Well, We're now arrived and settled in Mysore a nice, green city which is dominated by the massive Mahjaras palace, which we viisted yesterday and was pretty incredible, huge stained glass halls, soild silver doors and stuffed elephant heads on the walls which previoused mahjaras (Inidan Kings) had shot while out hunting! We hired ourselves a guide, which made the whole thing alot more interesting, and things we would normally have just walked past were explained but as with most Indains we have encountered so far he had no shame and at the end of the tour (which we paid him well for i might add) he whipped out a photshopped picture of his granddaughter and asked us if we could give her some money! We also headed to a brilliant zoo yesterday- we were sceptical about how we might find the animals living, especially after we paid 33p each to get in, but it turned out to be on an (ALMOST) par with english zoos. We saw Giffare, elephants (though definatley not as good after seeing them in the wild!), tigers (VERY close up), hippo, rhino, lions, bears, crocdiles (Nic started screaming when they starting attacking each other), lepaord and jaguar.

Since our last blog the travelling became pretty hetic in order to get us here. We had our first experiences of the trains to get from Cochin to Calicut and the experience was a postive one. The Indian railway network is massive and farily well orgainsied fro the country it sits in. We had more leg room than we did ont he plane over here and the journey was smooth and on time. I sat next to a really sweet Frenchman who speands 3 months of each year in India. He was a very interesting, well travelled man who had met Micheal Palin while he was in Cochin on his 80 round the world trip and had given him the book he was reading after Micheal asked him about it. Turned out that the book was by this spirtual author that Nics got into since we've been out here and so she loved it and they got chatting as well. Unfortuanley the good times eneded in Calicut. 'The Lonely Planet' descirbed it as a good place to break up the journey from Cochin to Ooty but it was really a complete s*** hole. There was a doctors conference going on so there were no good hotels free so we ended up havin to stay in a complete hell hole. The city was indimiating and really dirty and it was the first place we've been where there wasnt a single white person, and it seemed the'd all had the right idea. Me and Nic saw a chicken get massacred in a butchers which really disturbed me and may make me never eat chicken again ( i may be swayed by a Nandos though- constant craving for it, and all other Englsih food!) As soon as we arrived we knew we wanted to get straight ou so booked a 3:30am bus to Ooty which was about as bad as a bus ride can be. 8 hours being thrown about along Indias hporrendous and trechourous mountain roads (Mum, you would NOT have loved it, you thought Dads mountain driving in Spain was bad...) and there really was no quiet to be had, we've decided it will be trains wherever possible from now on.

We stayed in Ooty for 2 nights. Our hotel here was better and we made sure we rung and booked in advance, having learnt from our mistake in Calicut this is what we're making sure we do from now on. It did look and feel a bit like a convent and there was no shower but fine for 4 pound a night for all 3 of us!! Ooty was proper cold, Indias climate is SO diverese and so we slept in many layers and huddled together in our double bed. We saw a SHOCKINGLY bad wax musem ( which they had descrubed on the sign as rivalling M.Tussads!) and went rowing on the lake. It was bus again from Ooty to Mysore but this was no where near as bad and at the much more reasonable time of 8am, far more manageable. The journey also took us right through the heart of another wildlife sanctuary and we saw another elephant! and lots of monkeys. Buses here are also well cheap. The 5 hour bus ride cost us each a pound!

So that brings you up to date. We're loving mYSORE and our hotel here is really nice, it has a shower! complete with hot water in the mroning and our room is classed as 'super deluxe' check us out! Although as i seems with all hotels even super deluxe dosent grant us sink plug or toliet roll! Today we went to a silk factory which was interesting but SO noisy and then to St Philomeans catherdral, as we sat ont he steps haordes of school children finished their school day at the primary and secondary next door and all descneced upon the stpes to get transprt home. It was mental- like 20 kids squeesing into a rickshaw which only comfortably fits the three of us. They we all really sweet, none of them asked us for money, and we took lots of pictures of them so they could look at them on our cameras. They spoke suprinsingly good english but it was sad to see alot of them with threadbare uniforms and holes in their shoes with their toes poking out.

On the 9th were heading by train to Bangalore and then an overnight sleeper train from Bangalore to Hampi, this big religious town with masses of temple ruins, a highlight as described in 'the planet' and then from there its a 8 hour train to Goa. We're due to arrive in Goa on the 13th and plannign to stay there for a week to soak up the sun and relax.

I hope your all ok and having fun back in Engalnd, missing you all and think of you often. Pormise to add some more pictures as soon as i remebr to bring my usb cable out with me!

With lots and lots of love, Carla, Grace and Nic. xxxx

P.S Kerry, if your reading this i havent got your e-mail adress, mine is [email protected], e-mail me with yours and let me know when you get your postcard! xxxxxxx