Kochi receives more than 100″ of rain per year. That is a lot of rain.

Kochi is also known for having received more than 20″ of rain in one day.

Twice!

This might be the third.

I am on a shore excursion from the ship, one of my least favourite things to do. Our guide is a young Japanese woman with long straight black hair with streaks of vivid blue. Her name is Saudi, at least that’s what it sounds like to me. And when I call her that she complements me on my Japanese accent. I like her! She is wearing tight white jeans and a black shirt. No raincoat, because she explains, this is how the weather is all the time and you just get used to it. I would much rather not get used to it, but if I had to, I would get used to it with a raincoat and an umbrella!

Saudi tells us that the locals have acclimatized themselves to the weather by drinking.

OK, I would get used to it with a raincoat, an umbrella and bubbles!

They drink a lot.

All the time.

From morning to night.

You can look it up online where it is referred to as the Kochi culture of drinking. Such a polite way of calling them a load of drunks.

Nothing to be ashamed of under the circumstances.

And Saudi certainly isn’t. She tells us she loves to drink. In fact, we caught her on one of the rare mornings that she doesn’t have a hangover. My kind of girl!

I ask her what her favourite drink is.

She thinks for a moment and then says, “I love saki, I love beer, I love whisky, I love vodka”. She keeps naming drinks she likes. The list goes on, and then she says, “I guess I don’t have a favourite – I love them all”. If I have to spend 6 hours on a bus with a tour guide, Saudi is the one I would choose!

“I am an alcoholic” she says and laughs.

She goes on to tell us that drinking is so popular that Kochi has a drinking competition every year. There are two. One for men and one for women.

The men have to drink 1.9 litres of saki out of an enormous bowl. The person who empties the bowl in the fastest time wins a bowl.

As long as he can stand up to receive it.

The women only have to drink 1.5 litres. I thought women wanted equal rights! That doesn’t seem right to me.

Saudi tells us that competing in this competition is on her bucket list, and she has been practicing! I have always thought it’s important to have a goal in life! Maybe that isn’t the best one to choose, but you have to admire her dedication

She is telling us all this as we drive to the Ryugado Cave

Saudi is warning us that the cave is not the usual cavern type cave that we have all been to. This one is narrow and in places rather low. It twists and turns through the mountain for 5 kilometres and is always wet with the constant rain seeping through the limestone. Hence the name which translates to “dragon river cave”.

Several people ask how narrow? She explains that it is very narrow and sometimes you have to squeeze through sideways. People are getting nervous.

“How low?” they ask.

Saudi demonstrates crouching down with knees bent.

That does it – people start opting out and asking for their money back.

She explains that they will have to ask the ship, not her. And besides we are only walking through one kilometre of the cave, not the entire 5 kilometres, so it isn’t a problem. That doesn’t help! Also, she is petite and young. Most of the group are a lot taller, a lot older and a lot fatter. Me included.

The entrance to the cave is indeed narrow

Two people refuse to enter. They were smart.

It gets worse.

A lot worse

At times the only way is to go sideways and breath in.

When there is no lighting it is even worse

One gentleman with an impressively large stomach gets stuck. Literally. We want to spray him with lube, but that is not something anyone thought to bring with them! He wiggles and wiggles until he finally pops out the other side like a very large genie from a very small bottle.

And then there are the stairs

What was I thinking!

And why am I doing this?

There is a reason – I had read about the rock formations, the stalagmites and stalactites. And they are amazing

and the waterfalls

And the pottery that has been unearthed which dates back 2,000 years.

It is all so spectacular. But some of the group are not impressed. They can’t understand why Saudi is pointing out this pot.

“Why is that special” says one “it’s not even decorated” she sniffs.

“Well”, replies Saudi “its 2000 years old

“How did it get there?” asks another

Saudi : “Well, it proves that people lived in these caves 2,000 years ago”

“Really!! Why on earth would they do that” comes the reply.

“There must have been a housing shortage” I want to say. But somehow I refrain from making any comment.

I even manage to keep quiet when another man asks ” So all of this was built for tourists”.

And that dear readers is why going on group tours is one of my least favourite thing to do!