Warning: Sleep deprived rant ahead
Dear India, please stop polluting the air with noise. Just as you are ruining the beautiful environment with waste, the serenity of your country is being destroyed by loud noises. Perhaps if you considered others when doing things you would choose not to make a racket at 3am when checking in to a guesthouse. Perhaps you would not let your kids run screaming through the halls. You would not argue over room prices in the middle of the night. You would not blare the radio outside people's rooms. Perhaps then, foreigners, and probably more restrained locals, would be more likely to stay more than a fortnight in your country before wanting to get out. Your courtesy would be greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Lauren and Chris.
Also, horns that make prolonged, multiple beeps with just one push should be banned. So too should cars which, when reversing, play stupid high pitched tunes.
After cursing the entire population of India throughout the night we considered whether India could possibly be the first country we have visited where we may leave thinking less of the people than when we arrived. We hope that it is just the lack of sleep talking. In the day time, we are greeted in general by friendly helpful locals but at night, the inconsiderate nature becomes more and more apparent. The man we bought our Ali Baba pants off summed up much of the male mentality when he told us "I would like to rip you off, but my wife won't let me." There seems to be an air of self importance and arrogance that pervades many of the local men. During the day, it is bearable as the worst that you have to endure is getting ripped off. But, when they mess with our sleep...so help them. We were up three times during the night to try and shut them up to no avail.
Rant over.
We woke and resolved to try and make the most of our time in Kodai. The man at reception promised that today is the last of the public holidays surrounding Republic Day and as such it should quiet down by this afternoon. We set off, encouraged by this fact but there were sooooo many people, everywhere!
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| PT Street Market |
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| Spices, PT Street Market |
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| Grapes saleswoman, PT Street Market |
We rode into town and stumbled upon a fruit and veg market so we took advantage, gathering some cheap bananas, pineapple, grapes and samosas as well as a knife (to cut our fruit along our journey to come.) There were countless foods we did not recognise which made the whole experience more fun. Piles upon piles of food, including mounds of garlic and other spices helped us understand why the food here is so amazing. Thanks to my Bob Marley shirt, and possibly my pants, we were offered both grass and mushrooms at the market. We were also offered weird bottles of what we thought at the time was the illegal alcohol that can turn people blind. Turns out it was harmless organic honey. Still, thanks but no thanks. Instead, because Kodai is big on homemade chocolates, we stocked up on some of those for only 30 INR for 100g. A much cheaper high. We had plans to hike to Pillar Rock but, upon discovering the "hike" was actually just a road, we thought better of tackling the traffic on foot and took Big Red instead. I think coming from Australia, and in particular having experienced places like The Grampians National Park, we have big expectations when it comes to enjoying natural beauty. So, after fighting buses, trucks, cars, bikes and horses along the way we were disappointed to find Pillar Rock packed with bus loads of people and stalls selling all kinds of crap. We seemed to be as much of a tourist landmark as the rock itself as we posed for photo after photo.
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| Kodai's newest tourist attraction: Lauren |
We have noticed that most people here seem to lack any desire to walk anywhere for enjoyment. Pillar Rock therefore would have been much more enjoyable, and quieter, if the only option had been to actually hike the 14km round trip as we had intended.
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| Pillar Rock |
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| Lunch and their laundry vs our laundry |
Not wanting to tease the monkeys any more than we already had by eating a samosa out at the rock, we headed back to our guesthouse and enjoyed a late lunch/even later breakfast on the balcony of our while we watched people do laundry in the river.
P.S. As a general rule, please do not empty your child's dirty nappy onto a wall next to Big Red and just leave it there.
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| Cricket match, Kodaikanal |
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| Kodaikanal |
After relaxing in our room for a hour or so we took Big Red back into town. On our way we delved into the backstreets of Kodai in an attempt to capture views of the town which looks as thought it's melting down the side of the hill. We were stopped by a man who told us his story with tears running down his cheeks (or were his eyes perpetually watering?) before we shook his hand and moved on. The markets were still bustling and music pumped while a game of cricket went on. Next we headed down to the lake for a little paddle boat ride. The wait for a boat was frustrating thanks to the lack of any kind of queueing system. Well, I guess there was some kind of system...push in front of everyone else, regardless of how long they have been waiting. The British sure didn't leave behind their knack for queueing.
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| Boat rides, Kodaikanal Lake |
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| Ginger chilli boneless chicken. |
We enjoyed a romantic paddle around the lake, escaping the hustle and bustle of the city and basking in the holiday vibe that the locals were beaming with. It would have been interesting to check out Kodai on a regular day.
After only a short discussion, we decided to head back to Royal Tibet for dinner. Neither of us needed much convincing as it was ridiculously good last night. To while away time until it opened for dinner, we took a stroll towards Coakers Walk, choosing not to pay to enter as the photos we had taken earlier easily matched the views we imagined we'd see from Coakers.
After sufficient time had passed we returned to Royal Tibet. We tried to be adventurous in our food ordering but just couldn't tear ourselves away from last night's treats. Beef momos, that amazing ginger chilli chicken that has put all other food to shame and, this time, a chicken chowmein just to show how we totally live life on the edge. We soothed our sore throats with ginger, lemon and honey tea before heading home to plan our next few days.
Back at our guesthouse we were pleased to hear that most, if not all, other residents had buggered off and that we might actually get a quiet night for some serious sleeping action.
So long Kodai. Your spices, chocolate, oils and honey have proved intriguing and delicious.
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