TravelStream™ news feed for member emilynics on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/emilynics en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 29 Nov 2009 14:29:22 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1259517835/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1259517835/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1259517835/tpod.html Sun, 29 Nov 2009 14:29:22 -0500 Dean and Em's Euro-Asia Extravagansa

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Kathmandu, Nepal

Many hours after leaving Varanasi we arrived on the slowest train ever, ever to Gorakpur - it was dark and we'd heard about a couple of places to stay. We'd also heard about the larger than usual vicious mossis so wanted some protection from those. What better than your very own room complete with lots of mossis and a seedy bar to eat particularly bad fried food in? Yes please! We weren't the only ones slightly mifted with our surroundings. We met Nazeen from Rishikesh and a couple of Israeli girls he was travelling with. He was such a lovely guy - they'd just travelled over from the west of India to get over to Nepal and were going to leave the next day like us to get ahead of the election day closing of the border. We'd thought that we'd have to book a taxi on our own to get to the border and on again to Kathmandu but now we had company. We got picked up early to make for the border in time to meet up with the buses travelling up into the mountains. We got to the border town and got well and truly lodged in a jam - we needed to get the bags out of the cars and walk to the border itself - brilliant, just what I like first thing in the morning a walk in the boiling sun along a dusty road towards border control! Dean and I love borders we do. The border town was really Wild West like with a few little shanty like shops and places to eat. We ploughed on and in the end a rickshaw picked up our bags, thanks to Nazeen. We then found we needed to pay for our Nepalese visa with Dollars and not pounds like we'd thought and got royally ripped off by a money changer - always nice! So off we trotted across the border and then had to process a visa - another of our favourite travelling related tasks. But thanks to Nazeen he'd headed over to find out about buses to Kathmandu - I'd just like to take a minute to remember what it feels like to be somewhere when you are about to go to somewhere you've always dreamed of - an awesome feeling - like being the luckiest person in the universe. Nazeen had been saving at home to make this trip - including to go to a trance festival on the outskirts of Kathmandu - they're all the rage you know - deja vu back 15 years for me then - "Are you guys up for coming then?" I'd have snapped his hand off at the start of the 90's but nowadays I'm more likely to want to get stuck into Nepalese life and nose around historic buildings and the like - how times change - still loving the invitation though - as we board our bus it seems we're not the only ones in the know about the trance love...again similar feeling to convoys off to raves but this time the Himalayas are in the vicinity. The bus journey started well enough. Roomy (strange), not to fast (unusual) and lots of low lying ground (in Nepal!) - when you think of Nepal, well when I think of Nepal, I think of mountains, cold, yaks, Everest, you know like the Alps but in Asia. Well from the border roads we were in the middle of palm trees, lush vegetation and over 30 degree heat. So like the Alps in summer then? No still not right, anyhow it was unfolding as usual in a non-expected way, so that was fine. We headed on for over 4 hours winding round a beautiful river valley, going past local villages and lines of water buffulo. It was getting into the afternoon now and we were still not going up any hills - oh small point here, we were nearly off the bus at one stop, bags on side of road, I had a little disagreement about our seats, lack of room and general Europeans stupidness - sorry to any onlookers! - So then the mountains start to appear and get nearer and nearer, this is it we're going to the top of the world - yippee! And then it went dark - we got into Kathmandu in the evening and were dropped off by the edge of a dusty dual carriageway and it was still hot! So we were whisked to our hotel for the night, had a shower with yellow water coming out and went in search of real Nepal...
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Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India

An inspirational time in West Bengal, was followed by a quick leap into Uttar Pradesh - via windy roads, shoe repairs, itching powder and a delayed train - to arrive in Varanasi. "You've got to go","there's no where on Earth like it", "you won't forget it", all very tempting comments that lead to go to a place. And what a place it is - truely unforgettable. If you want to experience Glastonbury festival Indian style this is the place for you - just add 45 degrees of heat, hindu explosions of faith and respect, animals by the shed loads and lots of eastern colour. As usual it became best not to have any prior expectations of what would happen, how, why and where.

We arrived before dawn and watched a stunning sunrise from a little roof terrace - lots of pinks and oranges in the sky, the sacred Ganges river welcomed us to this most religous site. Hindus, whose families are able to, cremate their relatives here, in large numbers. One burning Ghat (steps next to river with pyre stations) can host over 200 funeral pyres a day and families can choose from a vast variety of different wood to use as burning fuel - sandalwood being one of the most favoured and pricey. We were asked if we wanted to watch a few pyres, for a fee, but declined. We were immersed as much as we wanted to be - the heat in town at this time of year is crazy. For the four days we were there we generally went out before 7am and then hid in either air con or in our hotel room until about 7pm. We were used to the heat in India now but it had just ramped up a tad!!

It was also general election time so we were aware that it wasn't considered that safe to be out and about - past elections having been prone to violence in this part of the country and there were lots of stationed police around town - tiny alleys in the old town wove around the sides of the river with police stationed with guns behind sand bags and holding council with locals, sharing the space with lots of organic matter, associated insects and smells. We would scurry through and get a spot to have a bite to eat and try to do it without sweating litres of salt and water.

We headed out on the river one night and watched someone slip into the waters. Our boatman telling us that 5 types of people can not be cremated in the hindu faith - babies, pregnant women, sadus (holy men), those with leprosy and those bitten by a snake - we don't know which had been the case for the body we saw but it was a very sobering sight. The bodies are attached to heavy stones and left to sink into the middle of the river. Not a typical scene from home that's for sure. We also met a couple of holy men on the Ghats who wanted to tell us our future and to talk to us about life in general - I have been known to be into alternative ways of being - but something told me that my gurus were not at hand and moved on.

We booked a train to the border with Nepal and took time to consider our possible journey ahead - we didn't have a Nepal guide and all we knew was that we wanted to get over the border before it was closed for the next election date in this state - not knowing that this was not the only problem with getting around we were about to encounter!
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Darjeeling, West Bengal, India

We set off on the last day of the ridge walk - towards Rimbik - we needed to rendevous with the jeeps that leave from Rimbik back to Darjelling - we left the lovely Sri Khola and walked over the last river on this trip by foot! James was setting up a great pace and strangely my body was up to the last push. We glided along the path with views still amazing us left right and centre - we came to a part of the track that was more built for vehicles and I found that I didn't want to go any further - the feeling that some kind of built environment would be round the next corner was alien - I wanted to stay in the wilderness some more - why did we have a train booked from Darjeeling? So no going back now. We started walking passed larger numbers of trekkers, houses, people, chickens, children and now motor vehicles - it was 8 kms to our last destination and it flew by to be honent - now back in UK I must remember that 8kms is nothing and that nothing should stop me walking further - Rimbik was a small town, we headed to the official park office to get our stamp out of the national park and one more official peering at our passports and park entrance permits - then a little hiccup - we needed 7 spots in a jeep - only 4 left for the whole day - we'd got here early mind to make sure we were all good to go - what's on? - supposedly lots of organised tour guides had already booked them up and the normal number of others weren't about today. Whoops! Well we came to an arrangement that we could get 4 after James secured a lift with a guide friend back home - Ben and Alisha decided to stay another night and get more country air into the lungs - not a lot of choice to be fair but at least they had more time to get back as they hadn't booked a train as yet. So we sat in a lovely guesthouse garden in the blazing sun and had a cool drink - then the chanting began - so we'd turned up to a large Buddhist group on a retreat into the mountains - I love this stuff and just lay on the grass getting a lugful of the best vibrations - we then said our farewells to James - not easy for sure. He had been an absolute legend and had been a guiding light for us in the mountains. I won't forget his amazing leadership style in a hurry - we found our jeep and happily got in - only to be shunted into the back in a space the size for two little children and not four grown adults - how long is the journey again?! I had a feeling that this was the start of things to come - correct! - after we'd taken on board another twenty odd people we were off. At this point all the swear words in the world wouldn't relay the amount of overloaded fear coming from me around the first few corners - I'd rather walk back Dean - he looks at me like I'd lost it - well I had - I couldn't compute the fact that in India it's fine to ride a kamakaze jeep with a deranged driver and people jumping on and off the back while the view from the side goes down over 1000 m at a time without stopping - help!! It took at least an hour of not falling off the mountain to get to some level of calm - the drive took 4 hours with the last stretch into Darjelling like one of the best feelings in the world - I wanted to cry lots over the journey and after the most amazing 5 days in the mountains it was all a bit much - We'd met a couple who'd just moved to Delhi from Bristol - Alicia and Tony - she Research Council Director and he photographer - thanks for your diverting conumdrum games and general support through the journey guys - that goes to Chelsea and Linda as well. Thank you. We got back to Darjelling with a lovely feeling of famililarity and with the knowledge that we could find our way to a hotel relatively easily - well we knew where we were anyway - although getting somewhere to stay proved tricky. We were very lucky though and got a room in the Snow Lion Homestay near the clock tower - great place to get a shower and sleep like babies for a night. Big trek behind us onto the next adventure...
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Bristol, England, United Kingdom

A piece of wood followed me back to the UK. It's the smallest flake from a pine tree on Olchon Island, Siberia.

I think this represents the amount of actual practical work related to wood I carried out while I were away. The British Isles were calling me loud and clear that there is lots of work to be getting on with nearer to home.

No sooner had I landed than I had an invitation to visit my friend Stephen's woodland, complete with pigs foraging through the trees. Along with this, in the last six weeks, I have been aware of quite a few things related to trees that have come up for me.

1. I need to be sure of my direction with woodwork - gut feeling is to do more cabinet making but also to learn wood sculpture and carving as well.
2. I want to work with and around living trees - caring for them and developing ways to bring people into woodlands.
3. I have a special connection to trees. They like me - the feeling is mutual. Where might this lead?!!
4. People I know already are keen on trees too and want to help me in progressing my ideas.

Maybe the trip was breathing space to have the energy and vision to take on a new way of living.

To pay for my aspirations I am currently setting up my own business in project development, management and coaching.

This is the last installment of the travel blog. I will be setting up a blog to carry on with my thoughts on this subject. Thanks for reading this blog. Emily x
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Singalila National Park, West Bengal, India

It was time for the crew to get one man smaller. Chris was up early to set out for Rimbik and we wanted to wave him off so another early start for the team too. We said our farewells with hopes of a reunion at some time in the future and set about getting ready for another mountain breakfast. The storm of the night before had cleared to show off the Gorkey valley even brighter and greener than the day before and so with tea in hand we sat and took it all in. Not a bad spot to have breakfast in I reckon. We had time for a leisurely breakfast and then headed out, after a few more running foot repairs on my blisters. Today was a leisurely 16km towards lower ground at Sri Khola. We had expected another day of views similar to yesterday but as happens in the mountains things never happen as planned. We were about 8 km away from lovely Gorkey when we got to Ramam. A schoolyard in the clouds was party to an inspired view. We'd seen terraced farmland in Ooty in Southern India and in other parts of Asia but I don’t think I’d ever seen it on as big a scale as this. Completely encompassing in every direction we looked and looked and looked some more. The side of the mountain we were on was mirrored by another opposite within the state of Sikkim. After unplugging our senses from the view we carried on as quickly as possible with a few more stops to stare around. We then headed down a few km’s of trail over bridges, waterfalls and strange woodland plants to arrive at our destination for Day Five. The River Khola flowed straight passed our lodge and from the dining room we could watch as local people led their horses to the water, children played nearby in the shallows and other trekkers appeared to take up residence and tell tales for the night. We were reunited with the American couple from Oregon, Ben and Alisa, and met a family from Bangladesh whose parents were a Swedish, American combo. A very interesting bunch who remind you what an international world we live in, where anything and anywhere goes.

We headed to bed with the first beer of the trail under our belts and the first western style food for a while.
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Singalila National Park, West Bengal, India

We awoke to a loud knocking on the bedroom window at about 5.30am. A quick memory search later and I remembered that James had said he would wake us up early if there was a view. A few minutes later we were all out the door and looking to the horizon. Yeah mountains, yeah the sun and yeah the third tallest mountain in the world - . In fact not all of us were in attendance for this moment – where was Dean?! It seems the Brandy at altitude had taken it's toll and it took a while longer for Dean to scan the snowy range.

Until we got to glimpse these views we had been debating a quick retreat down the mountain to the cosiness of Darjeeling, a few days early. Now it was game on. Shall we get going along the ridge then? Yes siree… it was a 22km day and so we got on the trail once more. Not too fast off the mark to be fair as we all had a bit of camera trigger finger to deal with. As you can see we took a few photographs.

The general mood of the crew was somewhat different today. Lots of grins and happy banter. We had a fair way to go but we seemed to reach our lunch spot, after passing mystical trees, vales and yaks without too much difficulty. The vistas were awesome and the bouncy ground was helping weary legs. Lunch was in a little valley staffed by Indian Wildlife Wardens and while we waited for noodle soup we took the weight off and drank some chai. For some, weariness crept in and Chris, Chelsea and Linda had a little snooze! After lunch we headed off to cover some rather up, or as James says "a little up", and then some rather down before the finale of another little up. By the time we reached Phalut I was rather done with ups and downs. It wasn’t helped by the fact that our accommodation was nearly sub zero and really damp or as Linda calls it Fooked It (not the Swedish spelling for damp but I can’t remember how it was spelt, sorry!). In fact our little hut was not going to get any warmer and all the blankets were not going to get any drier. Yuk and Brrrrrrrrrr. We didn’t have any other option for a roof over our head so we settled on trying to get as dry as we could by all huddling together and playing card and memory games. For anyone who has done summer camps, youth camps or similar this might ring a bell and at 3700m it was the only thing to do. We learnt a new card game from Chris called up river, down river – pretty apt. Luckily we had dinner to look forward too at this point so spirits were still high.

We got warm around the stove in the dining hut – not attached to ours so no heat was getting down the hill to help out. Eating in half-light wasn’t exactly luxury either but the food was tasty and filling and warmed us up well. At about the same time as we finished our meal the first peals of thunder could be heard around the mountains. By the time we ran back to our hut lightning was flashing across the whole sky and the heavens were opening on cue. We sat in the freezing cold for the next hour not being able to hear ourselves for the hailstorm and thunder and even gave up on the card games after a while. We had separate rooms from the other guys this night so Dean and I huddled in a single bed with damp blankets around us and in our liners hoped we could get at least a little sleep…
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Singalila National Park, West Bengal, India

This is the story of Dean, Emily, Chris, Linda, Chelsea and James and their six day trek along part of the Indian-Nepal border. There are three separate installments covering day one, three and five to give you an idea of the journey.....

We'd put our packs in the luggage room, pulled on our waterproofs and boots and stashed some bread and cheese in the daypacks. This adventure was a long time coming and so we were really chuffed when the weather was…AWFUL!!!! Pouring it down and visibility minimal. Perfect.

Our fellow trekkers were still raring to go and in no mood to re-arrange the date. We dripped off to the taxi stand and then hurtled towards the start of the trek at a place called Maney Bhajang. We’d all agreed to hire a guide at the start and here we met James for the first time. The guides wait in turn so it was just luck that we teamed up with him – more stories of the legend that is James later.

Day one was to consist of a 14 km foray into the West Bengal Hills. A small matter of 2 km straight up followed by a few more diagonally and than a lovely downhill stretch to be ended with a bit more up to 3000m. A walk in the park…no sweat. Blimey I felt like I’d dragged my body through a pea souper (fog to non-Brits) towards a piece of land three times higher than Snowdon and it was amazing. Strangely the fact that I couldn’t see most of the scenery and my legs, knees and lungs were complaining most of the day couldn’t put a dent in my ecstasy. Being away from the chaos of Indian life was great. The little haven of Tolui, with open fire, finely cooked food and good company was a lovely end to the day and even if our room was a bit parky I was a happy bunny.
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Darjeeling, West Bengal, India

Dean remembers walking through Darjeeling, as the day he found somewhere on the planet that was just like he imagined it to be. For me Darjeeling had conjured up images of tea plantations, mountain views and an old British outpost with relic Brits included.

We had travelled up from the Indian plains to Darjeeling in an oldish jeep crammed with locals and seemingly businessmen. I lost the feeling in my hips by the time we had got half way. It was a fair squeeze to get Dean, two others, in the middle seats and I. It was a cheap ride to be fair but it might have been worth a few more rupees to secure an extra seat.

The flat quickly gave way to up, up and up. The road got somewhat interesting at about 1000m and we stopped for another cup of Chai before the clouds closed in around us. I was quite grateful for this as we steadily climbed up above 2000m. The roads around here were going to lead to some interesting experiences I could see! We got to a fair queue about 20kms from Darjeeling that slowed us down and although the number of stops to let people get on and off were numerous I was grateful to be stationery as often as possible.

We got to town in mid-afternoon and set about trying to find somewhere to stay. This is when the differences to the rest of India started to become clear. No one was approaching us to ask us if we wanted a taxi, a hotel, a trek or anything really. After a few months of tourist related hassle we were slightly taken aback and had to take matters into our own hands. We even looked in the guide for some pointers (by this stage the Lonely @*&^^** was very out of favour with Dean and I but when needs must).

We found a hotel with a good write up and thought "oh here we go, another recommendation that will end up stinking". But for once LP we can report that since your researcher last went The Dekeling Hotel it is still amazing! The Tibetan and Nepalese staff were so friendly and helpful, our wooden room was really cosy and the central social rooms with sofas, wood stoves and Internet access a real treat.

The temperature was well down than we had just about got used to so the fires and even hot water bottles every night was extra special. It was the first time since being in Ooty that we felt cold. The change in temperature and altitude was also partly responsible for the change in culture, atmosphere and experience. The Earth has been left to us in a most extra-ordinary way so that all these different places can co-exist so tentatively on the same planet. The West Bengal Hills is a totally inspiring part of this set up. So many different ethnic peoples and tribes, rich in unique traditions and lifestyles. A different mindset to lower lying areas of the world, exposed to the elements and chiselled to reflect this isolation and hardship. It won't be easy to erode this away, as many people have tried to do over the centuries, due to the terrain and history of this region.

We had come to North India mainly due to Dean’s love of mountains and how glad was I that he had talked me into it. At this point I realise I haven’t even mentioned the seven days we spent shrouded in the mists. Darjeeling is well known for the clouds to touch down regularly but this year it was a little earlier than usual and getting around wasn’t too easy. This made our stay less busy than it could have been but in a way it let us get to know a smaller area really well. We discovered it was only three minutes walk to the nearest sausage roll and pot of Darjeeling Tea. It was only five minutes to the town square where we could stroll with all the locals at any time of the day and it was only a couple of minutes to bustling markets where you can pick up anything you can imagine. All our trips were complete with Sherpa’s carrying loads of goods on their heads, private school children in early 20th century uniforms and red robed Buddhist monks floating around town.

Part of Dean’s mountain love was to get out into them and do a good amount of stomping. Those that know me know that getting out into anything resembling the wild is a big plus. Brilliant so where to head to? How? And with who?

We had a vague plan to organise a trek to the Singalila National Park and walk along the ridge between India and Nepal. At these heights it’s best to do your homework so we asked about and went and saw a few companies offering their services. A few days into the misty weather we decided not to book a date until a better report came through. It was at this point that we met Chris and Linda. We went to the local pub, Joey’s, the nearest thing to a local in this part of the world. We were chatting to a couple of Norwegians when this friendly pair approached us. “Are you going trekking while you’re here?" Well that was the start of a joint plotting exercise to get out town for a while.

We had to say no to a trip to Sikkim and a possible tour organised by our hotel and a definite yes to a trip with Chris, Linda and Chelsea. We got kitted up in our fake trekking gear and stayed a couple of nights away from our beloved Hotel Dekeling at an OK hotel called Sunflower (Darjeeling is very busy with tourists from around Kolkata these days) waiting for our chosen day to start the trek.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1238143860/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1238143860/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1238143860/tpod.html Mon, 06 Jul 2009 07:41:48 -0400 Dean and Em's Euro-Asia Extravagansa

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Kolkata (Calcutta), West Bengal, India

Kolkata has a massive populations of, according to who you speak to, between 14 and 18 million. You can feel this high density to your very bones. The place oozes chaos and cramped conditions. There are so many people and forms of transport when we get to the hostel area of town that it puts us in a spin! Which way is up or left or right for that matter? OK let's just go for it as usual and it'll turn out all right...It was. Lovely kitsch faux wooden panelling, flouncy curtains and a room to swing a smallish cat. Supposedly this was living it up, according to other people we met who had stayed in the Sudder Street area, but heh this is as basic as Dean and I could get at this stage (more on the realisation that we are mid range lords later on...)

We headed out to our local neighbourhood, where one of the strangest experiences I've had in India was about to happen. This bizarre situation involved a restaurant, its staff and customers and a Sunday luncheon. So at home you ask to be shown to a table for two and then enjoy a meal with good service and other diners happily content around you...not so in this establishment. First you need to be sized up as to the appropriate place that you should be seated in the restaurant. Second no smiling at the customers (in an Indian restaurant this is pretty unheard of). Thirdly show other diners to the table next to you and then promptly move them again as they are dissatisfied at sitting next to travellers. Fourthly provide snacks to other diners who have ordered drink and food and not to our table. You may get the picture here. A stuck up hierarchy restaurant in the centre of Kolkata.

It seems this fiasco had not gone unnoticed by Dean either and we were shocked at the treatment we got (from an unnamed Lonely Planet recommendation) but we were determined not to take it to heart and to give Kolkata a fair go. To be honest the rest of that day only confirmed that there was a particularly snobby population of folk in this part of town. From those walking on the street to a bookshop owner it seemed the open friendly Indians we had come to know and love were having a personality disorder in West Bengal's Capital City, on a large scale! We scuttled back to our Hotel and closed the curtains to the World outside.

So with deep breaths the next day we ventured out into the City again. A changed place. No snobbiness, no strange rudeness and in fact the opposite. On a Monday I can report that Kolkata is full of lovely people, just don't go on a Sunday! We strolled the parks, went to the local museum, scoured the bazaars, walked with the Rickshaw Wallahs (pulling their passengers by brute force alone), drank a beer overlooking the City lights and ran with other locals when the rain poured during an electrical storm.

The next day we had time to venture out again and we went to see Mother Theresa's home and charity where she lived for many years until her death. Her tomb is in the front room of the Mission Centre. It was very humbly to be there and after hearing so much about her work when I was at school it was truly life fulfilling. It had a big impact on me and I had to have a sit down with Dean and just take it all in. The home is on a major busy road and even here it seemed that calm and quiet invaded the space to allow Mother Theresa to rest in peace. There were lots of nuns and pilgrims there and children dancing around.

Although poverty in Kolkata isn't as bad as when Mother Theresa got here in the 40's it is still home to some of the poorest people in the World. We saw this alongside all the flash cars and new fashions on the street. The divide is huge here between the haves and have nots. It'll take a few more people like Mother Theresa to give some of these people a proper shot at life.

We soon had another place to be, up country, so we got in another taxi and headed off to Kolkata's Seadah station. It was here that we encountered the first of our fellow travellers who had a date with Darjeeling. Sam and Micha, from the US and Canada respectively, were glad to be headed North to the cold after encountering Hampi and Kolkatas heat wave. We had had a time of not meeting fellow travellers since our time in Tamil Nadu and were really happy to be chatting to English speakers again.

We headed to our carriage with the knowledge that we were headed to the hills, with another chance to see those Himalayas again (since China), and that we would hopefully be high in trekking country in less than a few days.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1237878240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1237878240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/emilynics/2/1237878240/tpod.html Fri, 17 Apr 2009 03:06:27 -0400 Dean and Em's Euro-Asia Extravagansa

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Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu, India

Ever since we left the UK, my parents, Mary and Michael to Deano, had planned to come to India as part of their round the world trip. Their stay was to include my Mum's 60th Birthday at the end of March. So after nearly 9 months away we were to see some faces from home. Very exciting! In itself I was really chuffed that my Mum and Dad would be arriving in India, the fact that they were going to put us up in a swanky hotel had also not gone unnoticed by the bedraggled travellers in us either. We were to stay at the Taj Hotel's Fishermen's Cove Resort near Chennai. To anyone in India or maybe some world business travellers among, you may have heard of the Taj Hotel Group. They do a rather good line in Top End Hotels and Resorts, mainly across India. We had sneaked a peek at the website and were rather taken by the photos of the swimming pool, beach and lovely rooms with large beds. Would the staff let us in?! Could we be making a luxury rod for our own backs by seeing how the other half live? Would it live up to expectations after dream filled nights of decadent meals and lounging by the bar pool?!

Well it was worth the risk heh.... We set out from Pondicherry on a pretty good bus up the East Coast Express Route to rendezvous with Mum and Dad . We got dropped off near the town of Mamallarapurum and then got the only transport you should get to a Taj Hotel and that's an old Auto- rickshaw complete with wide boy driver! We got out and approached the hotel to be greeted by hotel security. We hoped it hadn't been arranged just for our benefit ( In fact it's a sad fact that after the Mumbai attacks on a Taj Hotel last November, all their properties now have extra security checks on all guests checking in). The staff were so welcoming that it didn't feel at all threatening and we were soon sat in the reception area with a cool lime soda drink to ease us after our journey. This had never happened before.

So where were my Mummy and Daddy? Wait a minute who was that doing lengths in the swimming pool and who was that relaxing on a sun- lounger without a care in the world? Only 12 hours into their trip and already Mary and Mike had gotten over jet lag and were living it up in the sunshine. So at this point, with big trainers and grubby traveller clothes in tow I trotted over towards the pool and said my hellos.

Well you know what happened next, Dean and I got straight in the swing of it too. Up to our lovely room, swimming costumes on and into the pool we went. Closely followed by lunch at the poolside bar, whilst sat in the water. Yes we had arrived. This was really really awesome. We spent the next 3 days exploring the dining options, taking lots of swims and relaxing in our room. We nattered on with Mum and Dad over a beer in the pool, on the sun loungers and around different restaurant tables, exchanging stories about the last few months and putting the world to rights of course! The staff seemed to know what you wanted to do before you did and we were constantly amazed by the service we received, be it a drink in the bar or a thoughtful towel draped on a lounger. Brilliant, we didn't need to think for ourselves at all.

On Mum's birthday the hotel had made some lovely touches for her special day. A birthday cake slice for breakfast, a rose, a birthday cake and sparklers over dinner and an elephant made out of towels ( you had to be there!). Dean and I had some presents to give and Mum had brought all her cards from home and the beautiful garnet ring that Dad had bought her. In the afternoon we set out from our Hotel wonderland and ventured a few kilometres to a world heritage site at Mamallapurum. We had a few hours to visit some of the sites of a very old temple complex. Dean and I had seen a few temples in India and elsewhere but these were really lovely examples. We had a guide for some of the time and this really brought the statues, temples and other relics to life. It was a bit hot hot hot though and as we had arrived in an air con car, with the driver wearing a peaked cap, we were receiving some interesting attention from the local sales people ( little children, old men and women mainly). Dean and I get some attention as Westerners, as a source of income, but normally it is pretty tame. Either this particular site is pretty gnarly when it comes to hassle or the people saw Mum and Dad as definite money makers.

Anyhow we left before we nearly all blew a gasket in the heat and headed back to the Hotel via a little look at Kovlam beach and village nearby. The bay is really gorgeous and it might be the only beach in India I've seen that is well looked after and clean. I guess it comes with the Hotel's presence along the beach. It is also a protected area, as we were involved in releasing some baby turtles one day, a conservation project the Hotel sponsors.

After another swim and relaxation in our room we headed to Mum and Dad's room for a glass of champagne. Champagne after about a year went straight to my head and we chatted our way down to an outside Hotel restaurant called the Upper Deck. We had requested the night before that we would like to eat there and that we would like to order some fresh fish especially for Mum's Birthday dinner. The meal didn't disappoint. The staff were fantastic and the food very yummy indeed. The setting was fantastic and we even managed to get hold of Henry and Laura at home in the UK for Mum to speak to.

The next day it was a different story, when we had to pack our bags and say goodbye to Mum and Dad. These events are always over too soon and on our way to Chennai, in another air con car Mum and Dad had arranged for us, we sat and looked out again at the India we had come to know and love. Thanks for the memories guys. You rock!

We hadn't booked a room, as usual, in Chennai. In fact as we were only staying a night to get on an early train we hadn't done our usual homework on the next destination at all! Naughty us. Having got so relaxed and pampered at the Taj, having to make decisions had been put on hold some what. So we ended up at a pretty pricey hotel that eased us back into the real world, whilst reminding us that we had been well and truly Taj'd for the last few days. Where were the extra touches like the nuts and popcorn with our beer or the soft bath towels and dressing gowns? ..... come on Nicholson snap out of it!

We headed to Kolkata on our morning train and waved South India a final farewell. What did the North hold for us? Were we really going to the Kolkata ( Calcutta of my childhood nightmares - Thanks to the Sisters of Mercy for that!) where there was a Black Hole and associated scary Indian sights. For the meantime we had a 1st class train compartment to get the most out of. The journey was to take nearly 30 hours and as we had booked 1st class ( the trains were packed nearly 2 weeks in advance) we wanted to relax in seclusion for once. However being in 1st class means that you are singled out as those most likely to but anything under the sun including chai, biscuits, nuts, fruit, torches, batteries and a number of other essentials. We had bought a fair amount of supplies on the train platform, and although at some point we might need something else, the constant knocking and shouting through the door was getting a tad tiresome. Normally we are treated as mere mortals, the same as our fellow travellers, and need only to remain uninterested to avoid unwanted attention. The piece de resistance was the train staff coming into clean our compartment continually with dustpan, window buffer and aerosol spray. Lovely clean and tidy you may think but no it was another ploy to extract money. Tips, tips, tips was the chant as they smiled crazily for some rupees. We gave the first guy some and then it got silly. They weren't too happy with us that's for sure but so what is new...we are evil Westerners who are meant to part with their savings as and when requested. Sorry to sound cynical at this point but it was a particular annoying day of feeling like a captive animal.

So we got to Calcutta on a very hot day to get into another old Ambassador taxi that hurtled us towards the centre of the City. And what a City. The busiest, loudest, most urban Indian place we'd been to for a while.


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