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Published: March 16th 2008
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Chennai
Jessy and Claire showing me around Chennai in an Rickshaw Here I am, in the place I have always wanted to be: India! And so far I have to say that I am absolutely loving it!
It took me about a week to adapt to the heat, madness of the traffic and the way things work in general regarding planning train, bus trips etc. When I first arrived in Chennai, I expected a smooth journey from my pre-booked taxi as I landed at 11pm and though that the traffic would be quiet at that time; My god, it was like Paris at 5pm, except that there is no rule here: no indicators, no rearview mirors and usage of the horn to warn people that you're there. Cars, Rickshaws, bycicles and pedestrians were all over the place...was wondering how on earth we got to the hotel without scraching the car.
On my 1st day to Chennai, I met Jessy and Claire, her daughter who showed me around the shopping areas and the city in General. Got my 1st rickshaw experience, a bit scary at the start but very funny afterwards. Thanks so much Arul for putting me in touch with your sister, and thanks so much Jessy for your help in Chennai...thanks
Chennai
Police rehearsal to you I had the best way to start my trip in your country. See you in Dublin 😉
My next destination was Pondicherry, colonised by the French centuries ago...well it stil is: loads of French people live there with their families and it is very interesting to see them mixing with the Indian life around them. The names of the streets are mostly French and loads of restaurants try to mix French and Indian cuisine...no t my favourite place for that though, Idian food is just gorgeous and Pondy is trying to adapt too much for the European palet in my opinion, and it is overpriced. I ate to local places instead where the food was divine and cheap as usual in India.
From Pondicherry, I have made my way to Ooty in a 1 day trip by train. I have met some great locals during that journey and everybody has been great in helping me out with all my questions. I've even been given a lift to my hotel when I arrived lateat night in Coimbatore. From there I went up the mountais in Ooty, what a beautiful place. In there I have visited Tea plantations and have
Chennai
Beach scene in Chennai seensome dramatic landscapes. As well I have visited Pandiphur National aprk where I was lucky to spot Elephants, Sambas, a Tiger and a Panther etc
The Guest house I have stayed had a wonderful staff and the fellow travellers there were brilliant. The top of that journey was the way back to Coimbatore with the toy train, which is a mountain train...oh my god, no words, just have a look at the pics.
After those few fantastic days, I took another tarin to Cochin, in the Kerala Region. The main attraction there is cruising along the backwaters in massive house boat. On my 1st day though I took it easy and walked around Fort Cochin: I was told this place was great and I wasn't disapointed. Centuries ago, Portuguese, Dutch and Jews have settled there and left their marks. This place is just full of history: Jew town is a brilliant Bazaar, The dutch Palace Museum is impressive and you are surrounded by Portuguese architecture everywhere you walk. On the beach this is the place as well where you can see local fishermen using the giant Chinese net. What a feast: you can go to the fishmongers there and have
Chennai
Busy junction your fresh seafood just taken from the sea cooked in front of you in a delicious curry!
The backwaters tour was great: in the morning we took the big house boat and made a few stops to local villages there and learnt about their cultures and work. After a Keralan lunch, we embarked the little canoes to go through narrow canals and spotted Kingfishers etc...the guys on the boat were great and we all had a blast that day.
On Monday I will be flying to Goa for an even more relaxing time...indeed I thought that it would be the ideal place to lie on the beach for a week and prepare my trip to South East Asia 😉
I arrived in Goa on Monday 17th of March. The drive from the airport to my hotel in Anjuna was really nice. We drove through Goa's Capital that I would visit later, I could see already that the Lonely Palnet didn't lie about the Europeans who arrived here 20 years ago on a holiday and never left the place.
My hotel was nice and I could walk easily to the beach from there. The beach is nice but in fairness, you
Chennai
Vivekananda house can find much better beaches anywhere in the world so I was glad that Goa's capital Panjim and old Goa were offering something more Indian and more cultural that its seashore.
Panjim is full of quiet narrow streets, history and beautiful churched and temples. I took a couple of local buses to get there and it was great as the people here are always in a good mood and very friendly.
After my day in Panjim I went to visit Old Goa, which was once bigger and more powerful than Lisbon (it was colonised by Portuguese)...all the history is still there thanks to the sublime architecture well conserved by UNESCO. The 1 day walk there was the best part of my trip in Goa.
To sum up I would say that Goa hasn't been my favourite place so far (too many tourists and package resort which make the place too expensive for what it's got to offer)...it's very good for a couple of days if you want a bit of history with Panjim and Old Goa...ok the beaches in the south are beautiful but honestly, if it is a relaxing time in a nice beach that you are looking for,
Chennai
Gouvernment museum well you really don't ned to go that far...
I arrived in Delhi on Monday 24th late at night. My driver who would spend the nest 4 days with came to pick me up at the airport. We got on well straight away. Pappu is a very nice family man, devoted to Hinduism and yoga. It was great to have such a driver to go through all the destroyed roads of Rajasthan and the chaos of the Indian traffic. Pappu was always calm and patient...I never thought I would feel relaxed in a car in India but I was.
We started the journey by Agra; obviously the main thing here is the Taj Mahal...well let me tell you that it is worth every km and penny and so on that you have to endure from Delhi to get there. I got tot the magic Taj at 5.45am to get the best light and the peace...my god it was just amazing, fantastic...with the sunrise recovering the beautiful giant temple in a pinkish colour, it was just the perfect time to sit down in the gardenand look at this show...how peaceful and beautiful...the day before I visited Agra Fort which is basically
Chennai
Government Museum the other thing to see in Agra. Apart fromthat, Agra is very poor and draining with all the touts and mayhem...
Then it was time to go to Jaipur, the Pink City...what a stunning place: the colours are unreal (more salmon than pink actually) and some of the monuments are breathtaking (like the Awa Mahal Palace for example)...the City Palce itself is a fantastic place to visit for its stunning architecture and museums. Outside Jaipur, we drove too Amber, where Amber Fort is...this is the most beautiful fort I have seen in India I think (have seen so many)...anyway, this one will stay in my mind for a very long time.
I got back to Delhi on Friday evening, where I would stay for 4 nights in the middle of New Delhi in a stunning apartment owned by a lovely family. What can I say about New Delhi...I really had a great time and really enjoyed this massive city: if you want Indian Chaos, it's there right in front of you. If you want Indian peace and relaxation, it's right there in front of view...the diversity between New and Old Delhi is amazing and a real Indian expereince of the
extremes. The monuments and history are fantastic...the best Indian city I have visited in the north.
This is it for my Indian adventure, I shall fly this tuesday and start a new one In Nepal, where I will be going for a 11 days Trek with one of my best friend Manu, really looking forward to this ;0)
Till next time, take care!
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Dani
non-member comment
How are you?
Hi Jeremie, I see you are keeping well. I really like the blog. Pictures are amazing. So jealous !!!! Have a good time and take care. Au revoir, Dani