'God' sponsored by Coke-Cola

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I'll keep this one short, as I have a tendancy to gush!

The one thing that has struck us since our arrival in India is that this country has no concept of the word 'subtle'! The beautiful, vivid colours, wild flavours and smiling faces sold to us in the guidebooks have materialised into a violent assault on the senses, overwhelming and suffocating!

Even God, who features a lot here in many incarnations (which for two agnostics is a bit of a problem!), appears to be sponsored by Coke-Cola! The beautiful temples, rich in history, built by the hands of kings of the dynasties are strangled with flashing Vegas style rope-lights and gregarious twinkles which seem so inappropriate for a country with a strong focus on meditation and simple lifestyles!

The past few weeks have been testing on our nerves, we have had to 'lie back and think of England' and just let India take over!

We had a saree extravaganza in Kanchipuram, rolls and rolls of silk were thrust at us at lightning speed. The final purchses were made and the outfits had their first airing at the dance recital in Trichy, where we were made-up, bindis an' all!

Joelle's arrival brought a freshness to the trip and we dared to venture out a little more. We took a walk through the cities suburbs stopping to chat to folk along the way. The deeper we pushed into the maze of side streets, the wider the eyes and the faster the jaws dropped... white people! Eventually after discovering that our destination would be closed by the time we got there, we ambled past the chai sellers and flower carts towards Marina Beach.

Edging the beach was a collection of high rise blocks, grubby and crumbly, the remnants of a housing project. As we continued there was a bustle of activity as women were drying sprats on the pavement, and washing great streamers of sarees along the roadside. The high rises gave way to shacks, and the shacks to palm leaf huts. We were mobbed by children, whooping and screaming around us, that well known chorus,

'small rupees
madam
sweeties
school pen.'

We played for a while, taking photos there were squeals of joy (the beauty of digital) as they fought to see themselves on the tiny screen. Dirt licked off faces with a mother's hanky and proudly standing to attention to capture their image. A Christian woman, Mary, tentatively invited us into her home for coffee, humbled, we obliged. After pidgin Tamil and a little gesticulation we were laughing and pointing and eating grapes!
We extracted ourselves before things got too tough, the photos are great but the memories are greater.

The shacks gave way to palm leaf huts and the huts to tents. The smiles became tired, the eyes, full of stories, got older and the pleas more desperate. An elderly woman held onto to Sophia, begging for help through her blind, cloudy eyes. We left.

All aboard the night train....

The next adventure and a break from the city took us to Trichy, where we spent most of the day sleeping to recover from the exhausting night train journey and a little more temple viewing, ending up with an evening beer in the 'Nice Bar' at the Hotel Mega, both overstatements of the century!!

Can't write anymore- my fingers have cramp!

This one is to be continued.....

Love ej + s xxx

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