The Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)
We have an early breakfast this morning on the beach. The noise of the crashing waves is broken by the crows crowing noisily with success from grabbing a discarded fish from the fishermen’s recent haul and on the gentle breeze, I can hear the fishermen’s ritual chants of encouragement as they drag their heavy wooden craft up the beach. On a frond in a nearby palm tree a Kingfisher waits to spear his share.
The Kingfisher can be spotted anywhere in India and it’s stylized image is an icon. It is printed on beer bottles, it is the name of an airline and its caricature is painted on the sides of brightly coloured houses. The White Throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis) is larger than the common Kingfisher and I think it embodies Goa and the Goan people magnificently. It has azure blue wings that represents the sea, brown underparts symbolizing the earth and a white patch on it’s breast and throat which epitomizes the purity of the Catholic piety that dominates the lives of so many here. The Kingfisher, like the people, is illusive and hard to pin down and is skilful at catching fish and is very noisy when it is agitated or excited. Taking a good photograph is nigh on impossible without elaborate equipment but the attached picture has caught some of the birds beauty.
Three of the nine varities found in India
Kingfisher painted on the side of Shack
Into Another Year
This little chap who is sleeping in the shade of our sun-bed is
- Dreaming of the future.
Nicholas. He is Paru’s second son. When we were here last he was not yet born, she is now carrying a third child which she knows is a girl and she says she will definitely be her last.
What does the future hold for young Nicholas and over a billion of his fellow countrymen and women? From the headlines in the newspapers here it seems very uncertain. Both India and Pakistan are making, then denying bellicose statements about the possibility of a ‘surgical nuclear strike’ (a ghastly ridiculous phrase) if required. The population continues to expand at an alarming rate and the infrastructure is creaking ever louder with the increase in wealth of the middle classes. The roads are becoming more congested with the increase in car ownership, particularly four-wheeled drives and the basic necessities like water are in ever limited supply due to the construction of bigger and better homes and hotels. Life for Nicholas will be hard. His mum can neither read nor write but she is extremely bright and hard-working. Paru is 27, she can speak reasonable English, and Russian & German well enough to make a living from selling sarongs and cheap jewelry on the beach. She is determined to make enough money to send all her kids (including the yet unborn daughter) to school so they can have a better life than hers. India’s main asset is her people, who like Paru, are very resourceful. Let’s hope that the politicians who lead this intriguing and diverse country harness the talent of its populace and put it to good use rather than destroy it in an un-winnable needles conflict with Pakistan.
As for us in the UK, the credit crunch continues. Since our last visit to India the pound has fallen by 12.5% against the Indian rupee – a third world currency – I think that says it all!!
