From the beach to the mountains!

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After a whole day of debating in Pondicherry, we decided to change our plans and not head to Madurai. Instead we got a night train to Trivandrum in the hope that if we heading south we would miss the monsoon rain. Not much point in visiting places when its raining so hard that you don't want to leave the hotel room!

We spent one night in Trivandrum. Not much to see here really. We tried to visit the zoo, art gallery and museum but apparently it was a public holiday so it was all closed!

The next night we headed to Varkala by train (took half an hour). For the first time we tried out the general class on the train- very cheap, very crowded. A friendly mouse decided to climb up the back of my top and freak me out! will stick to the sleeper class now i think to guarantee a seat! Varkala is quite a touristy beach place set along a cliff top. We stayed in a hotel called "Happy Place!" There was a lovely beach were you could sunbathe without being stared at by too many Indian men!! Food here was quite western, i enjoyed a pasta one night which was lovely! We also had some great fish meals.

After 2 nights we left for Alleppey. Here we stayed in a little bamboo hut for the night before hitting the Kerala backwaters on a house boat the next night. We met a couple called Wayne and Jenny (kiwi and english) so we shared a 2 bedroom boat with them for 9000 rupees for all of us. This was the most expensive thing we have done in India as accomodation has typically cost from 250 to 500 rupees a night!
It was really peaceful and the 3 staff on board were really helpful. There was a thunder storm in the evening but it was quite nice to listen to the rain on the water. We played cards and drank beers. They found fishing rods for the boys which made Danny very happy- he even managed to catch a little fish using chapatti! The food was great- we ate loads!! At least we got our moneys worth!

A 2 hour bus journey the next day took us to Kochi (cochin). We took a ferry out to fort cochi for a look around. Very pretty with Chinese fishing nets along the water. Odd looking contraptions! We visited a synagog there too which to be honest was nothing very exciting! Again there seemed to be a festival on so we were stampeded by Indian men on the beach area there and the boat across.

Next stop was the hilltop area of Munnar. The bus took 5 hours and was interesting to say the least. We sat in the front and the roads up the mountains soon turned to bumpy, extremely curvy dirt tracks. Lets just say i put the valium to use again. They drive like mentalists!! Its either full on the gas or full on the brake!!

Munnar was really pretty though. Great views of the tea plantations. We did a day tour around the area which involved visiting waterfalls and some trekking. The workers get paid 125R for 21kg of tea leaves that they have to pick every day. We met up with Wayne and Jenny again which was nice and organised to get the bus back down the mountains with them for moral support. Luckily the journey wasnt as bad this time though! I managed to pick up a cold! It was freezing at night up there! Well, i say freezing it was probably only about 10 degrees! It was so funny to see the Indians dressed in hats and big jackets!

Yesterday we arrived back in Kochi. We struggled to get a train ticket to Goa as it is all really booked up. We leave tonight though and arrive tomorrow lunch time. Really looking forward to sitting on the beach and relaxing for a couple of days! This part of India is so much more relaxed that the north, its greener and they tend to stare at you less!!

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