Natural Flow in India! Our Fair Trade travels continue. We were in Goa from the middle of January for two weeks, 2006. Highlights included:

1. Meeting Sona from Karnataka
2. Trish having intensive Tabla Drum lessons
3. Seeing a live open air dance performance of Kathakali

Goa - 12/01/06 - 27/01/06 1. Sona from Karnataka We met Sona and her family at the regular night market, near Baga in Goa. We got on really well and saw her several times during our holiday. Karnatakan women are very stunningly dressed in their traditional clothes which are heavily decorated with mirrors, bead work, bells and hand-woven textile. Trish with Sona on her market stall 2. Tabla lessons from the 'Master'! We also met Shailendra early in our holiday. He is a Tabla teacher at local schools in Quitla and also a professional musician. Trish has always been interested inTabla so Shailendra agreed to give her 1-on-1 lessons intensively. We were really grateful to him as he was busy with his work but travelled for over an hour to get to where we lived. Shailendra was very patient in his teaching method, and became a good friend. Anyone wanting lessons in Northern Goa can contact him on with the following details: Shailendra Palni - 9822182958 (mobile), 08323950365 (home) Shailendra putting Trish through her tabla paces... Shailendra - 'Master' tabla player 3. Kathakali Dance We had never heard of Kathakali, the classical dance form of Kerala. This particular dance form originated during the 17th century. Stories for the performance we saw were taken from epics called 'Ramayana and Mahabharatha'. The performance was recited by voice, accompanied by drum and cymbals in a unique rhythm. Kathakali artists undergo 8-10 years training in Kalari (school of arts). Kathakali is generally presented in temples from dusk until dawn during festivals. Particular aspects which we saw included:

• Traditional form of worship (Vandanan)
• Various types of eye movements (Kaanu Sadakam)
• Emotional face gestures (Navarasam)
• Hand gestures (Mudra)

The men 'transforming' themselves for the performance Trish with lord Shiva (black face) and Arjuna (green face) Africa Update: HELP NEEDED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We need your help! Our African supplier of stunning Djembe drums and percussion, Mohammed, really needs your help... Late last year our freight prices to transport our drums rose massively. So much so that our regular drum orders from West Africa (Gambia) have had to be temporarily put on hold! Does anyone know of any commercial carriers, either air freight or sea freight that could help us? Contact us on 01424-220688 or contact us via the website www.naturalflowdirect.com Our drum 'family', Mohammed, Haja (his wife) and Isha (their daughter) Mohammed's Djembe drums on sale at Pestallozi music festival, Hastings, UK, in 2005