We started the day by chowing down on the provided buffet breakfast of curries, various Indian breads, chocolate flakes cereal and fruit. After deciding not to hang out at the hotel and get our 2040 rupees worth we thought we would instead give Trichy another chance to impress us.
We went down stairs to meet up with Big Red and found that unfortunately, he was still tired from yesterday and did not want to start. Eventually all three of us headed a few kilometres north to Ammamandapam a small but very busy temple and bathing ghat. Only, there was no water so the signs that warned of dangerous quick sand were probably relevant to another time of year. While there was no bathing there was still a barber giving cut throat shaves, an elephant touching people on the head, people praying, sitting and begging which all combine to create a whole lot of colourful commotion. In searching for another of Trichy's temples we stumbled upon some impressive archways under which ran a busy bazaar. By this stage we were running short of time and the sun was heating up so we bailed on the temple, went back to our hotel, packed up our things and set off for Kodaikanal.
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| Dirty, dusty, stinking hot Indian roads |
We made good progress on the mostly smooth roads and developed a good system where I act as navigator and Chris worries about getting us safely through the traffic. After 80-100km the road became a little challenging, blasting us with red dust and making us thankful to have closed in helmets. By this stage we seriously needed to take a break, get out of the relentless sun and rest our bums. While Big Red is very comfortable, there's only so long you can sit on a motorbike. Finding shade on this road was near impossible. We rode for kilometres looking for any tiny patch of shade to give our exposed, burning arms a rest but found nothing. After 10km or more of searching for a place to stop we found shelter in the shadow of a concrete shrine.
Thankfully, the hot, shoddy road didn't last too long and we were back on the smooth tarmac before long and, more importantly, the amount of shade seemed to be on the increase. As we rode, hills began to jut out of landscape in the distance and were made more dramatic by the vast plains through which we had ridden for the past few days. Once we turned off the main road and onto the road that would take us to Kodaikanal, things really started to change.
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| The road to Kodaikanal |
The road twisted and turned and every corner seemed to have a "dangerous curve" or "sound your horn" sign. It's amazing how many "sound horn" signs we have seen. On the back of most trucks and Tuk Tuks this advice is painted on and suddenly all the beeping makes sense. Chris now seems to have honking down to a fine art. He is effectively teaching the locals to drive, one honk at a time. For instance, don't overtake on a railway crossing. Don't overtake on a blind corner. Don't overtake a vehicle that is already overtaking another vehicle, especially on a corner. Honking is not the same as slowing down, be it for a corner, pedestrian, intersection or oncoming vehicle. Honking does not replace indicating which dirction you intend to move with your blinkers. Flashing your headlights, like honking, is not the same as slowing down.
We took the road slowly, especially after seeing a smashed up car being towed by a rope down the hill which, in itself, appeared to be another accident waiting to happen.
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| Not as unimpressed as she looks |
We must have passed more than a hundred monkeys as they lined the road, snacking on people's leftovers. We stopped for bum breaks and took in the "free Tibet" graffiti which had popped up out of nowhere. As we increased in altitude the road quality diminished and the temperature in the shade dropped significantly. We had boarded Big Red in Trichy sweating, thinking it was possibly the hottest day yet. By the time we arrived in Kodaikanal we had reached an altitude of 2000m above sea level and it was cold! Jumpers and beanies cold!
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| Kodaikanal Lake |
Underdressed, we found the lake and soaked up the dying sun rays as we watched couples and families paddle around on boats. It was then time to find some accommodation. Wisely, we set off back out of town to avoid some of the beeping and were happy with our choice of Ganapathy Gardens which provided the best hot water shower of the trip to date.
To celebrate Australia Day we rode into town and, after seeing an old bearded man sitting outside a Tibetan restaurant stick his thumbs up, decided on Royal Tibet for dinner. We over-ordered as per usual and got mutton chowmein (the closest thing to Aussie lamb we could get), ginger chilli boneless chicken, beef momos (fried dumpling things) and vegetarian spring rolls. Oh my goodness. It was a flavour explosion in our mouths. The spices were powerful yet perfectly balanced and the textures varied from the crispy momos to the tender chicken pieces. We rolled out of Royal Tibet relishing the fact that that meal was possibly the greatest meal of our trip, or lives, and had cost $7 AUD. Chris went as far as to say that this meal has wrecked his stomach in that no food will ever taste good in comparison.
Back home we watched some Republic Day celebratory fireworks from our room. We had overheard an Aussie girl at dinner mention how ironic it was that on the same day, Australia celebrates the coming of the Brits while India celebrates their leaving. Even more ironic is the similar fashion with which the Indians and Australians celebrate the day...people boast their national flags and play cricket.
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| Beef momos, Royal Tibet Restaurant |
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