SOUTHERN INDIA

BRNO – BOMBAY – COIMBATORE (6.-7. 7. 2003)

Our trip started fresh in the morning. In order to make it for the 7am flight from Vienna, we had to get up at 4am . We were happy to have Marek’s parents give us a ride across the border. We changed flights in London and landed in Bombay after midnight . We decided that there is no point to look for a hotel. We stayed and slept at the airport (along with many others). At 8am , we continued to Coimbatore , where we were awaited by our friend Annapoorani (in India known as Swetha) and her farther. For the next several days, we were fully taken care of by our great hosts. We even stayed at a nice hotel that we predict to be the most upscale accommodation of our entire world trip ($40 suite with A/C and a view of the city and surrounding mountains).

COIMBATORE - WEDDING (8.-11. 7. 2003)

Swetha’s wedding, which we were so fortunate to attend, was an amazing experience. We were the only western guests and everybody was very nice to us. We tried to be respectful and fit in. We would like to write a little bit about it separately later.

Before the wedding, Jitka witnessed Mehandi (body decoration) of the bride and had one hand painted herself. With Swetha’s sister help, we bought ourselves some Indian clothes. We (especially Jitka) received quite a few compliments from wedding guests. The wedding lasted two days (down from historical five) – July 8 and 9 – filled with colorful rituals. Both men and women wore pretty traditional dresses and kept changing several times a day (well, mostly women did). There was food served three times a day. All meals were excellent. Everybody wanted to see how we were going to deal with spicy south Indian food and the habit of serving it on banana leaves and eating it with hands only. We had no problems adjusting and the food was great.

After the wedding, we stayed for a few more days and relaxed. We also visited a temple with Swetha’s family and her husband Karthik.

OOTY, NILGIRI HILLS (12.-14.7. 2003)

At four o’clock in the morning, we were sitting in a rickshaw heading for a train station. Not that we would particularly like the early morning departures, but we wanted to catch the one-a-day mountain train to Ooty, an administration center of Nilgiri Hills north of Coimbatore. The train is one of the three narrow-gauge mountain trains in India . Till these days, the wooden train is pushed up the hill by an old steam-engine locomotive. The steep 50km journey to Ooty (elev. 2,250m) took 5 hours, but it was worth it. There were wonderful views on the rolling hills and deep valleys of the highest mountain range in southern India .

First day in Ooty, we took a bus to Doda Betta, the highest mountain in Nilgiri Hills (elev. 2,640 m) and hiked the last 3km up to the top. Nice views, even though somewhat limited due to clouds and short rainfall (yes, it was the rainy season in India ). The 6km hike back down to Ooty was even more interesting. The trail went through a steep rain forest and a eucalyptus grove followed by fields and several villages down in the valley. The villagers were very nice and kids wanted us to take their photo. Back in Ooty, we relaxed in a nice botanical garden after the hike.

There are four mountain tribes still living in the Nilgiri Hills. We wanted to visit the villages of the Toda tribe near Ooty and learn about their history and culture. We hired a Toda guide for a one-day trek in the tribal reservation. As unexpected things always happen, there was a death in the Toda tribe the day before our planned visit and our guide was able to obtain permission for us to attend a traditional full-day Toda funeral. It was an unbelievable experience. We are going to write more about it, so watch our special story section for more details.

HAMPI (16.-18.7. 2003)

We gave up on our original plan to visit the Mudumalai National Park , where most lucky visitors get to see wild elephants and tigers. As we learned, it is difficult for foreigners to obtain a permit to enter the park. We decided to visit the ancient city of Vijayanagar near the village of Hampi instead.

We took a morning bus to Mysore . The bus passes through two parks, so we at least got to see a few elephants, unique white-dotted deer and monkeys from the road. While Mysore has a lot to offer (the Golden Palace, several remarkable temples and Buddhist communities in surrounding hills), we did not have time to make a stop there and undertook an all night train journey through Bangalore to Hospet, which is only ½ hour bus ride from Hampi.

We spent two days in Hampi walking and bike-riding among the ruins of the once magnificent Vijayanagar city, the capital of a south-Indian Hindu empire. The history and architecture of this place definitely made a long-lasting impression on both of us. (More details are coming in the special story section.) The laid-back village of Hampi with only a few tourists was a very relaxing place and we really did not want to leave. The surrounding hills made of huge boulders only underline the special atmosphere - almost as if one was on a different planet where the time stopped several hundred years ago.

BOMBAY (19.-20.7. 2003)

It took us 24 hours to get from Hampi to Bombay by train. Even though we slept through most of the journey, we were very tired (and dusty) when we arrived. A shower and bed in a room with A/C felt really good. We only spent one full day in Bombay before our departure to Bangkok . A flu forced Jitka to spend the whole day in the hotel room. Marek took a walk around the city and its markets, visited the famous Gate of India and the shore of the Arabian sea . Our flight to Thailand took off traditionally at 4am on the 21st of July.

NOTE ABOUT INDIA

India is known among backpackers to be the most difficult country to visit. Almost anywhere you go, it is noise, stinky and filthy. Lack of organization and reliable service does not make travel any easier. In addition, one stumbles across poverty and unbelievably insufficient living conditions all over the place. On the other hand, if a visitor managed to accept or ignore it all (or more likely just survive these annoyances while in transit from one nice place to the next), he or she would find India to be a country with very rich cultural heritage and most interesting customs.

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India

Our route

Population: 1,045,845,200
Area: 3,165,596  km²

Population growth: 1.51 %
GDP per capita: $450

Literacy rate: 73%