweet (and incredibly apologetic) as he must attend to his wife who has a ‘baby inside’ and is expecting soon. We agree to meet in the morning and I look forward to it.

Sure enough, Manu appears bright and early with a plateful of coconut and banana pancakes to match the sweetness of his smile.

‘You like avocado?’

Yes! After almost two weeks of nothing but curries, I’ve been craving exactly that.

‘Here, I bring avocado juice. My uncles has an avocado plant. Actually, I have so many avocado I don’t know what to do. Kilos and kilos but  nobody in India knows avocado.’

I’m astounded. If Manu could sell his avocado at even a fraction of the price we pay fo it in the UK, he could probably afford to shut up shop. This accommodation is costing us the equivalent of about three fruits.

Sipping on our fresh juices, we ask after his wife and unborn baby. Is it a boy or a girl?

‘Actually, we do not know. It is not allowed to know in India.’

Oh. Is it seen as an unnecessary expense, perhaps?

‘No not that. Actually it is thought that too many peoples want only a boy.’

I see. They’ll abort if they know it’s a girl.

‘It is difficult for girls in India. We prefer to bring a boy into this life.’

The worry in his voice is unmissablee.

‘That is my reason. Actually, for others it is money. When a baby girl grows older and becomes a bride, the father must pay the husband’s family. It is very expensive.’

A phrase surfaces in my mind which now suddenly makes sense: I wish you ten daughters and may they all marry well. It’s an insult, not a blessing.

We finish our breakfast and Manu takes us on a tour of the surrounding tea plantation which he adores.

‘Actually, I’m in paradise.’

I smile at the unintentional sass in his voice as he, like many others in India, begins every English sentence with ‘actually’, but staring out at the inifinte maze of intertwining tea trees I know I couldn’t have put it any better myself.

As we lose ourselves in the fields o Munnar, Manu shares his story of how he found his way here.

‘I was living in the city where nobody smiles. Then I had a plan; a plan to be happy.’

I ask how he decided on Munnar. Has he visited much else of India?

‘No it is too expensive for me to travel but this is good. Actually, for me this is like travel because I meet new peope every day and hear their stories. Actually, it is very good.’

And actually, I agree J