Mahabalipuram

This place was like a drug- we lolled in bed in the morning, had a late breakfast and hired a van for 2 ½ hours to take us around town (250 rupees- about $6.00).

We started at the Five Rathas – 5 miniature temples sculpted in the style of chariots. The place was overrun with uniformed Indian school kids. I’m not sure what the biggest attraction was for them- the temples or the sight of two Americans. They all wanted to have their photos taken with us-and wanted to touch you, shake your hand, try their English.

Then we headed to Arjuna’s Penance— the world’s largest bias relief carving in the face of a huge rock depicting fables from the Hindu “Panchatantra”- a mythical story of the origin of the river Ganges.

We headed down to see Krisna’s Butter Ball- a huge boulder perched precariously on the side of the hill…then wandered back to see some of the lesser known sites- and found ourselves hot and sweating and climbing rocks to try to get back to the main road.

After a visit to the Shore Temple, a Hindu temple built on the waterfront;

we headed off for lunch on the beach. The Luna Magica restaurant had a wonderful breeze, fresh tiger prawns, cold beers and a huge fly population. They covered the tables, the floors and the fish- and it was a challenge to keep them off the food while we tried to eat. The food was, however, delicious.
Another email attempt- failed. The lines were down. So, it was back to the hotel before our 4:00 departure back to Madras. It was hard to believe that our Indian experience was almost over. Tomorrow- Sri Lanka!
Notes:
A cold shitty beer beats a warm good beer.
A holy cow is a homeless cow.
Don’t photograph the first monkey you see.
The most wonderful words from Kerry, our Explore guide; “It’s up to you, it’s your choice…”

Bangalore to Mahabalipuram

We headed off early this morning to take in a few sites before our flight from Bangalore to Madras. John’s eye was swollen again- so he headed off at 7:30 am to find a doctor- he finally found a hospital that was open, found his way to the emergency room. Two doctors were attending to a man, obviously dying. They stopped their work to tend to John’s eye (saying that, ‘he’s going to die anyway’). He got a prescription and as he strolled the hospital halls, the staff was sweeping dust and bloody gauze. While talking with the doctors, he was stunned to see the door at the end of the hall open and a monkey walking in. He continued to walk down the hall and out the other door-and no one seemed to notice.

A short drive through the Srirangapatnan Fort and then to the summer palace of the raj- Varia Dulat Bagh. We could have been in Iran- the art and architecture of this place was completely Persian. Another drive-by of the Gumbaz Mausoleum of Tipu Sultan and his father, Hider Ali.

Then it was off for a 4 hour, very hot, very sweaty, very bumpy bus ride. The bus driver got lost in Bangalore- so we got a nice tour through the city. It was like all Indian cities- very chaotic- traffic and people and cows- and a lot of places to get computer training.
The airport was actually quite nice- not crazed like most third world countries and we hopped on our 737 for a 23-minute flight to Madras. We reached our cruising altitude for all of 2 minutes- then headed back down. In the 23-minute flight, they managed to serve a sandwich and cake and drinks!

Another hour and a half- through Madras to the beach town of Mahabalipuram, the chief harbor for the Allavas Kingdom some 1200 ears ago. We were at a beautiful little beach resort about 5 km out of town- room with A/C and mosquito netting and a wonderful dinner outside.
A note:
Don’t use straws for your drinks. One of our tour group saw the used straws being collected from the dirt- to be washed and reused. After all of our paranoia about washing our hands and eating only veggies, this could be a quick way to get really sick!

Mysore...

Off at 9:00 for the top of Chamundi Hill and the temple and views at the top of the hill.

We opted to skip the 300 stair climb down the hill and take the bus to see “Nandi” bull- the fourth largest Nandi bull statue in India.

Then on to the Maharajah’s Palace – the seat of the maharajah of Mysore. (On the way, the bus clipped a pedestrian—our first Indian accident. The guy was so angry that he came to the window and started to hit the assistant driver. Guess that’s why you need an assistant driver.) The palace is an interesting blend of Moslem, Hindi and European architecture- that all seems to work together. The palace was filled with 3 dimensional hologram paintings- it felt like the paintings eyes follow you. After a while, it got a little much-too much ornamentation.

With the tour over, we headed over to get some cash (the banks were on strike, so the only place to get money was from a travel agent- and they’d only take cash) and lunch…more spicy Indian and cold beers. Then it was off to the Railway Museum- a few old steam engines with one of the maharajah’s coaches. Everything closed in the afternoon- so we headed to the Coca Cola Cyber Café (another hot, dark room with two terminals hooked to the internet—but it was available, so we got a few emails off before heading back to clean up for dinner.

Dinner was at the Lalitah Mahal Palace Hotel- the old guest palace of the Raj. It was spectacularly beautiful- ceilings about 20 feet high, huge marble staircases. We sneaked a peak at the Viceroy Suite- $700 a night- a huge suite with bedroom, sitting room and large bath. They have 7 of these suites –and they were all occupied except one. Dinner was buffet- with the group. Time for a group photo and a ride back to our more meager accommodations.

Ooty to Mysore

Time to leave the refreshing mountain air and head back in the shake and bake bus. The first few hours were spent driving down hairpin turns going down the mountain. You could feel the temperatures rising with each turn. We took a brief “bush stop” (no facilities going down the mountain- so Carrie had some pre-defined bushes perfect for those needed breaks) and a stop for tea. The crows immediately descended on our tea break-and we shared our biscuits with them.

Our 150-km trip took us 8 hours in the bus. Once we hit flatter ground, we went through two animal preserves (Madumaiai National Park). The first three or four sightings of monkeys, elephants and deer were interesting…but we quickly realized that being in a bus filled with Brits can be a nightmare. (P.S. Don't photograph your first monkey!...)

We stopped for every animal sighting along the way and had to be very quiet while they watched the animals through their binoculars. We started to count the animals- final count: monkeys (langurs)-12, cows-4, elephants-7, spotted deer (chitals)-23, peacocks-3, plus one unidentified red thing.

We finally made it into Mysore (John’s favorite expression- “Boy am-I-sore”…). It was a long day!

After 8 hours with the group, we dropped our bags, sprayed on mosquito repellant and headed for the Shilpashri rooftop restaurant. This town is very “crunchy”. The rooftop was filled with Europeans and Westerners wearing Indian outfits and trying to look like natives. They probably spend their days meditating. It was very irritating. But food and beers, however, were great… The city was alive at night- street vendors selling all sorts of food, people milling around (cows, too).

The Train to "Snooty Ooty"

4:30 am start…it was still dark and wonderfully cool as we headed on the bus for the train station to take us to Ooty. Even at 5:00 a.m., people and cows and dogs were milling in the streets. Since there were no advance reservations, you had to get there early to be assured of getting a seat on the “Toy Train”.

We arrived, got tickets and tried to find a seat on the very crowded two-carriage train. We barged our way into a second class compartment- hard wood seats-but we managed to get on the left side for the best views.

While we sat, two Indians (one-a woman!) were loading coal into the engine by filling baskets and carrying them on their head to the steam engine.

With nothing better to do, we attempted to eat our “box-breakfast” from the hotel. Not the most appealing breakfast- a white bread sandwich with some kind of egg mixture, two bananas and a piece of “cake”. One bite of the sandwich and it was out the window to the delight of the crows and pregnant goat outside our coach window. (Well, the goat actually turned her nose up at the sandwich, but did love the banana).

We finally got started on our 50km journey- that would take us from 7:30am until 12:30 p.m.… 5 hours to go 50k- and the entire journey cost 10 rupees (about 25 cents!). The train chugged through villages with people bathing, washing clothes, and children waving to the train.

Since there were no bathrooms on the train, it made regular stops at small stations where everyone poured off the train and stood for a while talking and buying tea or coffee from the local stands.

At the second stop- John managed to talk himself into a ride in the steam engine. They enlisted him as coal shoveller and official helper. He came back looking like a coal miner — black soot all over his face- and clothes- but a very happy boy!

Our car was populated by the Indian glee club — a group of Indians on holiday who spent the entire time singing popular Indian songs. It’s obvious why the Indian pop music hasn’t spread much beyond India! It sounded like drowning cats. At one of the stops, we violated our rule of not eating from street vendors- and followed Carrie (our tour guide) in buying some samosas and bargies from the local peddler. They were delicious- 4 for 10 rupees.

We finally arrived in Ooty and transferred to our hotel- the Holiday Inn. It was a beautiful new hotel- on the hills above the town- great views, an even better shower and express laundry service. After getting the soot scalded off of John, we headed into town to attempt email and find a bookstore. Email was a bust in Ooty- evidently the Indian government has divided India into regions and assigned a fixed number of lines per region- so the individual/small business shares the lines with corporations and thousands of users. So, although they offer the service, they can never get access to a line.

So, we grabbed a rickshaw and went to get a glimpse of “Snooty” Ooty. This town was built up by the British- to escape the heat of the cities below- and to create a bit of “Britain” for themselves. The “Ooty Club” quickly ushered us out- “members only”. We did get a chance to walk in and see the very macho club rooms- complete with photos of big game hunts and wild animal heads on the wall. Off to the Savoy- another old British establishment. We had a very proper beer on the terrace and relaxed. As the sun started to set, the temperature started to drop dramatically…so we grabbed our rickshaw and headed back to the Holiday Inn (at 7000 ft, it’s a long haul for the tiny rickshaw pulling us up the hills)

Dinner started out to be a nightmare- with a half dozen Indian children screaming through the hotel halls and playing on the elevators. Even after lodging complaints with the hotel and discussions with the little hellions parents, they still allowed them to scream and run. We decided that this must be a case of indulging children when they’re young- since once they get older, they’ll have no choices or fun anymore.

Cochin

What a hangover—just getting out of bed was painful. We needed to reconfirm our Madras-Columbo flights, so we headed to the Indian Air offices and got our official “confirmation stamp” on our tickets. Then it was off to a bookstore and to Jew Street. Jew Street was a strange market area- with a little bit of everything from food to pots and pans to jewelry. Lunch at the Taj…. it was so hot here- you needed to find a bit of A/C every once in a while.
Then it was back on the bus…a 200 km - 5-hour drive to Coimbatore- a stop over point before we head to Ooty. The PC has been a god-sent on these trips- it makes the time pass- and makes journal keeping so easy.
A few notes:
The Indians have a strange head motion- we call it “Tic-Tock head”--like their head is on a spring. They bounce their heads back and forth. It makes them look slightly crazed- and we’re still not sure what it means.
The hotels have light switches everywhere…John has taken to unscrewing the light bulbs out of sheer frustration rather than searching for light switches.
Every transaction takes at least 3 steps and 3-4 people. Just ordering a beer from room service will involve 3 steps- one to bring the beer, serve it and collect the money, two to bring you back any change and three to then bring you your receipt to show that you’ve really paid for it. A true case of underemployment!
What do these people do when it really gets hot?

Cochin (Kochi)

It was a short drive to Cochin (Kochi) in the morning. The traffic in Cochin was awful- especially after a few hours in the sweltering bus. Our hotel was the Presidency- Quality Inn. A great room with A/C- for $27. We managed to find the Internet available right next door to our hotel…a huge lab filled with young Indians learning Oracle and C++ with a few Internet terminals.

After a lunch of triple scoops of Baskin-Robbins ice cream, we headed for our city tour. A ferry took us to Fort Cochin, the oldest European settlement in India (1500), and had a mixture of English, Dutch and Portuguese influence. The coast was lined with Chinese cantilevered fishing nets—and a place to pick your own fresh fish and have them grilled while you wait.

A short visit to St Andrews Church- once a Portuguese Catholic church, then a Dutch Protestant church- then an English Anglican church. Vasco De Gama died here and his remains were buried in the church –but then taken back to Lisbon years later.

We took the boat further south to the Palace and Jew Town. In the Mattancherry Palace, we wandered through dimly lit rooms filled with frescos telling the story of the Ramayana. The stories were bizarre—wars and monkey headed gods flying through the ears of demons. No explanation of what purpose they serve…

A walk through Jew Town to the oldest (only?) synagogue in India. very simple and rather mosque-like. There are only 29 Jews left in all of Cochin.

Jew Town was filled with tiny antique (junk) shop, old brass. old doors …anything you could want. John found an old brass half frog/half fish to add to our kitchen art collection and I bought some earrings for Mom and me. A boat ride back and we got an auto rickshaw to the Taj—a modern western style hotel- with A/C and a view of the harbor. We had a cold beer and watched the sunset. It was so pleasantly cold in the restaurant, we opted to stay for dinner—dinner cost about $10—but the wine was 800 rupees- about $20 a bottle (the actual cost was 400- with a 110% tax!) Two bottles later, we headed back to our hotel and bed.

Quilon to Alappuhzo (Kerala Backwaters)

Floating on a boat from Quilon to Alappuhza through the backwaters of Kerala. These inland waterways, over 80 km, wind under coconut palms. The boat trip was long and relaxing…watching scenes of rural India as we floated through the backwaters.

A few “one pen” boys ran for as long as they could by the side of the river- hoping for a pen or a candy. Mostly, the people ran to the riverside to just watch the boat go by and wave.

We stopped for lunch at the home of a local family. Quite a business they’ve got- 13 tourists paying about 70 rupees for a thali lunch and a Coke. The fish was spicy and good…

The village children had all gathered to watch us eat…so we decided to take out one of our magic capsules and see if it worked. With a bowl of water and the entire tour group along with the locals, we watched this tiny capsule expand into a sponge kangaroo. Not quite the same impact as a Polaroid- but the locals loved it. Then we got a little after-lunch demonstration of rope weaving and we were off again.

The river is becoming overrun with these beautiful little plants called river hyacinths. Unfortunately, it’s killing everything in the river - it looks like only a matter of time before it’s lifeless. The banks of the river are lined with Chinese fishing nets.


We landed in Alappuzha and shuttled to our hotel…some room service cold beers and then a quick dinner.

From Madurai to Quilon - Kerala State

6:00 wake-up call for an 8-hour shake and bake. The countryside turned tropical as we crossed through the Cardamon Hills into Kerala state.
The ride was grueling-bad roads, no airflow and baking temperatures. We made a few stops at the local roadside soda shops, but it was a fairly full day of just riding in the bus. We made it into Quilon about 4:30 and immediately headed to our A/C room and ordered two frosties…. they’d never tasted so good. Then it was off to “Web 4 You”- which unfortunately, wasn’t “4 us”…since the connection failed and we left in frustration.

We grabbed an auto rickshaw to do a restaurant tour -- the only option looked just a little too “local” for our Western stomachs…so we headed back to the hotel and the sanitized Western restaurant. Had great grilled fish and beers (they would only serve them covered in a napkin). After dinner, we crashed…

Madurai

9:30 start. Our mad Max driver- our new best friend. He wanted a photo of John and him---and , by the way, would also love to have a pair of shoes from the States.

Our first temple stop- the Kudalagar Temple for a view of the sitting and reclining Siva. We got an up close view of the gorpurum and a few photos.

Today was one of the designated wedding days in India. Only certain days, (not Saturdays or Tuesdays) - certain months- only during waxing moon- and all arranged marriages. The bridal parties were thrilled to see us- evidently; it’s good luck to have a foreigner at your wedding. John used the digi-camera to take a photo of the bridal group- and became an instant hit when he showed them the photo on the LCD . It took everything he had to just keep hold of the camera as everyone tried to get a look.

The next temple, Kochadi Temple, was truly bizarre….M-80’s exploding outside, dualing bells, incense, smoke, dust and Disney-esque characters.

The “cobra tree” was filled with eggs as offerings to the snakes that appear in the morning. People walked up with their addresses on paper and asked you to take their photos.

We wandered back to town and made a brief buying stop at the Emporium…a grotesque Kali—which will make a great bookend and an insane frog riding an elephant.

Walking the streets is an experience in itself…beggars and dodge-em cars. We found solace and cold beers at the Ruby Restaurant –where we “dined’ alfresco. Then it was back to the hotel for a rest. John was taken with the auto-rickshaw- and when he started honking the horn for the driver. Our driver stopped and asked John if he’d like to drive. Never missing an opportunity – he hopped in the front and took the controls. It was a crazed ride through the city, getting strange looks from the locals watching the crazy American at the wheel. We pulled into our hotel and gave the driver a large tip.

A shower (I’d never felt so grimy”) and a rest before beers at the Pandyan. The restaurant was empty—except for us and the mouse family living in the drapes by our table. We heard chirping and rustling---and watched the well-fed rodent cross the restaurant- returning with his evening meal. We beat a hasty retreat and tried the “Permit Room” at our hotel. Kingfisher beers and peanut then a Tandoori meal of more paneer and cauliflower.

How does one describe southern India….

First rule, take a video camera if you can. There’s no other way to truly capture the sensory overload of this country. Imagine walking a short distance through the city- within one city block, you’ll find hundreds of people in constant motion– women dressed in jewel colored saris, men dressed in un-tucked shirts and towels (dotis), most everyone is barefoot…. A

Add to the mass of humanity an assortment of a dozen or so sacred cows, dogs, goats and the occasional pig….Then add cars, bicycles, auto-rickshaws, ox carts, trucks and buses. The sights are equaled only by the smells….of people and animals in 90-degree heat with 90 % humidity coupled with exhaust fumes and the smell of cooking food… And then there’s the constant sound of horns…

After a few blocks of walking though the city, you’ll inevitably come upon the temple. After taking off your shoes and storing them with the locals, you walk through a gate lined with people begging for money or food. You find yourself facing a huge pyramidal structure- covered with colorful Disney-esque statues of the various Hindu gods and goddesses…. Gods with 4 arms and the head of an elephant, goddesses with three boobs.

And stories to make each of the gods and goddess real to the common people. Walking through the temple grounds, there are people praying, priest performing various services- with fire and ash, the temple elephant ready to bless you with the tap of his trunk on your head (for a small donation) and the inner temple sanctuary (non-Hindus forbidden from entering).
The feeling of city life is that of walking through a giant theme park.

Madurai

A late morning drive to Madurai (“Mad Madurai”). Staying at the Hotel Madurai Ashok. No A/C- but a great ceiling fan. We walked to the Pandyan for lunch—had a sampling of both Southern and Northern Thalii. Cold beers and great food. Then it was on to “Web World”…. about 6 carrels with PC’s and a line of folks waiting to get on the Net. We got messages from Mom, Martini and Steph…it’s so good to hear news from home.

Our tour- in auto rickshaws- took us to the Sri Meenakshi Temple and the Tirumalaimayak Palace- a strange blend of Turkish and Hindu architecture, rather squat and unattractive- not a good mix.

After the temple, we got back into our rickshaw for the theme park ride of our lives through the sides streets of Mad-urai—cows and dogs and ox carts and people and cars…all flowing in some insane manner. Drinks on the roof top terrace at the Superior Hotel—a bit of group escape (they were back at the “Shopping Emporium”…. more carpet demonstrations.) The beer in India packs quite a punch. Dinner with the group was good- more veggie and more beers. We bowed out of the nighttime temple service and grabbed an auto-rickshaw home.

Trichy

John woke up with a swollen eye-lid (the gargoyle look)---so we called for room service and a doctor. Both arrived within 20 minutes. The doctor confirmed that it was some kind of allergic reaction- and a fairly typical tourist problem- most likely caused by a bug bite or something. He prescribed an antihistamine and an allergy medication and charged us 150 rupees (about $3.50!) And, the bellboy fetched our prescription. I think we could get used to the cost of living here!
We spent most of the day lounging…watching BBC News and reading. We ventured down the street for a thali lunch. They directed us from the local non-A/C room into the dark A/C room where they served the thali in bowls with forks and spoons. The locals are served theirs on banana leaves and use their hands
It was great to take a “day-off”—it’s hard to get used to the thought that we’re not really on vacation- but setting up a routine for our new travel lifestyle

Trichy (Tiruchirappalli)

6:30 am and we were in Trichy. We headed to our hotel- Jenny’s Residence. It was a great hotel- clean rooms, hot showers, A/C. After a bit of laundry and a quick breakfast, we headed out for a city tour.

Life in Indian cities is chaotic—lots of people going very fast- like dodge-em cars except with bikes and ox carts and pedestrians thrown into the mix. The sights and sounds (and smells) are too difficult to describe. As we were heading out on our city tour, we got our first Iridium page from Martin! What a strange sensation- to be dodging cars and people in our taxi and getting communication from home!

We stopped at the Temple Complex at Srirangam, located on an island on the Cauvery River. The tour took us to the Temple of Ranganathasvami, one of the largest temples in India built between the 9-13th Centuries. The view from the rooftops was spectacular.

I got blessed by an elephant!


John spent some time with the local merchants, resting his foot and got an update on the “beggar’s organization”—evidently they’re organized and have their own territories. Many of them spend the day begging and then go home to their TV’s and normal life.

We bought a bronze of the monkey god, Hanuman. (Helper of Vishu in his seventh incarnation as “Rama”. Rama’s life story is the central story in the Ramayana).

Back to the taxi’s- and we were off to the rock fort. We climbed 417 steps up a cliff to the temple of Ganesh and a view of the city. Hot and sweaty…

More veggie Indian food and we grabbed a tuk-tuk to the Internet café…. no luck, the system was down. So, we headed over to the Enfield distributor and John showed me his dream motorcycle. Fortunately, rental was not an option!

It was time for a short (45 minute) nap before we headed off to our guide’s house for a get-together. It was a great chance to see middle class Indian family life…and meet his wife and sons – and try on traditional Indian clothing! John and I looked fairly ridiculous---my “bindi” (third eye) which wouldn’t stay on…and John’s red and white stripes on his forehead- the mark of Siva. The evening dragged on through the guide’s son’s magic show and we were definitely ready to head for home.