And I'm off to West Bengal !!!

At breakneck speed a new holiday has been planned, a new spreadsheet itinerary created and new adventures mapped out. For ease of time and cost I've now booked a connecting flight from Dhaka to Kolkata and will be meeting my Aussie friends for an adventure in West Bengal. Thank goodness that you can now get your Indian visa online, saving a freezing cold early start queuing round the block.

The countdown has begun

What a week!!! Amid the constant buying of hand gel, tissues and many  other essential items for travelling in Asia there's a new worry. The world is such a politically and socially unstable place and the threat of terrorism becomes a factor when planning travel. Still it's full steam ahead  and we're looking at alternative destinations and it's all about being sensible and safe. This is going to be a challenging and amazing adventure! 

Yet another amazing trip in Incredible India

Incredible India, it has been a pleasure and an absolute privilege to travel around  Tamil Nadu and see it's amazing temples, palaces and hill stations. But as ever it's the people that have made this trip so special. Thank you to everyone who pointed me in the right direction when I was lost, fed me on the long train journeys,  helped me get off at the right stop on local buses, gave me rides on their motor bikes, wanted me to take their photo and greeted me with warmth and excitement that I had chosen to travel around Tamil Nadu alone. In so many ways the richness of India is overwhelming. This is my sixth visit and of course I will come back, there's so much more to explore! 

I'm sorry I was sick on your saddle

Oh no I've been stuck with a sickness bug - so it's a quiet day for me! Plain dosa for breakfast and sugary tea, then a slow excursion to the temple on the top of the hill and then to the other side of town to Tipu Sultans ruined city. After sipping my drink I was so sick, unfortunately puking on the saddle next to me for the donkey rides! Nothing that a splash of water can't fix. It's inevitable that you'll pick up one bug or two when you are travelling around. I just need sleep, which hopefully I'll get on my overnight train to Chennai and plenty of water - believe me it could be so much worse !!!

women at work

Yesterday I set a photography challenge of documenting women at work. Of course this seems a simple task, as there are women at work everywhere, but not all want to be photographed just going about their everyday business. Firstly I headed to the local market to see all the fruit and veg sellers and it soon became apparent that the more lucrative butchery and fish selleing were the male domain. Then I walked along the back streets and found a small production line of four women along with their children. By the woman is a pile of sheep lower legs. They had to be firstly boiled and burnt and then scrapped to get all the hair off, then hacked up so they could be used in cooking. The butchers waste became someone else's industry and income. These hooves and shins were not wasted. India is cramped with entrepreneurs. There's seldom a chain shop, just small holdings selling independently, from the fruit seller with their bike, to the flower garland seller by the temple and the millions of small shops throughout the high street there's a market of 1.3 billion people to sell to!!!

Would you like to sit in the corner?

No I bloody well wouldn't. At the best of times no one knows what to do with the lone female. You are often asked "would you like to sit in the corner? And this just happened to me at breakfast! I've now splashed out and am staying in a huge beautiful hotel in Mysore, my room is so huge it has a desk, air con and mini bar. Believe me this is not my usual travel style, but a treat for the end of my travels. As the Indian economy improves and the wealth of individuals increases then their aspirations do in line with this. This hotel is full of affluent Indian tourists, which is great to see, but also a tour of dizzy elderly Americans, who judging from their comments really should not have been allowed past passport control. Would I like to sit in the corner? No way, I want to be in the centre of it all!!!  Actually I would prefer to be in my usual class of hotel, where they knew my name, talked to me as a person and not just a the guest of room 115, and were not bound by the rules! Don't worry, I'll make the most of my time here, must dash as my personally cooked omelette has just been delivered to my table along with my requested cold coffee!

Someone has turned the temperature down

Thank goodness, as the 28 degree humid heat was getting unbearable! These hill stations were established by the British to escape the oppressive heat of the plains in the summers. They relocated govt for those hot months and enjoyed a climate reminiscent to England. Now I need a blanket at bed time and not a fan and my shoes and fleece have ventured out from being stuffed in the bottom of the rucksack!