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April 15th 2011
After Jaisalmere I treated myself to travelling in the ac compartment of the train - worth every penny as you get a little curtain you can pull across every time the staring gets too much - and headed for the final of my three J’s, Jaipur. Jaipur is known as the pink city, as many of the buildings were painted pink to welcome the Prince of Wales back in 1876. Though, if you ask me, it’s more of a terracotta. It’s more spread out than Jodhpur and Jaisalmere, with most of the affordable accommodation quite far from the old city so you don’t feel the atmosphere quite so much. Also, with it being much closer to Delhi it tends to be packed with a lot more ’rich’ tourists which means the touts are out in force, ... read more
April 15th 2011
After my rather disastrous camel trip in the desert I arrived in Jaisalmere a bit fraught and not in the best of moods. Consequently I headed to the one hotel that the lonely planet said would be hassle free (Hotel Swastika), which it was. It took me a while to find though because no one would tell me how to get there. Everyone told me it was either miles away or closed, and then all offered to take me to their brothers/cousins/uncles place instead (the whole of Rajasthan must be related). Thankfully a friendly Chai Wallah took pity on me and showed me the correct alley to go down and I arrived in time to watch the end of Sri Lanka’s innings in the world cup final. At which point I began to feel much better. ... read more
April 15th 2011
Khuri: India is full of hopeful Lotharios, and no place has more of them than Rajasthan. On the bus to Jaisalmere I was beginning to worry that maybe I was being rude by reading my book and avoiding chatting to the man next to me. But when he suggested that, as his wife was away at a nieces wedding, I would maybe like to go back to his all my worries departed and I renewed my efforts to ignor him. Seriously, he was plenty old enough to have been my father, chubby, balding and talking about his wife - does he ever really think that is going to work? Sadly, my troubles were only just beginning… Admittedly, I do think that by trying to get off the beaten track I do bring some of these troubles ... read more
April 15th 2011
Rollicking round Rajasthan Rajasthan is a region of contradictions; dazzling architecture of rulers past and present is juxtaposed with the abject poverty of present day beggars, dusty landscapes are littered with women draped in bright saris and smells of spices fight for attention with the stench of human waste. It is a region with a population exceeding that of the UK, many of whom are sadly amongst the poorest in India, that ranges from noisy cities to deserted deserts. Jodhpur My train in from Mumbai arrived in Jodhpur at 5am so I was spared the full impact of just how busy Rajasthan can get. That said I was left to the mercy of the early morning Rickshaw drivers all clamouring to get commission for dropping me at a hotel (a word to the wise, when a ... read more
April 15th 2011
Some cities grab hold of your attention the moment you arrive, they demand to either be loved or hated. Strangely, Mumbai didn’t. I always thought it would, everyone I’ve met in India has told me I would, Danny Boyle virtually staked his career on it. But, after 5 days in the city, I can honestly say I’m pretty indifferent. It is a big, sweaty hotchpotch of people, traffic, buildings and cattle that seems to be sadly lacking in soul. It is interesting to see how 12 million people can co-exist in an area of land approximately the same size as ….. Though I think co-survive would be more appropriate for most of the population. The difference between the haves and the have-nots is glaringly obvious. After Kevin McLeod blazed a path into Davari for us - ... read more
April 15th 2011
Ooty can be reached from Mettupalayam by means of an old steam train that winds it’s way up the 46km track by means of a ‘alternate biting teeth’ technology, necessary because it’s 1:12 gradient makes it the steepest in India. At the end of which you are deposited 6159 feet further up amongst the tea plantations and the vegetable plots. There is an eriry feeling of England that hangs over the town, probably brought on by the market stalls filled with carrots and potatoes and the need for socks. After months of plus 30degree heat it’s bliss to have a hot shower and sleep under a duvet. Because my train from Ernakulam was delayed I never saw a bed that night - arriving in Coimbatore a little before 4am, then catching a train to Mettupalayam at ... read more
April 15th 2011
I’ve discovered the exact location of purgatory. It’s platform one at Ernakulam station. The only shred of evidence to the contrary was a gaggle of nuns who turned up for a while, but then maybe they were doing time for cursing or eating fish on the wrong day. Anyways, they sure as hell got to leave a lot faster than I did. I was waiting for the 3pm train to Coimbatore that the man on the loudspeaker kept promising was on its way. When it still hadn’t appeared by 10pm I knew that he was lying, there was no train. Aside from the lying, purgatory isn’t too bad. There’s food and chai-wallahs, the temperature is at the pleasant point where you sweat just enough to avoid having to use the bathroom (waiting at stations is a ... read more
April 3rd 2011
In Kovolam I somehow come to be living in a flat next door to a retired Danish lady and above a (slightly crazy) Norwegian lady whom, if you listen to everything she says, is lucky to not have limbs falling off. She is here to indulge in the Ayurvedic treatments that Kerala is famous for. As far as I can tell this involves filling her sinuses with Ghee and slowly dripping a couple of litres of oil onto her forehead. Both of which I’m sure are Chinese torture methods? The ’doctors’ are incredibly diagnosticians - she went in with blocked sinuses (a side effect of filling them with melted butter?) and comes out with cronic headaches a bad back and a damaged shoulder. Luckily they have cures for them all. Hummm… No, I’m not cynical at ... read more
April 3rd 2011
Actually, that should read Lions, Snakes and Crocodiles but when it comes to life threatening creatures who needs to be picky? This was the list of creatures that I was told to look out for if I went swimming or walking around Nayyar Dam. So, no swimming then. Especially as I would have to go in fully clothed (no naked flesh allowed) which might hamper my escape somewhat. Which is a shame because the area is achingly beautiful. Set up in the mountains 40km north of Trivandrum there is a large man made lake (caused by the said dam) from whose edges grows forest clad mountains To get to Neyyar Dam I had to embrace the Indian bus system. Actually not too bad at all (in comparison to the rest of Asia, stagecoach it isn’t!) as ... read more
March 30th 2011
As we plunged down the hill side from Ooty I changed my mind about Indian bus drivers not being as bad as the Vietnamese. The woman in front of me spent most of the time throwing up out of the window, probably because the driver was playing chicken with an envoy of dumper trucks on a one lane mountain pass. On the plus side my triceps got an excellent workout from maintaining the brace position for 4 hours (if you don't you stand a good chance of losing your teeth). When I did find the courage to open my eyes it was to the sight of wild elephants bathing in a river. Now that's worth swapping a tooth for! Mysore is a very pleasant Indian city of wide boulevards and an imposing palace set in the ... read more
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