Completely Krazy Karnataka

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"This.Is.Mental..." Staring at each other, wide eyed and open mouthed in the back of a nuts rickshaw drive through downtown Bangalore, just what had we let ourselves in for? So here we are - our constant cravings to "escape the tourist trail" and "get off the beaten track" has led us to the land of colourful sarees, rich spicy food, hectic cities and, unfortunately, the rather inescapable smell of s**t! Researching our newly purchased Lonely Planet had been bypassed whilst lazing about on the sweltering beaches of Thailand. And our knowledge and experience of the Indian subcontinent was so little that even our imaginations didn't have the tools to paint a picture of what the next three weeks might behold. "Ach it will be fine...Incredible !ndia as the slogan goes..."

Before even arriving in India we had to slug it out on overnight bus to Kuala Lumpur where we were going to catch our flight from. We spent the day getting the perfect shot outside the Petronas Towers - before heading inside to sip on Starbucks and munch O'Brians sandwiches! Also Claire nearly broke down and cried when she saw a Topshop and Marks and Spencer!! Haha never seen that reaction walking down Princes Street...! We spent the evening at our hostel before getting up sharp to fly to India. We were both quite nervous as had absolutely no idea what to expect and for the first time were minus any sort of traveller/group/guide safety net.

Anyway our first night in India was definitely a nuts experience and justified our anxieties! It was dark by the time we left the chic and spacious Bangalore International Airport and entered the absolute antithesis that was the dirty packed streets of the state capital. After eventually finding change for our taxi - note to self: NO taxi drivers carry change in India - we stuck on our backpacks and went in search of our hotel. The smell was the first thing to hit us (OK we had been dropped outside a public urinal...) but the scent of pee and who knows what else followed us all the way to our hotel. Not that life got any easier once inside - after navigating our way round the unbelievably stroppy hotel manager we were shown, via a building site in the hallway, to our dirty dilapidated room. "I thought the website said deluxe double room" was all I could think..."surely "deluxe" must mean more than this?!" That evening, after dodging the massive potholes, crazy rickshaw drivers, constant stares (and the odd cockrach)we went for our first Indian meal at a nearby hotel. To our surprise almost everyone in this part of India is vegetarian - perhaps a bit of a god send after watching the cows and chickens eating from various piles of rubbish along the street. In fairness it was a great ending to a very dodgy first day in India - we dined on some amazing curry and garlic naan all washed down with our first taste of local Kingfisher beer.

OK... Day two! Time to take stock, fresh start and all that! First things first - lets move hotel! After finding a semi decent place to stay we spent the rest of the day exploring Bangalore. We were immediately hit by just how different India is to everywhere else we had been. Throughout the whole day we didn't come across a single other Westerner. Even peoples mannersims were cracking us up - so confusing how they seem to say yes by shaking their head from side to side in this rythmic way! We had an amazing authentic lunch - the famous South Indian Thali - which basically consisted of endless portions of curries, rice and poppadoms. All to be eaten with your bare hands! To make it even better the food just keeps coming until you put up your greasy palm and admit defeat. That afternoon we went to a technical museum which was interesting if a bit outdated, towards the end we spent more time laughing at the eccentric locals than looking at the exhibits! So weird how we are getting constantly stared at - at the train station out of Bangalore these guys literally walked over with their arms crossed and just gawked at us for tens minutes. I have to say that poor Bear is the unfortunate victim alot more than I am!

We left Bangalore the following day via the famous (and rather smelly) railway network. Honestly getting tickets was a mission. All the men just skive the queue without giving you a second look and when its not those jokers giving us a hard time all the old people claim that as they are feeling a bit frail we should really let them go ahead. Anyway all people thinking of booking a trip to India - make sure you have your train tickets booked well in advance or come carrying the patience of a saint!

Our train took us to the nearby city of Mysore where we took in the renowned Maharajahs Palace. We both agreed it was pretty spectacular but, maybe its just us, we can't seem to get into the famous building banter on this trip! The rest of the day we spent wondering the interesting if exhausting streets before stopping for some more authentic dinner in a local restaurant - once again no cutlery was provided and this time we were eating off banana leaves!

Our following stop was Ooty - a famous hill station town in the Indian highlands. On route we were determined to try and fulfill one of my life long ambitions and see some tigers in the wild. Of course the chances of that were basically nil...Anyway we managed to hop some local transport to the Bandipur Nature Reserve. After facing the most hostile park ranger you could ever come across we manged to arrange a short game drive through the park. The experience wasn't exactly what I had in mind (on elephant back, roaming the thick bush, nothing but the sounds of the forest to keep us company...) oh no instead we were crammed onto this minivan with an Indian family and hurtled round park at 100 miles an hour! Anyway we still saw some elephant, spotted deer and monkeys although the elusive tiger was nowhere to be seen. We then hopped another public bus crammed with locals and without a fellow tourist in sight for the six hour trek to Ooty - it turned out to be quite an eventful journey though as we passed through another two tiger reserves on route. Us and the rest of the packed bus spent the rest of the journey keeping our eyes peeled for big cats at the side of the road - beats the mega!

We spent the next day in Ooty wondering through town tasting the vast array of homemade chocolates that absolutely everywhere seemed to sell. Whilst the town had a stunning setting the streets were still lined with sewage and it didn't quite live up to its "quaint" reputation in our guidebook. "Not so cutey Ooty" as Claire put it! Seriously the smell (and even sometimes the vision) of peoples toilet exploits is taking alot of getting used to. I suppose we shouldn't be too surprised - over one billion people, in a nation of spicy food, needing to do their business every single day - just where would it all go?! Anyway it was worth the hike up to Ooty just for that evenings dinner. We felt after all the grafting it was time for a wee treat - after picking out a restaurant called The Savoy (quote lonely planet: "main meals up to 200 rupees") it seemed about our budget. Fast forward half an hour and we are fine dining by candlelit dinner and a wood fire in a five star hotel! After being taken to our seats (and near on falling off them when we saw the menu prices) we thought what the hey and decided to break the bank. Honestly can't believe we told everyone we were "backpacking" around the globe a few months back! This was five star-fancy-flashpacker hospitality! After stuffing ourselves full of the snazziest Indian fare on offer (and taking in the sounds of the piano man playing away in the corner...) we ordered our bill...and discovered India has its benefits! 25 quid (2000 rupees) was an absolute steal for the fanciest evening of our entire trip. We used to do more damage in Pizza Express a few months back when we were saving up!

Anyway...India so far in two words? "An experience!" I think that's what we were hoping to get out of this trip wasn't it?!

See you next time from the Keralan coast!

James and Claire x

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Photos

Tuk Tuk Tantrum...
One of Many Bartering Battles with the Rickshaw Drivers of Bangalore

Savoy!
Typical Backpackers Haunt...