Sunday, February 20, 2011

The final India photos

Yes, tomorrow morning I take a taxi to Chennai and fly out to Singapore on my way to Munich via Istanbul (bearing in mind Singapore is quite a few hours in completely the wrong direction to Europe) and absolutely freezing weather, snow and minus zero temperatures during the day. That will be pretty, pretty, pretty interesting, especially since today I completely went bald, shaved the lot of down to the skull. This is the last bunch of photos from India I will be posting, hope you have enjoyed the show.

Well as it turns out it's almost midnight here in Singapore as I finish this final India post.  An uneventful four hour taxi ride to Chennai airport, apart from the snorting driver that is. I'm not entirely sure which is worse, the throat-clearing-hoiky-spitty ones or the straight out earth-shuddering constant snorting. Oh well, pleased to get away from India, at least until I actually got on the plane choca-block full of more Indians. I know what you are thinking, that maybe I was given one final dealing to by being seated between a throat-clearing-hoiky-spitty and a snorter but I was spared, I had a window seat with the seat next to me empty, perhaps the only empty seat on the plane. Maybe Arunachala was smiling on me or something. But then using the toilet on a plane full of Indian people is another whole story but gumboots would have been useful....let's leave India right there shall we ? Changi airport, what an absolute paradise right now. Straight to bed in the transit lounge, not even worrying about my main bag, no doubt that will be somewhere tomorrow morning. I have a full day to wander round Singapore (which I am quite looking forward to as a complete change) then flying out at around midnight tomorrow night. 


Remember I told you about the dislocated finger a week or two ago ? Well I am guessing there is a broken bone or tendon in there as well, right at the base of my middle finger, left hand, underneath the knuckle, if that makes sense ? It's no better, probably worse, stiff and quite swollen but not too sore. At least it's not a thumb, that would be a nightmare  but may need an x-ray in Munich, was not willing to do anything with it in India. Good thing I am visiting with a bunch of Osteopaths though they may well just want to lop the thing off and be done with it, you know just be efficient about it as only a German could be !

Not entirely sure whether I will be bothered taking photos or even posting in the place where heel has frozen over, we'll see. I have a couple of nights in Istanbul on the way back through after my week in Munich, that might be a bit interesting, though I might get myself into a spot of bother trying to get close-up photos of the Muslims do you think ??




This little lizard guy out by the pool was very funny. He would come out onto the grass every day to check me out (probably got hosed down and needed to dry off perhaps !) 
He would sit there checking me out then when I walked toward him he would do exactly the same thing everyday. He would run up then in behind a concrete light stand thing before popping his head up over the back to check me out further. As I got closer he would then jump into a bush and check me out from in there. Cool little critter, a real character and he has spiky-horny dinosaur-like things down his back.




I just love this guy, hence the photo overkill.








So I did what I always do with these characters, bought him a coconut !



....and a chai !









How to transport your bananas....


...palms and all !


...and your firewood !



What about this "tricked-up" Ambassador with it's custom lights and step rails ?




















I was really getting the hang of getting a response from people near the end there.











And my final evening with Arunachala as I walked the Inner Path back to the hotel, managing to get lost and just getting out to the road before dark, but that's another whole story to do with prickle bushes and creepy crawlies !





And the final sunset