We had only been in Chennai three days and we couldn't stand it any more. We had to drive to the sea. Living in California only twenty minutes from the ocean we were thrilled when we learned that we would be on another "edge" of the land. Looking at a map before traveling to India we learned that we would live only four miles from the Bay of Bengal. We were excited!
It took us over an hour by taxi to reach the bay. And we thought California was crowded! It was well worth coming. The beach was almost empty late in the afternoon. We met a fisherman and he told us the tragedy of the tsunami in 2004. Fishermen are allowed by the government to sleep on the beach near their boats. They are out early as that is the best fishing time so at eight in the morning when the big wave hit all the fishermen at sea were safe. Those out for an early morning walk or those setting up their business were swept away.
The large expanse of the bay kept the water from coming in higher than it did but still over 800 lives were lost. People in a sleepy little tourist town further down the bay were not even aware of what was taking place.
4 comments:
How fascinating. The pictures are fantastic. Your blog is going to make a great book of your mission for the grandkids.
These shots are beautiful. It is amazing to think of the tsunami sweeping everything up in it's path. I know how you feel about being away from the ocean. I begin to freak out if I am land locked for too long. I love the canyon but miss the ocean views, sunsets over the water (just sunsets period, we can't see them) and walks on the beach. I am so looking forward to Hawaii. So you are off to Sri Lanka. Have a happy journey. Is this business or pleasure?
Business with time out for fun!
I love this photo!
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