Happy birthday to me

What better treat for your birthday than a ride with your family up the Konkan Coast of India. It turns out this is where they grow the best cashews - and we’ve seen them on trees, which is a new experience.  

The road followed the coast, but after every river crossing we climbed up on to a barren plateau. There were many abandoned houses, nicely laid out fields divided by red stone walls and then constant piles of new red stones, as if someone was about to lay out some more fields but suddenly thought better of it and moved to Mumbai. 

That meant a lot of climbing- so we’re all a bit cream crackeed. Plus, we had another rapid-unscheduled-dismount when a rogue red rock that had left its pile caught our front pannier. Luckily, only I was hurt this time, with a blow to my knee. It will be fine, but I feel the local onlookers who witnessed us sliding across the red unmade road might have some form of post traumatic stress issue. Everyone ok though  

We made it to seaside Malvan in time to see the fishing boats landing their catches, and then went out for a fish meal, with Thalia of ver fresh crab and mackerel.  Trying to dissect a crab with only your right hand was an impossible task - we cheated.