First few days back in India

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Hi

Lets start already then. I'v been in India for two days now and its been another interesting experience and completly different from the north which I was not expecting.

I left Heathrow pretty much on time on Saturday morning and landed at Chennai jusr before 1 on Sunday morning. After clearing a surprisingly busy airport for 1 in the morning I got a taxi into the city. However a boy showed me where to get a taxi and then wanted a tip, but I told him I didn't have any small notes but that was no problem as he had change for a tip. The taxi had a mercedes badge on the front which I can guarentee you was not an original feature of the car. On the way to the hotel I didn't have quite as mad driving as I expected, we even slowed down for the red traffic lights, didn't stop for them but hey its a start. First impressions of Chennai from the taxi ride in is it looked a very nice and quite morden city.

I got to the hotel a bit after 2. As I had booked a extra night accomodation before the trip I was expecting to have a room to myself for the first night as normally happens, but not this time. It turns out there was only one key for the room, which meant at just after 2 in the morning the porter was banging on the door to wake Chris up to let me in. He was very good about it. I quickly sorted myself out and went to bed.

I didn't wake up till 11 on Sunday and soon found out that by that time most places I wanted to see were shut for the day. I got an autorickshaw to Fort St George which was not that impressive then had a little walk round that area of Chennai before heading back to the hotel for the welcome meeting. I met the group just after 4, (some of the tour had been taken to the wrong hotel by their transfer, so was a little late). In the group there is 6 Australians, 3 English, 1 Welsh, 1 Canadian and 1 Austrian. Our leader is Michael who is a hippy Canadian who has lived in India for 10 years. Before dinner we all headed to the beach (the second longest in the world). On the way to the beach we saw where St Tomas lies which wasn't that moving at all. There was a couple of trances and dances going on and then there seemed to be a fesrival of some sorts going on with lots of kite flying and food and drink stalls. We had a few people following us round trying to sell us things but it was not to bad.

We had dinner just next to the hotel, I tried a Malai Kofta which I remember liking from when I was in the north but i really didnt like this one, and I found a couple of chilis in it which made everyone laugh when my eyes started to water.

Five of us then went to the bar upstairs which was an event in itself. Carmen and Emma came up and were the only two girls in a full bar. There was lots of dancing going on between the locals and there was a mix on the stereo of Tamil songs and Eminem.

Chennai seemed to be the nicest of the Indian cities that I have been to and people do seem quite relaxed, it just has a better atmosphere then Dehli or Kolkata and not as much poverty, or if there is it is more hidden (not defienetly a good thing).

We left at 7.30 this morning to Mamallaparum which is a backpacker/hippy town about 2 hours south of Chennai (so Michael fits in well). When we got here we went to ahve breakfast then me, Chris and Carly hired bikes, to see some of the sites round here. We went to a temple on the coast which myth had was one of seven but in recorded history there has only been 1, but before the Tsunami struck the tide dropped back revealing the other one (Michael was telling us by fluke of timing only 1 person died in the Tsunami in this town). We then went to see the five Rajas which are some archelogical carvings in rocks. When we were there there was a large group of Indians who wanted their pictures taken with us, Chris was getting really into it talkign about where we are going and shaking everyones hand, it was quite cool. I think I could cope with being famous for a couple of days at least. After which we went to get some lunch and now hear I am.

South India is meant to be more relaxed then the north which I have noticed in the short time I have been here, and people seem a lot friendlier as well.
Ciao

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