I got to Chennai Egmore train station in good time. The train didn’t. We waited and waited for the platform indicator to appear. A regular user said it’s normally platform four or five. We waited. It was 20 minutes late. Finally, the platform came up. Platform 9. The train was nowhere to be seen. We … Continue reading / view photos French Puducherry
Tag: India
Window shopping in Chennai
Today was a lazy day for me. I left the guest house at about 3.30pm and went to T. Nagar. It’s now “considered the largest shopping district in India by revenue”. There are many shops selling saris and jewellery. To get away from the heat, I decided to check out another shopping area, VR Chennai, a … Continue reading / view photos Window shopping in Chennai
Going east to Chennai
After packing, I had breakfast and was again joined by my new Swiss friend. There was a Belgian who was moving to India to teach. We had a good chat, mainly about nutrition. We were remarkably similar in our eating habits. All of us liked to eat real food and cook our own meals. I … Continue reading / view photos Going east to Chennai
We also have life, do not touch and hurt
On the way back to the hostel last night, I bought some decent muesli and soya milk. I had this for breakfast and got talking to a Swiss woman who’d been travelling for over a year. She was eating dragon fruit and let me taste some. I was expecting it to be tangy, but it … Continue reading / view photos We also have life, do not touch and hurt
Tipu Sultan, Bull Temple, and market
I identified a few places to visit in the south-west of Bangalore. The first was Tipu Sultan’s Palace. This was reached easily using Bangalore’s two metro lines: purple and green. A taxi driver told me a third line was being built. Tipu Sultan (1750-1799) was a ruler of the Kingdon of Mysore. He was responsible … Continue reading / view photos Tipu Sultan, Bull Temple, and market
Culture, commerce, and coffee
I had booked the apartment for three days. The area was fine, but it was quite residential. There was not much happening there. So I decided to move somewhere more central. I’d also discovered that Bangalore has a permanent traffic jam. Getting anywhere by auto or taxi takes a long time. I needed to be … Continue reading / view photos Culture, commerce, and coffee
Bangalore Palace and Champaca Bookstore
Since I had an apartment with a kitchen and fridge, I went out shopping for food. I bought some nuts, fruit, muesli, and soya milk at a small supermarket. At the apartment block, in the lift, I got talking to an Indian man who was travelling with his family. I told him about my experience … Continue reading / view photos Bangalore Palace and Champaca Bookstore
Market madness and a fall
Not unusually, I didn’t know much about my new location, Bangalore. To get me started, I asked ChatGPT to recommend ten things to do in Bangalore. Local markets are always a good way to see a thriving place in India. I picked KR Market. For Bangalore, I’d booked an apartment. This was nice. However, it … Continue reading / view photos Market madness and a fall
Table-thumping, relaxing, and flying
Cath had an early flight to catch. We said goodbye to her at 5.45am. I managed to fall back asleep despite the church music and sermons. This time they didn’t stop after 90 minutes and were still going strong when Helene and I left. We took a tuk tuk into town. I was going to … Continue reading / view photos Table-thumping, relaxing, and flying
Chilling out in Kollam
Whilst Cath and Helene went kayaking on Munroe Island, I hung back at the villa. There was an option to do a tour of the island with the taxi driver who took them there. He’d be just waiting whilst they were on the river. I was tempted to go. However, I’m learning to pace myself. … Continue reading / view photos Chilling out in Kollam