more pictures at kumily periya natural santuary

some flowers from the internet shak outside

this inn makes the best pancakes i have ever eaten and they make it really well and slow :)

me and that wild indian elephant busking its way around.

wild indian elephants at the periya wildlife santuary. note that they have smaller ears compared to the larger african elephants :)

some pictures to follow up

this is the rock fort temple in the middle of the city of trichy. it a wonderful dome on top with 3 levels of temples on the rock. its magnificent.

this is the meenashi temple in madurai and there are 6 levels of walls that separate the outer and inner city, this old city section is massive. that on the top of my hotel room.

this is the palace museum in madurai with a total of 256 pillars. more then half of it was moved to trichy and what was left was already massive

the gandhi museum in madurai where they keep the khadi or the loincloth that he wore when he was assisinated in new dehli.

from trichy to madurai to kumily

sorry for the long lost of updates , was so busy running around all these cities that took me totally offline.
once again from trichy , i went off to madurai where there was the magnificient and oldest temple in india , the sri meenawamy temple. there were 6 suctums and 5 towers. the view was magnificient and historic.
also in madurai, there was the gandhi musuem where there were lots of anti british or anti subpression notes and they had the famous khadi that gandhi used and wore.
madurai was beautiful and also touristy too.

moved from madurai and i am now in kumily and thats the end of my tamil nadu trip and i am in new territory in kerala now. kumily is like a hill side resort and its a whole lot cooler here. also checked into this really cute lodging and think im going to enjoy my stay here .

through out the whole journey, yes i took the public buses and i must say it was an experience to behold. so much things to see and i particularly like the trees over here in india as it is not so green with a little fading yellow. thats what made it so magical and different. its really beautiful

ok will post pictures:)

wishing everyone a great week ahead ! miss ya all!

now in trichy , an area with temples including the fort hill temple

i endured a hellish 1 hours plus train ride from tanjore to trichy(picture super crowded overloaded train in india) and here i am in trichy , the transport hub and the central of the region of tamil nadu.

there are 3 ancient temples over here and i hope to see all of it in no time but will see how it goes as would love to take in the sights of the 3 temple areas of trichy.

it is really hot now and i think i will go see for anything to eat keek :)
also will plan tomorrows trip to see how it goes.

ok thats all foks , till i can get the pictures up

kollywood ( yes not bollywood or hollywood) drama at my guest house.

today will be the last day i will be in puducherry and well was i greeted by a huge surprise.

planning to head to my guest house at 11am and was surpised that there was a traffic jam to my guest house and guess what i was greeted by a full host of camera crew and film people. wow i thought it was a bollywood production but was told that it was a kollywood production which is something like a south indian production.

my host told me that they were also trying to break the guiness book of world record by filming the whole movie in 6 days. yes 6 days ! cool !

i took some pictures of the crew and the area but was told to switch off the flash , but they were efficient that in an event of 1 hour , they were off to a new location and evacuated from the area.

this shows that this guest house holds a signficant history in puducherry. im glad that i used a little more cash on this lovely coloraded red and yellow guesthouse.

thank you puducherry ! :)

waiting for the 5pm bus to tanjore.

day 2 in pondicherry.

woke up really early and went off to take a long walk and now im resting in the guesthouse and going to change into a least expensive room.

went around to see for any food and at last settled for the le cafe as i couldn't find anything to eat then.

think going to rest up now and then head to the bar called the asian house . haha going to see if they have the secret tea aka kingfisher there toight.

heading off to tangore (thanjavur) tomorrow and going to get the tickets later.

will miss this wonderful place with its wonderful people.

sorry about the no pictures update as this computer somehow cannot read my super HD 8gig card lol .

only words update then :)

keep you posted then =)

day 1 in pondocherry and with lots of memories.

today was a really tiring day for me as i walked and i walked and i walked.

was kept busy the whole day and i must say that really weared me out.

however the charm of the place really adored me.

some houses were so cute i really thought i was in france.

the roads were also really well organised on the france quater and also really charming.

went around the ashrams and temples and the auroville which is like a spiritual center for meditation and achievement.

met a really nice indian man who actually was born here but migrated to france only to come back here fishing after this retirement. that guy was great though his english was quite basic.

an indian france immgrant fishing on the banks of his home town in india . how wonderfull can that get ?

met also the guide who worked in singapore for 2 years and was really honest and friendly , but the tour was really rush and did not have the time to really chat with him.

ate at this really nice restaurant cafe france style and spurge on food and tea and more auybetic tea. spent almost 400 rupees on that , and i felt it was all worth it was the views were fantastic and the wind was really great.

the food here is classy and really great. will go see if there are any hidden treasures here in pondicherry that i can discover :)

its all about discovery.

now in pondicherry.

just arrived and found out that the guesthouse i am using have got free internet access which is really cool !

this guesthouse is really amazing , with lots of france architecture and lots of favour. really loved this place when i saw it.

its really vintage man ! but the costs i over spent on this so have to really watch what i spend on lol.

day 4 of chennai at the CD and the croc bank

this was a great man , who is into 2 years on the road handling crocodiles at the crocodile bank.

a magnificent custume at DK

yup , this is all the touristy staff , but i cannot bare not to do it as it shows the best the country can offer.

am now at this internet cafe and why do everyone think that i am japanese ! the indian guy wanted to give me a computer with japanese input and i said i want a middle more comfortable one. it was hilarious ! :)

also i have learned to tip properly in india , i have noticed that whatever tip that you give at a restaurant or at a hotel , the indians were really appreciative , no matter how small the tip is.

day 3 of chennai at the mallampurum shore temple , five rathnas and the ajuna

with ben and claudia , their 1 year journey of adventure has just started and i was the first traveller they have met, all the best in their travels

this is inside the facade of the shore temple in mallampuram and this structure is one of the oldest in india and serves as a blueprint for later indian temples. there were 6 but only 1 remained after the indian tsunami. dated back to 6th century AD

this is at the five rathnas which were a fine example of early indian scruptures.

these different animals were devoted to the different dieties and gods. this one if i am not wrong is to the hindu god siva.

more photos for third day

at the marina beach , the longest unbroken beach in india

this is a monument to honour one of their prime ministers

am elephant skeleton exhibition at the chennai government museum

an excellent hindu exhibit.

here goes

the third day was more serene and i went to the government museum which was fantastic and also when to the fort saint george musuem which at least outside as it was pass opening time.

walked all the way down the super straight road and say many momuments of the past national heros and revolutionalists till i had a headache . yes that is how streeped in history indian is. remembered was chatting with a guy at lunch and he had wanted to bring his son to study in singapore and he said that he was actually thinking whether to let him study there. we chatted for abit and we talked about india and singapore and stuff. noting that india is so diverse and so many people have got different ideals that it is almost impossible to rule the country. thats why the british left. i broke in a fit of laughter and just played along. omg hahah

watched the sunset over the city in chennai is really heart warming. the beauty of the sun , sand and the sea really gives me a sense of enlightenment and fulfilment.

day 2 extended thoughts

this is the old colonial british london cab , these are the vintage cabs that i would really love to sit and im on one ! cool !!!!

beautiful marina beach , lots of people flying kite and lovers mingling around. really fantastic

this is the bloody temple probably fake tout that i was so pissed off with , i only gave him some cash as it was in a holy place and i didn'y want to make a scene and he got the cheek to take photo with me haahahh , but it all about the experience kekekek

this is the poor old man , i really felt sorry for him and i gave him the t-shirt i was wearing , and the other tioman one , and also 500 rupee. i wish him well and he did play my tour guide all this time ok . so he was a good man

i am now in a little run down internet cafe in chennai india and i must say this was a hell of a good time as well as bad time. am living in this very spartan hotel with attached bed room which was still ok by my standards.

two days in chennai and i have so many stories to tell ! i will be using chennai as my base tour to mallampuram where they have the shore temple and then travelling down to puducherry to stay for a few nights ( read that puducherry is a little france quatat with lots of Ashrams , or enlightenment teaching schools). i am still travelling by myself and i learnt that lone travelling has got lots of challenges, all by myself and no one to rely on , but i like it ! this way i can meet as many people i want and do as many things that i can. the biggest thing about chennai is the traffic , followed by the proverty of the city. it was really sad seeing street children walking aimlessly along the road and when i saw that with my own eyes , my heart bled and something tells me that i must one day do something for them.

second the traffic !! wowo we wa ! i love the traffic ! no government , when i cross the road , i just wack and anyhow criss cross man ! this is really an experience and i am really having fun challenging the motorists to come knock me down ! haha , but then the traffic is really quite safe in my terms so no worries.

2 days in chennai with full of thoughts and shock

2 days in chennai and i cannot explain the things i have seen and all the thoughts that are in my mind.

summing it up , the feeling is one of amazement , shock , surprise , empathay , frustration , angryness, sadness and surrealness.

summing this up there are a thousand things i want to say , the people that i have met , the experiences these few days have taught me that being there is anything better then watching on tv.

the proverty and the children in chennai made me really realise the reality of the country . the touts which are everywhere really annoy me. the beggers who you cannot avoid when walking down chennai. the people who are good hearted and just want to earn a decent living. the temple cheats that are always using a blessing to cheat the unsuspecting tourists. the culture , history that dazzles me. the chennai heat that constantly gives me a headache. the poor people of chennai always looking for ways to earn your money. the full onslaught of the culture of the place. is all really over whelming me !

this is a place to love , hate , ignore , empathize and feel all over agian.

and for me chennai will occupy this special place in my heart.

met many people

a kind hearted man who guided me at the airport and on the plane who was there to visit his relatives who are having a wedding.

the airport taxi guy who was the same age as me chatting and saying that it is hard to make a living in chennai and asked for opportunities in singapore

the auto rickshaw old man who was really loud and persitant but also very pitiful , who made me an accessory to his way to earn.

the temple tout who badly resmerise as a genuine tour guide who i was angryly shoved away.

all the people i have met and made this 2 days memorable.

also the person who is always on my mind which i will not say who it is.

till another post ! :)

first photo and a preview of my trip

first photo of my "mess", plus equipment , air tickets , calc , guidebook. and yes my passport ! india here i come =)

introductory post

hi my friends , this will be my first post and stay tuned as i will be going to update it once the date of my departure comes closer