indiaharrisdotcom
From maple leaves to mango trees. I'm a Canadian woman living on a tropical island in the Philippines. Welcome to my world...
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It feels like I’ve been hurtling through time and space lately. Always on airplanes, always saying hello to someone or someplace — and of course, always saying goodbye. The celebration of a greeting is never without the sound of a clock ticking, a reminder that there will be sadness when we part. Life is full of circles and I need to remind myself that endings are not the end. How can we… Read More
If you were to ask India to describe her ex-landlord, she would likely say that he’s an aggressive little runt who looks like a cross between a Chihuahua and a pot-bellied pig. She would then laugh and say that she meant no offense to either of these fine animals. India, in animal terms, is definitely a cat. And though she may have grown a little lazy and soft in recent years, due… Read More
And now, for something a little different from my usual posts… Last night I was in Hong Kong, reading an excerpt from my published story, “The Rainiest Season”, at a book launch party (that’s me in the photo, signing books). I thought I would share the same piece with all of you. It’s a very personal, true account of the breakdown of my marriage in the Philippines ten years ago. This excerpt… Read More
I have just resurfaced from a horrendous ordeal — which is the reason there have been no blog posts for a while. Some of you may remember from an earlier post (“Homecoming” in July ) that the owner of our house gave us three months’ notice that he would be moving to the Philippines from Australia in October. And yes, this is now October. I always knew that we could only stay until the owner retired… Read More
I was flat broke. My estranged husband controlled the purse strings and since he had run off with the maid, those strings had been pulled tight. I was so broke that I hadn’t left southeast Asia in five years. New clothes? Only in my dreams. When I lost my sunglasses while swimming in the South China Sea, I was left squinting in the bright tropical sun for more than six months until… Read More
I want to move to Bali. I’ve come here on holiday three years in a row and it’s absolutely the most perfect place I’ve ever seen. The people are lovely, the scenery is stunning, the food is delicious — I just can’t say enough about this wonderful island. I can’t wait to leave behind the hassles and irritations of life in the Philippines. This could be a new beginning for me, a… Read More
I woke up in Bali this morning. Not by accident — I had booked the trip on the internet, clicking here, clicking there, without having any concrete expectations of what those casual clicks would materialize into. But sure enough, there was a smiling driver holding a card with my name on it at the airport at 1:30 in the morning, who reached into a small cooler and presented me with a chilled… Read More
Q — India, I read in your bio that you spent seven years sailing around the Pacific Ocean on a 31-foot sailboat. That must have been quite an adventure. Do you ever miss the sailing life? A — Well, there are definitely some things that I miss, like being anchored off a secluded beach in Bora Bora or spending a week at an uninhabited island in Tonga. But overall, I can say… Read More
I paid an early morning visit to my estranged husband in his Batangas City subdivision. “Hi Edward! What a beautiful morning”, I said. Fox News was blaring in his living room. “How can you say that — the whole fucking world’s falling apart”, he grumbled. The images flashing across his TV screen were completely at odds with what I had just seen with my own eyes. Outside his house was a wonderful… Read More
I sit in a bamboo hut, waiting for the Filipino healer to arrive. Tuesdays and Fridays he comes down from the mountains to heal whoever might be sitting in this flimsy, makeshift shelter with the dirt floor. My knees are ruined, casualties of a hill that I never should have hiked down — but did. For three months I have suffered, limping and grimacing in pain. Nothing has helped. I’m now a little… Read More
India
"My life is all about travel, photography, helping animals, and writing..."
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July 2014
Camping in Washington state
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