South India

On the road south, with Eastern Ghats in the background.

Slightly insane schoolkids, Mamallapuram.

Temples, rockcut from a single boulder. No separate parts what so ever! Mamallapuram.

The Ambassador, king of the Indian roads, Pondicherry.

Typical tree lined street. Pondicherry.

Well, after 3 1/2 months in North India, I'm finally here in the South. Everyone says there are two Indias, the North and the South. My impression is that theory is true. Its certainly ALOT hotter down here. Seems to average around 90deg, so my body is still getting use to the change to a tropical climate, and having to take siestas in the afternoon. Still, it beats freezing your arse off in a Himalayan hill station! Everyone is alot more laid back down here and the pace of life alot slower, the hawkers and the rickshaw drivers are much less aggressive, which makes a welcome change.

Well, I left Puri, up in the North on the 8th Feb, and basically nailed it down the coastal highway(which was actually a 2 lane highway, and not a potholed dirt track, for once the map didn't lie!) so I was averaging over 400km a day. A personal record. Unfortunately the weather all the way down to Chennai/Madras was 'changeable' so whilst riding I was going from sweating away to soaked to the skin, then back again. After spending a few days in Chennai, an old British East India Company fort and trading post, that has turned into an industrial city of about 6 million people. I went down to a small coastal village called Mamallapuram, a backpacker haven, so slightly touristy, and a about twice as expensive as elsewhere, but it did have some beautiful 7th century temples on the beach. Half the village is designated as a UNSCO World Heritage Site.
Now a bit further down the coast in the old French colonial outpost of Pondicherry. Its a weird infusion of Indian and French culture. The town is set out in wide boulevards, all the streets have French names like - rue Dumas, the cops wear kepis, French style hats. Also the coffee shops actually serve half decent coffee and pain au chocola.

Things Iv'e learnt in India

* Don't ask leading questions like "Is this the way to Chennai." because you'll enevitably get a "yes" and a nod/shake of the head.

* On the flip side, asking for anything generally results in "Yes, no problem."

* Indian bike mechanics are the best in the world. + The quickest & cheapest.

* All Indian coach and bus drivers are homicidal cunts.

* Riding a motorbike with the gearshifter on the wrong side and upsidedown.

* Eating raw chillis, good for the digestion.

* Why have 1 person do a job when you can have 8. (This does not mean things happen 8 times faster, rather the reverse.)

* Indians hav'nt figured out what to do with rubbish, other than dump it in the street/River/Sea.

* The Lonely Planet guidebook is a pile of crap.

* Everything is really cheap.

* Everyday in India, you see somthing hillarious, insane, heartbreaking, breathtaking, ugly or beautiful.

North West Bengal

Kolkata, Park St.

Puri beech

Hello everyone. Sorry I've not posted for a while. Since leaving Darjeeling not much has really happened! Tried to get into the Kingdom of Bhutan- but couldn't because I didn't have a visa- even though the Lonely Planet book of lies said you didn't need one. Oh well only a day wasted. It was then a bit of a nightmare journey down to Kolkata. A mixture of really heavy rain, then i got 'ill'. Completely lost my appitite and couldn't sleep- hence completely knackererd and no bike riding. Luckilly my appitite has returned, ,and i'm back on the curry:)

Finally made it to Kolokata last week. Very cool city, very cosmopolitan. Looks a bit like an old derilict version of London. Got bike serviced+ new front suspension. the old ones were completely shot.

Now about 300 miles down the coast from Kolkata in a place called Puri. Its on the beech and very chilled out. think I might stay here a few days and enjoy the sun:)

Darjeeling

For the past week I've been living in Darjeeling, a hill station famous for its views of the Himalaya. A view that until today was denied to me by some very English weather. Fortunately, the town has plenty of stuff to do and can get pretty lively. The town has a big Ghurka population who want an Independent State. Theres always demonstrations and strikes going on, and the odd political assignation is'nt unheard of either. My local bar that plays Hendix, Stones, Doors etc, has a doorman outside armed with an old Lee Enfield rifle! Not sure why, nowts happened yet, guess Ghurkas just like guns and knives, must be why the British Army like to employ them.



In the Darjeeling Planters Club, with temporary membership! A place with hunting trophies on the wall, tea on the table and a slight wiff of Empire in the air. Ended up playing snooker with some guys that were on 'The Rickshaw Run'. A race in rickshaws from Kerala in the south to Kathmandu! I won, so 1-nil to the bikers:)



Tibetan Refuge, where Tibetan exiles make carpets, textiles and handicrafts.



Young monks. I'd like to think they know at least some kung-fu.



View from Tiger Hill, with Darjeeling in the fore ground and Kanchenjunga in the background. Kanchenjunga is the 3rd highest mountain in the world, and I can confirm that its fucking massive! Its 60miles away in the picture! Also saw Everest, zoom wasn't strong enough.



Me and Kanchenjunga. Apologies for the hat, but its cold in the Himalaya in winter. Who'd have thought it!

Pictures

Puja ceremony at the main ghat, Varanasi.



Ghats, Varanasi. To right of the picture are the burning Ghats, with boats full of wood. The wood is paid for by weight on huge scales at the river bank.



Underneth the Bodi Tree, BodhGaya.



Monks praying at the Mahabodi Temple, BodhGaya.



Darjeeling, with tea plantations on the lower slopes.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone! Hope you all had a good one:)

Well, where to start? Since my last post I've visited a few mad places. Mad, even by Indian standards. After Lucknow, I travelled down to Varanasi, the most important town in the Hindu faith. The town is on the west bank of the Ganga, the main attraction being a series of Ghats (steps that lead down to the waters edge) that run for about a mile. On the Ghats, Hindus perform their rituals, praying, lighting candles, bathing in the Ganga (which this far down the river is more raw sewage than water. Probably healthier having a bath in your own poo. But they seemed to enjoy it)+ the odd game of street cricket.
Varanasi is also a very auspicious place to die, since dying here breaks the cycle of re incarnation. Which means Varanasi has a couple of 'burning' Ghats, where the dead are publicly cremated on an open funeral pyre. Not something you see everyday, not in Leamington Spa anyway. Seeing a pair of feet or a head poking out off a fire is not as shocking as you think. In the context of where its happening, and all the relatives look on it as a celebration, it seems perfectly alright. Bet it tastes like chicken.

Seeing as though its considered 'bad form' to take photos of bodies, here's a picture. Carn't upload any pictures on this computer anyhow.

Well, Varanasi was a bit intense, so after 3 days I made my way to BodhGaya. Its a town famous for being the birthplace of Buddism. In the 6th century BC the Buddha sat under a Bodi Tree and became enlightened. For the past couple of days I've been sitting under the same tree and nothings happened! Although it is entertaining watching Monks 'fight'(in a Buddist way) over the fallen leaves from the revered tree:) BodhGaya is a very peaceful place to spend time. Its the most un-Indian town I've been to so far. The population is mainly made up of monks from around the world- mainly Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, Burma and Thailand. Every Buddist country has its own Temple or monastery built in the native style.

Off to Darjeeling tomorrow for some serious tea drinking.

Best wishes for the New Year everyone:)

Ganga News

Part of the derelict 'Beatles' Ashram, Rishikesh.

The Ganga.

Me, in The Ganga.

Other people, in The Ganga.

Well, after 2 weeks, I finally left Rishikesh. It's a place thats very easy to spend time in. Also got into a routine for the first time. Yoga, Eat, Chill out, Yoga, Eat, Sleep. Anyways, in the end I got the motivation to leave after Christmas.

Now in the capital of Uttar Pradesh- Lucknow, a Muslim city, famous for the Indian Mutiny/Uprising/War of Independence (depending on your political point of view) in 1857. The mutineers/freedom fighters surrounded the British Residency after we got rid of the local prince. 3000 soldiers women and children were then under siege for 8 months. The residency was reduced to rumble and only 1000 odd people survived. And so it goes. Lucknow is the most organised and cosmopolitan city I've visited so far. Lots of posh shops, not many poor people and a Marks&Spencer.

Going to spend New Year here, then head off to Varanasi, the Holiest of Hindu city.

Happy New Year everyone!!