Temple Town Tamil Naidu is famous for its many temples and temple towns, some as old as 2000yrs, most between 500-1000yrs old. Many of them still in use! We visited the huge temple of Sundareshvara (dedicated to the Hindu gods Parvati and Shiva) - Guys favorite In the middle of a dusty busy hot town, full of tailors and dressmakers, nothing could prepare us for the scale and beauty of this temple...12 gopuras (pyramids) decorated with 'gargoyles' of Hindu gods were the gates into the walled temple, some over 50m high! Inside were thousands of ornately carved stone pillars... no surface had been left untouched... painted ceilings, floors and even a temple elephant on hand to bless you with her trunk (for a small fee, naturally) We visited the temple twice it was so good to ... read more

Kumily, Kumily, Kumily Traveling by rickety local bus, we headed into another valley, still mostly covered by sculptured tea plantations, but now with many pockets of natural vegetation:massive bamboos, mimosa trees, jakarandas, with coffee, pepper and cardamon growing in the shade. We stayed in a bamboo cottage overlooking the stunning Periyar Nature Reserve... perfect setting for sunrise and sunset. No tigers unfortunately, but deer, wild pigs, lizards, and plenty of birds to entertain us...felt a bit like David Attenborough in his hide!! We treated ourselves to a tour of a Tea Factory established 150yrs ago by non other than the Brits. Due to a complete lack of Health and Safety precautions we were able to wander around the factory, and see up close the various processes of withering, crushing, fermenting and roasting that turns little green ... read more

Colonial Mix Back on shore, and we decide to head for a very old European trading port, once home to Dutch, Portuguese, Chinese and English, each country leaving its mark on the architecture, food and language. The first thing to mention about Fort Kochin is the unbelievable heat.. simply just sitting seemed to leave us exhausted. People had a slow waddle like the walking dead. We developed the dawn and dusk technique ( only exploring in the twilight hours and hiding in the cool when the midday sauna struck) The entrance to the harbor at Fort Kochin is protected by the Chinese fishing nets, now reducing in numbers due to commercial fishing methods. A walk to Jew town revealed the spice markets (Mainly ginger and pepper) along with the synagogue and ancient paved narrow streets. We ... read more

Cliff Edge coastal town - Varkala After some confusion about what time was check out (They though we should be out at 4am) it was time to hook and book to the beach. A Rickshaw ride, train, taxi, 3hrs, and a walk transported us to a tropical beach paradise, Varkala. Coconut forests meet the beach and seem to never end. (trust me we tried to find one) Guy worked hard to find the perfect beach bungalow at the top of the cliffs and we were set. Mossies by the million required clearing (sometimes two at a time). Varkala is close to several fishing villages and the fish on offer never ceased to amaze, dorado, marlin, sailfish, shark, were all available. We woke early so that Guy could haul the nets with the fishermen, whoever pulls, receives ... read more

Hello, and welcome to our long-awaited blog! We must start this by saying a huge thankyou to you, our friends and family for all the support, love and help you’ve offered us, without which this trip of a lifetime wouldn’t have been possible. So goodbye England, hello World! First stop South Africa...land of the Lion, home of Guy. Exhausted from weeks of packing up the house and tying up a multitude of loose ends, (and not to mention the accidental 3 day drinking session that preceded our departure,) we head off to Heathrow very ready to begin our adventure. Whilst Tim and Sheila waved from the car after dropping us off, we were greeted by a surprise farewell committee, comprised of : 3 friends, 1 brother, 1 goddaughter, and a very old dog!(Kath, Christabel, Charlotte, ... read more