Varkala Marine Palace Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum)

... around the reservoir to the far left side of the opposite face of the lake, which is to say our guesses as to how to get across were complete wrong. The bus drove into a little shed where the metal garage door behind us slowly cranked shut, followed by the one in front slowly cranking open, during which we read the handy little safari park factoid sheet posted on the walls explaining the size of the preserve (a couple of acres, I forget), enclosed in ...

... is shared by every imaginable form of transportation including pedestrians, bicycles, bicycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws, cars, SUVs, slow-moving buses and giant trucks all trying to pass anything the slightest bit slower.

Padmanbhapuram is the city of Lord Vishnu. The palace complex consists of several two story buildings. It is the largest wooden palace in Asia. It was built over several generations during the 17th ...

... sanctuary across the lake and we could sometimes here their roar as we sat in mediattion in them mornings. One morning we had a go at cleansing our noses in preparation for the breathing techniques by buying tiny plastic watering cans with spouts and leaning over whilse we poured warm, salty water into our nostrils. We also had a go at pushing rubber cathetar hoses into our nostrils and trying to pull them down the back of our throats and out our mouths. Some ...

... foods!) so was ill for the rest of the day and evening so missed the elephant bathing ceremony- damn it! Would definitely like to go back one day and see what i missed! We then got up for our 38 hour journey to southern Kerala, it shouldn't of taken quite so long but our last train didn't bother to stop at Varkala, the Indians found it quite funny that a) we were sitting on the floor in the corridor with the cockroaches because we didn't understand ...

... filthy worktops, plates of uneaten food and a fridge of old decaying vegetables. Bu t knowing there was little chance of a refund, we spent two hours chopping and frying to make edible but relatively uninspiring koftas, chapattis and curries. Never pre-pay! So, we're off to Chennai on Monday to make our flight to Sri Lanka. We're getting pretty excited about our month there and being able to surf a bit. Hopefully the yoga will have helped with my complete lack of balance and flexibility!!

... Goa and heading straight to Varkala, and here Goa ended up being the highlight of my trip so far. The restaurants and shops are set high atop a cliff in Varkala (almost like a boardwalk), and you have to climb down the cliff to reach the beach (which isn't too bad). Unlike Palolem beach, there are mostly Tibetan shops here and everything is more expensive and the one strip gives me a sense of being confined. Still, it's better than being at the Ashram:-) Varkala has ...

... the state's unforgiving monsoons. An hour into the drive, we have exited Kerala state, entered Tamil Nadu and, before long, are in Marthandam, the first major town across the border. The signboards now are more in Tamil, but for the records the folks living in the entire stretch manage each other's languages with reasonable comfort. 60 kms into our journey, we approach Thuckalai, and the busy as ever conductor nudges us ...

... we have expressly avoided going to the zoos for fear of what kind of conditions we might find there, but the Lonely Planet high recommended this one, so we gave it a try. The animals all have large enclosures which (to the best of our knowledge) do a good job imitating their natural habitats. Among the most ...

... kylmia eika kahdesta sukkaparista ole selattamaan kymmenen asteen huonelampoa. Kukaan kun ei neuvonut tuomaan omaa peittoa.Iltapaivaksi paasimme kuitenkin Varanasiin (kolme tuntia myohassa). Intian pyhaan kaupunkiin, jossa on hyva kuolla ja tulla poltetuksi. Taalla tuhannet kylpevat Gangesissa pesemassa syntejaan pois ylajuoksun ihmisten suolistobakteereissa paivittain.Varanasi on varsin viihtyisa kaupunki paastaessaan intiimisti lahelle ihmisten uskontoon. Lisaksi se muistutti ...

... much food, Stacy and I began talking about considering going home... My birthday came and went during this illness, and as we made our way from Agra to Udaipur in Rajasthan, the fever finally broke and my energy began to return slowly. Stacy: Between getting the tests and Mark's illness still in full force, we didn't do much sightseeing in Agra. Agra struck us as a very polluted city that has seen too much tourism. Between the overpriced rickshaws trying to earn commission with every ...