4) Thanjavur and its World Heritage Site

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We are slowly getting used to Indian traffic and the buses, stoically enduring all noises, smells and bumpy potholes or speed-breakers. We didn’t drive until the Central Bus Stand which is a couple of kms from the centre but were shown out off the bus right in the centre. The hotel we had chosen was full so Klaudia stayed in the lobby while Stephan sought for another place to stay.

This took a large part of the afternoon so we could see the magnificent Brihadisvara Temple rather late (notice: the sun sets at 6:30 p.m.). Despite the advanced hour, we were awe-struck. This temple had no kitsch colours to offer, but wonderful buildings in nice red sand-stone in a lush and pleasant surrounding. The 62 m high Vimana (= towered sanctuary containing the cell in which the deity is enshrined) made us feel very small. The atmosphere here was not aggressive, we were greeted and welcomed by many Indians. While Stephan was taking the award-winning picture of the Vimana at sunset, a woman tried to speak to Klaudia. Unfortunately, the conversation was limited to smiles and gestures, since they spoke no common language. She gave both of us her blessings with some red powder on the forehead, and when she left, she kissed Klaudia’s hand!

We spent a dreadful night on a very thin mattress lain directly on wooden planks, we did not get much sleep. Anyway, we went on with our visits, to The Palace this time, which offered a nice distraction after many temples. For the first time, we took a guide and it was great fun. At first, we climbed a flight of winding stairs, 7 floors up and 7 floors down! It seems we are too tall for Indian standards, as we both bumped our heads. But the view from the bell tower was really worth the effort. The Palace is partly in ruins these days but its former splendour can still seen in the fantastic Durbar Hall ornated with impressive pillars, beautiful stucco and fascinating frescoes.

Noon-time (until around 4:00 p.m.) is very hot, so we either tried to travel or to find a place for a peaceful siesta. This we found in Thanjavur in the garden around the temple. Partly sleeping, partly reading, we enjoyed a light dinner of fruits and the refreshing company of several students (all boys) from a technical college. We had a nice time chatting and laughing with them until they headed for the movie “Alexander the Great”, unfortunately only in Hindu without sub-titles, so we decided not to join them. We took another round in the temple area and went to see the shrine, too, this time.

After a good Indian dinner, we headed to an internet place, where we had to sit together in a tiny box of less than one square metre and an awfully slow connection. Their computers still run with Windows 95, so we have a bit of trouble finding a USB-port for connecting the digital camera and uploading the pictures.

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