Monday, January 17 2009
It didn’t start the way I wanted.First, I missed my flight to Chennai. When I made my reservation in Bangkok I wrote the departure time down wrong. When I arrived at the airport my flight was ready to leave. I didn’t have time to get to the gate. I lost the rest of the day trying to reconfirm another flight, first at the airport and later back in Bangkok.
Wednesday, January 20, 2009
I arrived at the airport early for the next scheduled flight two days later, but I was still worried because I was flying standby. After waiting around for more than 3 hours, I was finally given a boarding pass. I had to race through immigration. On the plane I found my seat in the last row.
Three and a half hours later I arrived in Chennai in southern India. I went outside into the hot, smoggy air and got a taxi to my hotel, The Kanchi. It turned out to be the worse place I stayed on this trip - the toilet didn’t flush, there was no hot water and it was way too noisy. I told myself, “It’s just for one night, Doug.”
After checking in I went looking for a travel agent. I found one a few blocks away and made a reservation to fly south to Madurai the next day. This departure time I wrote down carefully and then doubled checked it later.
My next problem was I was unable to make a hotel reservation in Madurai, although I called every hotel in my guide book – well, I didn’t call the really expensive ones. I hate landing in a city without a first-night hotel. I figured something would turn up but was still bothered that every place was full: was there a festival going on? What would I find when I landed?
Thursday, January 21, 2009
On the flight to Madurai I discussed my lack of a hotel with the guy in the next seat. He lived in Madurai. He consulted his wife and then offered me a name: the Germanus Hotel. They both seemed to think it would be a good choice.At the Madurai airport I found a representative of the Germanus Hotel. He and I bargained a bit and finally he offered me a room for 2000 Rupees ($42.) That was a bit over my budget, so I said I would take a look and maybe stay one night.
The Germanus turned out to be a big, modern place located on the corner of the ring road around Madurai and a main artery leading into the center. After I checked in I walked around the neighborhood to get a sense of what was there.
The area was built up with lots of small businesses strung out along both roads. There were tea stands, bike repair shops and food stores. It was a fun if somewhat dusty place to walk. As always in India, people were friendly and often wanted to talk or have their picture taken. I spent the rest of the day getting to know India again.
The first few days in India are always a bit of a shock. It is such an intense place. There is so much going on - so many things demanding your attention - it takes a bit of time to sort it all out and relax with it. I hadn’t been there in four years.
Friday, January 22, 2009
Next morning after breakfast I told the hotel I wanted to stay another night and then found an auto rickshaw to take me into the old city. I had visited Madurai in 2004 and wanted to return to some of the places I liked best. I had a better camera and I wanted to shoot some of the temples again.
The old city and the Sri Meenakshi temple were about 15 minutes away. I had heard that the Sri Meenakshi had undergone renovation but when I arrived I saw that the work was far from done. In fact, I was told it would go on for another two years. All the gopuras - the entrance towers – were covered in scaffolding. Inside was no better: the walls and ceiling were covered too.
I didn’t stay long: the pictures I already had were better than any I could take now. I walked out into the old city and was almost immediately approached by a bicycle rickshaw driver. He offered me a city tour. I said no several time but he persisted. Finally, I started listening to him. He spoke pretty good English and it seemed he might be a good guide, so I bargained with him for a one hour tour.
Up on the seat of his rickshaw, in the blazing sun and fumy traffic, he kept a running dialog as he peddled me along. “This is the Palace. You want to see it, boss? Next, we go to the market, ok boss?” Slowly by taking me several different places he discovered what I was interested in. He was a very smart operator.
First, we rode to several tourist sights and when I didn’t show any interest he took me to the river. There I got off the rickshaw to take pictures of people washing their bikes and auto rickshaws. Nearby people were washing clothes and even themselves. When they had finished washed a long sari, women would hold it up to dry in the breeze. It looked liked a long, brightly-colored flag.
We also visited an area where cotton was being woven on noisy looms. Then we stopped in an industrial area where aluminum pots were being turned – equally noisy. Finally, we stopped at a banana market. My short tour was getting longer.
This was Friday and we were heading into a long weekend: Monday was Republic Day, the Indian 4th of July. I ask the driver to take me to a bank or exchange place as I was low on rupees. At the place he chose, I assured myself the rate was good. Then I gave them $300. When the paperwork was filled out I was told to wait 5 minutes, they needed to get the rupees.
This, of course, was 5 Indian minutes. After about 10 minutes I got up and walked around a bit. “Have a seat,” I was advised. After about 20 minutes I went out to talk to my driver. “They haven’t got the money yet,” I told him. He just laughed and shook his head in that odd side-to-side Indian way.
This delay seemed so typical of India. What is easy everywhere else turns out to be complicated in India. Nowhere else would they have taken my money if they didn’t have the equivalent amount in exchange. In the end I got my money.
What I planned as a one hour tour by then had turned into nearly three hours but it had been perfect. I seen a lot of places I wouldn’t have on my own. Finally, I had the driver take me to an auto rickshaw which then drove me back to my hotel. That was enough sightseeing for one day.
I had lunch at the hotel and took a shower and then a nap – it had been a long, hot trip. In the evening when it was cooler I went to send some email and then walked around the hotel area some more. I had become fond of the Germanus despite the price and decided to stay one more night.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
The next morning I got another auto rickshaw to the nearby town of Thiruparankundram. It is home to a cave temple with a spectacular gopuras set against a beige rock-hill. There was no scaffolding here, so I took lots of pictures and then walked around the little town a bit. Near the temple stands sold mostly religious items like flower garlands and pictures of Hindu gods.I had the auto rickshaw driver drop me back in the center of Madurai where I walked around the market and visited several places I have seen before. I found two men who had built a fire under a large caldron and were boiling rice. Loud music was playing nearby. Maybe there was a festival going on. I did stay to find out – it was too hot.
Lately my trips have been less pre-planned. It sounds nice to be spontaneous and say I’ll decide what to do when I get there. The reality is it simply means I haven’t done my homework. That research about hotels, sights and transportation has to be done sometime.
After lunch I went to an Internet place and look for information on hotels. I was going to Trichy. As I had been there before I had an idea what I wanted to do but I still needed some information. The Internet place was hot and stuffy and I tried to get done as quickly as I could. By the time I left I was covered in sweat.
Back at the hotel I talked to the travel agent about a car to Trichy – I’m not fond of Indian buses. I also made a plane reservation to fly from Trichy back to Chennai. Then I called a few hotels and made a reservation. With my planning done I took the evening off. I drank a beer in my room, read a bit and then went out to take pictures of the chaotic evening traffic. I just love how India is always in motion.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
At 8:30 I left Madurai for Trichy, also know as Tiruchirappalli. It was about 3 hours north. It has several interesting sight: a temple on an enormous rock in the center of the old city, called the Rock Fort, and a nearby town with the enormous Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple.The car dropped me at the Femina Hotel. It was a rambling and slightly rundown place close to the bus station in the southwest part of town. I had stayed there on my previous trip and the only real change was the addition of a large supermarket next door which was convenient for buying snacks.
After checking in I had lunch and then walked around the neighborhood a bit. I like to get to know the area around my hotel. I look for stores I might shop at and for Internet places. It was furiously hot so I decided to go back to the hotel and wait a bit before going to the Rock Fort.
About 3:00 I got an auto rickshaw to the center of town and walked, barefoot, up the 344 hot stairs to the Rock Fort. Really, it’s not a fort at all. There is small but very popular temple at the top. From there you can see out over the city in all directions. It was also cooler up there with a steady breeze blowing.
I stayed there about an hour and then descended into the old town for more walking. The street had come alive by then and there was a lot to photograph. People were shopping, eating ice cream and walking around. When I tired of it all, I headed back to the hotel and went looking for a “Wine Shop.”
In Tamil Nadu there seem to be just two places to get a drink, either in a “Permit Room” or from a “Wine Shop.” The former is usually in a basement, or feels like it being closed and dark. I have never found them inviting. They are full of drinking men and smoke. The later is usually a small stall on some back street that sells alcohol by the bottle. I prefer to stock up there and drink in my room.
Monday, January 26, 2009
I got a late start the next day. Around 10:30 I took an auto rickshaw to the nearby town of Srirangam. It is home to the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, the largest Hindu temple complexes in India. The temple is surrounded by six walled enclosures. The outer most are taken up with businesses and homes; the intermost with the temple itself. You enter each enclosure through a giant gopuras, covered with colorful sculpture of Hindu gods.I walked into the temple compound along with hundreds of pilgrims. The street was lined with vendors selling temple offerings and religious items along with food and other daily necessities. Motor bike and bicycle rickshaws zipped by in each direction. The hot sun blazed on my head.
Near the innermost enclosure was an elephant giving blessing. The faithful and tourist both were lined up holding out donations. The elephant then make a cup of it upturned trunk where the donations were dropped. The elephant next gently touched the giver on the top of the head. I love watching this ceremony and stood for quite awhile taking pictures. Of course, I got a bless myself.
This was as far into the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple as non-Hindus could go, so I turned around and headed back to the first gopura. Outside it I got a bicycle rickshaw down to the river - the city of Srirangam is actually on an island in the middle of the Kaveri River.
Near the river was a small pavilion where beggars were lined up waiting for handouts. Behind that was an area where priests gave advice and blessings. And finally in the river Indians were washing themselves and their clothes. It was another great place to take pictures.
In the afternoon I went back to the Rock Fort area and walked around the market. There were vendors selling everything from pots and pans to ripe pomegranates, from lottery tickets to flower garlands. I took a bunch of picture and then headed back to the hotel where I spent the evening.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Around noon the next day I took a short flight back to Chennai. I was on my way back to Thailand but first I wanted to spend a few days in Mamallapuram. From the prepaid taxi stand at the airport, I got a taxi for the one hour ride south.Mamallapuram is home to several small temples and has a constant stream of pilgrims. They arrive by bus and walk around in large groups, often dressed in the same color. To the tourists Mamallapuram is known more for its laidback atmosphere. It’s on the coast with a long but dirty beach. Not much more that eating, drinking and sleeping go on there: that’s what I wanted.
The town itself is made of a few dusty roads and a lot of inexpensive guesthouses. Beyond that there seem to be more gift shops that anything else. Most seem to be owned by men from Cashmere. They would set in front of their shops all day inviting tourists in. For the most part the tourists seem to be immune to their invitations. I don’t know how they stay in business.
Mamallapuram is also well stocked with Internet places. On recent trips I have started calling my friends with Skype instead of emailing them. I suspect they would prefer email but the surprise when they find out it’s me calling from afar is a real delight.
I spent my final few days in India walking around Mamallapuram, visited the temples and the rock carvings behind the town. A few days later I took an overnight flight back to Bangkok and then traveled up north to Chiang Mai for the final part of my month-long trip.
Ann Arbor, Michigan
March 2009
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