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Dan&LJ RTW
Where to start???
After 4 wonderful and relaxing days on Palolem beach, we are both feeling rejuvenated and ready to kick on with the travelling lark. The beach community was shutting down during our last two days there getting ready for the Monsoon. Beach hut accomodation, bars and restaurants just started to disapear as the owners dismantled them and packed them into tarpaulin covered lock ups - amazing!
So on Friday (19/5) morning, bright and early we leave our paradise beach and head to our next stop Managalore.
MANGALORE
After an 8hour bus journey on Indian public transport, we arrive in the busy town of Managalore. The bus journey took us through many different towns and villages and through some amazing indian countryside and the 8hours seemed to fly by as we both happily gazed out at the world go by.
Managalore is initially just a stop over to break up the journey further south to Mysore, and we are both pleased as there really is nothing to see or do in this town. We take advantage of this fact by trying to catch up on some much needed sleep ready for our next day of more bus travel.
MYSORE
The expected 4-6hour journey from Mangalore to Mysore ended up taking over 8hours and was our scariest bus trip yet! The roads on this particular route are not the best and encountered many mountain side twisty up hill climbs. At many points we just peered out of the window and were faced with a sheer drop, this was not helped by the fact that our bus driver was in fact crazy! The views however were absolutely breathtaking and we passed through some of the nicest Indian villages and countryside that we have seen so far.
After finally arriving at our destination at 7.30pm on a Saturday we not surprisingly had difficulty finding a room. After traipsing around with our rucksacks on our backs, looking like proper tourists and being hassled non stop by pushy rickshaw drivers, we finally secured a room for the 2ights we needed. The room is probably our most basic yet, but it is still fine and reasonably clean. Dan is deeply troubled that so far all of our accommodation has had suitable door locking devices and he is yet to utilise the "keyless door locking mechanism", he has however found full use for his torch and penknife at every possible opportunity!!!
This morning (21/5) we made an early start in order to make the most of our one day here. The town is very nice and quite relaxed and we have found it enjoyable to walk around with minimum hassle. We visited the major tourist sight of the town, 'The Maharaja's Palace", which was absolutely packed with Indian tourists (Indian school holidays last until mid june). We walked around the complex which is pretty impressive (a bit like Buckingham Palace, but more golden) and were plagued with Indians asking to have their photographs taken with us and shake our hands, touch us etc... This is happening to us EVERYWHERE we go, we're like celebrities in these parts!
Once we'd visited the palace we then headed to one of the 8most holy hills in India (only India could even have 'holy hills'). This was great, but again absolutely heaving.....photo's of all of the above to follow shotrly we promise. As we caught the bus to the very top of the hill we decided to take the pathway to the bottom which consisted of many steep twisting paths and stepways down the side of the hillside. After over 1000steps and 45minutes our legs were wobbly and we were glad we caught the bus upwards!!
An exhausting, but wonderful day (except it is almost full time of the play off final and I'm guessing it's not good news, Dan is looking unconsolable).
Tomorrow we have an early start to catch our 7.30am bus to the hillside town of Ooty where we will catch our first train on the blue mountain railway, this should be wonderful and will hopefully help cheer Dan up.
Will be in touch again soon.
Lots of love, us xx
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