In order to get the ticket reservation done quickly, we moved to the credit card line. After filling in the elaborate form, we got our tickets on the night train from Madurai to Varkala, two sleeping berths included, for little more than EUR 4. I guess we are not VISA's favourite customers. We had reserved the opposite upper berths, as recommended in all the guide books. When we arrived at around 10:45 p.m., people were still eating late supper, filling the air with all sorts of exotic smells. There are no compartments as we know them from Europe, in the sleeper [View Full Entry]

---

---

For the first time, we experienced a bigger Indian city, it was very crowded and we felt quite uncomfortable in this overpowering atmosphere. However, we managed to cut our way through the bazaar to the city’s main attraction, the famous Minakshi Temple. The temple’s towering gopurams stand out with their colourful stucco images of gods and animals, which are regularly repainted. The whole complex seemed so overloaded with statues and colours, that we were reminded of some rococo churches in Vienna. After meeting the temple elephant and the cow, we decided to have a r [View Full Entry]

---

---

Due to the fact that this weekend was an ideal one for weddings, many hotels were fully booked. But in the end we got a room in the oldest hotel in town, set around a nice courtyard with shrubs, flowers and banana trees. Very nice indeed! The first sight we went to see was the temple town Srinangam, just north of Trichy, easy to reach by local bus. It was boiling hot, and for the first time Klaudia got real problems with her blood pressure. Normally an addict to strong espresso, she has had to do without this stimulating drink for [View Full Entry]

---

---

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 [View Full Entry]

---

---

Yes, we made it! Due to the time-table, the bus should have left at 10:20, but in India time-tables are merely approximative, we caught an express bus at 10:00. The distance to Pondicherry (also called Pondy) is 100 km and it took us only 1.5 hrs. That is what "express" means in India. The bus was again lacking windows and doors, but the resulting draught made the heat bearable. Just a few remarks on traffic in India. It is even more chaotic than we can imagine in Europe. The most important utensil is the horn respectively the bell for the bicycle. [View Full Entry]

---

---

After bribing the ticket controller with the equivalent of 1 EUR (which seems to represent a fortune for him) we managed to get 2 seats for the 50 km up to Mamallapuram(also known as Mahabalipuram). It took almost 2 hours, but considering all the vehicles on the road (including cattle and a wide range of other animals) this seems to be a good average. In Mamallapuram we selected the Sea Breeze Hotel, chose a room with a fan and no air condition. What attracted us was the huge swimming pool. However, we were so tired that we slept until 4:00 PM. [View Full Entry]

---

---

Our departure was chaotic as usual, nothing new. Finally we managed, all our stuff was packed into boxes and send to a storeroom in Barcelona. We were short of time and in the end several loose items were stuffed into some miscellaneous boxes, probably we will never find the fitting parts again! However after ten months of travelling who would care about such small details. We had got a cheap flight with Gulf Air with one stop in Bahrain where we changed planes, from Bahrain to Chennai (former Madras) via Oman's capital Muscat. Now you will probably understand why it wa [View Full Entry]

---

---