DAY 12

Yes we've  made it. We are here in Fort Kochi. We were hot, dusty, sweaty and had a HUGE thirst. All now resolved with shower, beer, swim and beer!

We arrived earlier this afternoon around 3:30 and amazingly, we are **TENTH **of the 74 teams that started. Considering our 'times out' for leisure that's pretty remarkable. Team Grumpy Old Men are on a high. We are now waiting for the ladies to arrive from the UK. They should be landing at Cochin Airport about now (7 pm).

Despite all the horror stories about poor reliability, T2 was remarkably trouble-free until yesterday when some time during the day we lost some of the electrics. Suspicion is that the battery has died as we have no horn or indicators. The loss of the horn was serious as it removes an essential tool for driving in India.

Fordata enthusiats, we covered exactly 3001 kms (1,865 miles) and T2 average almost 80 mpg. We'll get Dorisbooted uptomorrowand we should be able to ascertain the average speed (I would guess 30Kmph).

There'll be more posts over the next few days including news on the finishing party. Fort Cochin is lovely; a veryup market tourist area full of heritige hotels and boutiques. The ladies are going to love it!

Highlights so far:Kundle Beach and the Caves. We're staying in heKillians Boutique Hotel if you wantto join us.

Terry

DAY 11 (11th JAN)

We have made it as far as Kozhikode, 203 kms from Cochin. The coastal road in Kerala is just horrible. Suicidal trucks and buses at every turn. At some junctions you find buses, tuk-tuks, motorcycles and cars attacking from every direction all trying to turn across in front of you, beside you and inside you. Plus they will all be sounding their horns at the same time! Next time I come to India to drive I am determined to have an eye transplant so that I can see behind myself! It was a tough drive and it looks like tomorrow won't be much better. The buses seem to drive on the prmise that they ARE going to pass and if they switch on their headlights when they are racing towards you on your sidfe of the road, you know that unless you get off the road you ain't going to see another Christmas.

We will leave early in the morning so that we arrive at the Parade Ground (next to St Catherines) in Cochin early afternoon to register our arrival. Then we will settle in The Killians Hotel for our stay. Sarah and Joan should be arriving in Cochin touching down just after 7pm, so they should be at the hotel by 10 pm. We are looking forward to the party, swapping stories of breakdowns and derring-do adventures en-route.

We have found a splendid hotel in Kozhikode for the night (a chance to get clean after days of dusty, sweaty driving). Tomorrow will be an anticlimax having to say bye bye to T2. The transition from driving a tuk-tuk to riding as a passenger in an airconditioned Toyota for a tour of Kerala will be a big contrast. Will I be able to adapt? Must get some photos showing just how dirty a tuk-tuk getstravelling from Jaisalmer to Cochin.

Note that with (finally) great Internet access, we have updated all the daily blogs by placing location pointers on the Google Map immediately below the blogs. That will show a better visual of our progress.

More posts over the next few days.

 

Terry

Day 10

Day 10 has been uneventful so far. But first let me recap last night's experience. After finding the well-hidden Kundle Beach and the Gokarna International Hotel, we went for our first swim in the Indian Ocean (possibly the first of many) and then cleaned up for dinner. Kundle Beach is everything expected of a paradise beach setting. No cars or transport of any type, everything is carried down. As the sun went down, we strolled along the sands looking for a beach bar with some action. We found one OK. First we had to remove our footwear before entering - even my flip flops! The place soon filled with the strangest mix of hippies. I guess that these must be the remnants of the 70s Goa hippies. They even played Pink Floyd all night. I felt right at home but think that Owen wasn't so impressed. But the food was fabulous. As we were on the sea for the first time in India, we both decided on King Fish in Banana leaves. It was outstanding and both agreed it was as good as any other fish we had eaten previously. Only the Majarisha Yogi was missing. Breakfast was another experience. We were sitting down by 7:30 watching nubile young ladies running through their daily Yoga exercises on the beach. Kundle Beach was a transcendental experience. (I noted as we trekked up the narrow, steep access path a sign warning that cultivation was prohibited. I've not yet seen that on an English beach.) We covered 302 kms today which finds us in Kasaragod - in Kerala - about 230 miles from our destination. That's probably a little too far to make tomorrow. So it looks like another night somewhere before reaching Cochin. But we should be there well before Sarah and Joan arrive. Terry

Day 9

This blog will be quite a challenge, we are in a lovely beach resort called Gorkana. The internet cubicle has a key board but due to frequent us the keys have been worn so I am typing by memory, thank god its not a French keyboard !  It seems such a long time since we left Aurangabd and in many ways not much has happened but I will try to paint a picture of being on the road with T2. The Tuk Tuk is a fascinating vehicle, quite uncomfortable has a remarkable turning circle and is quite happy trundling along at 30mph. Strangely it will pull uphill forever in third gear (it has 4 gears). The wheels are tiny probably less than the old 10" wheels we had on minis. Steering is by a scooter handlebar and very, very direct, it is much more stable than one would imagine I presume because all the weight is low down. T2 has so far behaved impeccably so we cannot moan, even though Grumpy Old Men should. perhaps there is some news from home that I don't know about so a moan would be in order.  Anyway I digress from the saga of Terry, T2 and me. On the way to Solapur we bypassed a city called Bijabar which had the most enormous mosque. We should have stopped but the city looked very difficult from a driving point of view. These areas of India are vast agricultural plains growing many crops, cotton, rice and a number that neither Terry nor I could identify. When we get home I will try to find out what they were. The villages are very poor and as I mentioned before with badly maintained roads. One constant feature is speed bumps at the entry and exit. Quite often they seem to be disguised so a number of times we have locked the brakes (No ABS) as T2's suspension is very hard and our backs are weak. One only has to stop and be surrounded by crowds of people very inquisitive as to who you are.  We arrived in Solupur early being quite pleased with ourselves, once again Doris let us down. Basically her look up list of hotels is rubbish. One chooses a hotel, and diligently follows her instructions only to find that the establishment does not exist. We are coming to the opinion that Hotel can have multiple meanings. Also there is a disconnect between the Lonely Planet and Doris. Anyway we wandered around Solapur for an age, then I had what seemed to be a sensible suggestion, go to the Airport. Solapur airport is very small and the gates wre locked, so we programmed Doris to take us to the exit road where she promised us was a resort, a false promise. It was getting late sio in desperation I walked along a group of Tuk Tuks asking if anybody spoke English, no response just a set of followers that grew by the minute. Out of nowhere a Tuk Tuk stopped, inside were maybe 12 schoolboys all in immaculate uniforms. One boy spoke good English and asked me what Star of Hotel I required, "Five Star" I replied. So a Tuk Tuk driver was engaged to drive us, low and behold the hotel was one one street away from were we had been maybe 2 hours before. The hotel was good, dry but a kindly porter purchased beer delivered in plastic bag. That night the food was excellent, the hotel restaurant full of the local well to do.  So the we drove to Hubli. They are now bringing in the sugar harvest, so the road was full of carts pulled by bullocks, trailers by tractors and Large orries piled high with sugar cane. Along the road large factories where the cane is processed, outside of which long queues of trucks. The carts, trailers and tractors would be decorated so it was like an old fashioned harvest gathering. Some of the larger villages had people dressed up quite like a harvest festival. Hubli was a very busy city and like any other small streets packed with people, traffic and animals. For the first time Doris and The Lonely Planet did agree, however the first choice was rather suspect, in fact in might have been a brothel of indeterminate sex. The second was acceptable in budget sort of way.  So the road to Gorkarna and the sea beckoned, which was fascinating. It took us passed the Karli River Forest and once again the environment changed. Suddenly the houses had tiled roofs the houses neater the villages less squalid. We even saw monkeys playing beside the road. This road also had less traffic than we wre used to to previously and drivers less inclined to blow there horn to warn of overtaking. I quite missed the horn blowing having been used to using it as rear view mirror. So we wound our way down from the plateau through the forest to the sea. Having already decided (guided by the Lonely Planet) to visit Kuble Beach near Gorkarna. Neither of these exist to Doris. It is an idyllic beach resort, T2 has been parked up the hill as one reaches the beach by a small path maybe a half mile long (thank the lord for hotel porters). It is truly gorgeous and now I am going to sign off and watch the sunset.  Owen    

Day 8

(more internet issues. Relayed via sms message)

 

Arrived safely in Hubli covering 309 kms today. Now out of malarial risk area. Just 900 kms to go.

 Heading for beach for swimming by early PM tomorrow. Full report when internet is back.

 Terry

Day 7

We had another excellent run today arriving at Solapur well before dark. That's another 300 kms done. Finding a hotel was another matter. Solapur is a warren of small streets. In the end, we found a dropoff point for school kids with many Tuk tuks waiting: while the kids exercised their English, they arranged for a Tuk-tuk to take us to a great hotel - The Tripursundari. We will be very comfortable tonight! We are now well past the halfway point. Tomorrow we will travel due South for another 60 miles or so and then we will head SW towards the coast. Recapping on what Owen posted yesterday, I cannot emphasise how impressive were the caves. That first glimpse of the Buddhist Temple from the top is breathtaking, unable to truly grasp the size of carved structure until you realise that the 'ants' below are really people. I feel privileged to have seen it myself. It makes the Pyramids seem mere lego brickwork and Stonehenge some building rubble. (I have seen both!) Forget bothering with the Taj Mahal if you come to India: see the caves near Aurangabad. I'll refund the cost if you prove your disappointment. Terry

Day 6

Its been an interesting couple of days since we last reported in any detail. We have now reahed Aurangabad and are halfway to Cochin, anyway to roll back.

Before I recount the journey from Dhar to here we forgot to tell you an amusing incident the day before yesterday, We were travelling along at our seate 50Km/hr and wre passed at high speed by a large white Audi coupe (very flash) it weaved in and out of the traffic horn blowing and lights flashing. A few miles down the road we stopped to swop drivers and low and behold the Audi pulled in beside us. Out got 2 young Indian males both of whom spoke excellent English, It turned out the older one was studying Business Management at Brighton. I remarked was it his father's car, he laughed and agreed also he thought I had noticed the scratches and dents in the back wing (which I had not). Looking a little sheepish he said that his Dad has been told of the damage and they were on the way home to face the music. The damage had not however altered his driving style as they then roared off into the distance with horns blowing and lights flashing, I bet he dosn't drive like that in Sussex. Were they stopped was a major textile manufacturing area so maybe Daddy was not too bothered.

That night we stopped in Dhar and had to settle for a very basic, I hesitate to use the word hotel, an establishment with rooms. terry and I had to bunk in together. We are quite getting use to no hot water and showering by bucket. Once again the food was very acceptable, although I was a little concerned as only 2 locals were in the restaurant, by the time we left it was fairly buzzing. No breakfasy available (nobody was awake), and no power, so it was biscuits, water and on the road by 07:30am. This was followed by 2.5hrs of terrible roads in order to get to the National Highway. We did come across south of a town called Malouda a very ancient fort/palace which according to the lonely planet was the last palace of rulers in the area before they decamped from Malouda.

Upon reaching the main highway we drove for many hours through a plain region were rice and then cotton was grown. Just before the Ghat (Mountain) we wove our way through this very bustling city. Terry was driving and a motorcycle policeman pulled us over, beckoned Terry to cross the road where he had 2 chairs and sit down. He then demanded 1,000 rupees, Terry objected and settled for 500, the cop handed over a couple of tickets to a dart match. On the other side of the road I took a photgraph. The policemen saw me handed back the 500 rupees and took back the tickets, told Terry that as a Tuk Tuk driver he needed a uniform and this was a warning, He then came over to me and asked why I had taken a photgraph, I pointed to the sign in Hindi for the fresh water project and said that I would tell people in England how nice Indian Policemen were and that was what the photo was. He was not happy but T2 and us were on the road again.

Then the mountain road which we hit in a few miles. The good news is the views were spectacular, the bad news was that at times we had time to enjoy them. There were queques of trucks going up and coming down, The ones coming down were often stuck on very sharp U bends so nobody could go up or come down. This is where T2 came int his own, we nipped around the traffis like a mosquito in a swamp, only the motorbikes were more agile, Tery was very adept and T2's third gear ideal for the task. So in what was no time we left the traffic behind and climbed away onto a plateau from were we descended into Aurangabad. It was dark when I drove into the city and Doris was no use in the lists of hotels from the lonely planet, so it was off the the raoilway station and a budget hotel. It does have hot water, a wonderful quiet fan (as its getting hot) and a charming owner. The restaurent is Vegeterian the only drawback is these establishments do not serve beer, however the food is good. We ordered amongst other items Kashmiri Naan, which was like and uncooked pizza, very strange.

So this morning we set of for the Elorra caves (thank you Claudia, Joan's Yoga teacher) which was mindblowing. A set of some 34 caves carved from Volcanic Rock. These caves (an understatement) cover the Buddhist, Hindu and Jain religions and were built between the 5th to 11th century AD. The Buddhist caves are both temples and monasteries, Hindu and Jain only temples, the Hindu temple is the worlds largest monlithic structure being some 150 feet high being carved from solid rock. I have been to Petra, up the Nile and this site rates very high on my list, if you ever come to India its a must see.

The we went to the Mini Taj Mahal, which is very lovely but showing its age, like the real Taj polution is taking its toll, a great shame.

So back to the hotel. Terry and I knew that T2 needed an oil change (referrred to as engine and gear) every 2,000 kms. We would pass that point on the way to Cochin so why not get it done here. The hotel owner said "No Problem" what time, 5pm okay. At 6pm we were still sitting in the lobby when the driver/mechanic arrived. When we got to the first garage of choice it was closed. Its a Friday and Aurangabad has a large Muslim population, after wandering around, numerous mobile phone calls and us wandering around a very poor area of the city he decided to do it himself at a friends garage. The point of note (for the mechanics) he had to pour the oil into a small bolt hole. To do this he held his finger above the hole and poured the oil down his finger into the hole, it was quite remarkable his control over the flow.

So now we are ready for Day 7 and a down to Solpun some 200 miles away if the roads are good Insallah

Owen

 

 

 

Day 4

Excellent day today. We crossed from Rajasthan into Madyar Pradesh - the heart of India. It is so much warmer so we travelled in just thin jumpers dispensing with our winter coats! We also covered 300 kms (200 mls) stopping just as the sun was setting at 6pm. And another milestone was we are a third of the way into the journey. We have complete well over 900 kms at an average speed of 39 kmph. Our max speed was an F1 pace 55kmph. Madyar Pradesh is so different from Rajasthan. There's obviously much more water as everywhere is so green and there are large trees. It all seems so richly agricultural. Tomorrow we have set ourselves the ambitious target of reaching Aurangabad - where we will find the poor man's Taj Mahal, (Wiki Aurangabad). If we are successful, we will give ourselves the treat of 2 nights in the same hotel. The last 10 miles into Dhar - our current location - had roadworks to make the Ukraine feel proud! But T2 took it all in her stride. Terry

Day 3

 (posted by Owen)

Where to start as this is my first blog. We are now some 390 miles into our journey having arrived late afternoon in Chittorgraph. This is an interesting place (look it up) with an ancient fort considered the finest in Rajastan, its a pity that its only a ruin now. Anyway to continue.

Today has been a bit of a curate's egg in being a mixture of roads, scenery and driving styles. Last night was spent in Beawar at the Raj Mahal Hotel, a splendid building that had seen better days. Who can complain for 12 pounds a night, with A/C. The food was splendid, Kashmiri Nan, Manchurian Rice a Paneer in a wonderful Hot Sauce and some form of Vegetable Marsala, followed with a cardamom flavoured black coffee. We are rigidly sticking to the rule of veg only curries and cross our fingers it seems to work.

 Setting off this morning we tried to force Doris (our Sat Nav) to take us on a SH (Secondary Highway) instead of a detour by the main road of some 80km. She really got her knockers in a twist but with firm insertion of via points we were on the way. These roads are absolutely fascinating taking one through tiny rural villages around paved and unpaved roads, I must confess that T2(or T Squared for the nerds) did not really like many of the surfaces. Anyway I detract the villages were as one would imagine poor with people sitting around. Outside the villages woman were working the fields and in one place mending the roads, perhaps we should recommend this approach to George Osborn (or maybe not as the Guardian would cancel my subscription). We got some good pictures of various scenes, women with baskets on heads, Motorcycles ridden by 3 or 4 people, in many cases the women riding side saddle, and I hope good one of 4 very large peacocks. The countryside had changed from Western Rajastan's Desert through scrub land to more fertile fields with crops like yellow rape.

After some 40km we turned south on NH79 (National Highway) which was built as a dual carriage way but with one design flaw. Vehicles on either side have almost no way of crossing the road fro many miles, so being human they drive on the wrong side which is the shortest way to where they are going. Off course this is counter intuitive to us. In reality this is only a problem if the vehicle is a lorry. Like driving up the M4 one loses sense of the environment around due to the traffic and also the intense concentration needed on such a road. This is true even at the stately 30mph at which T2 takes us along.  One good discovery is that Tuk Tuks are free from the toll charges on certain sections of NH97, not a big savings at 40 rupees(50 pence) but as they say every little counts.

The people are very friendly and not just in  a begging sense but genuine curiosity in our strange Tuk Tuk. One expects a certain level of assertive begging we have experienced very little really annoying behaviours.  

The area around here and to the north contains massive textile mills and I do wonder if this is the textile centre of India.

One thinks to begin with atmosphere is heavily polluted, whist this is obviously true in Delhi I think the hazy skyline out of the towns in probably due to dust, further south we will find out as we will be travelling in more wooded country.

Tonight we stay in a very good value hotel also a major advantage  T2 can be parked just outside Reception area so its up and away tomorrow morning.

We probably forgot to mention that this Rickshaw Run has raised 75,000 pounds for its charity of providing clean water to rural communities. This is on top of all the other monies, like our prostate cancer and the school. 

 Your next blog will be written by Terry as we have agreed to alternate entries

 

 

 

 

DAY TWO (2nd Jan)

Not a bad day. We set off around 9am. T2 wouldn't start. Amazingly, when we pulled up last night T2 was actually out of juice. We had completed approximately 200 kms which is almost exactly what we had been told to expect to get from a full tank of 7 litres. That equates to nearly 80 mpg. T2 behaved perfectly. We stopped for lunch just outside Jodhpur aside a massive stone quarry at 11:50. We continued until 4:30 pm when we spied a wizzy looking hotel called The Raj Mahal in a busy town called Beawar. It is unbelievably cheap too at #12 a night. The menu (all vegetarian) looks great and only a pound to one pound fifty a dish. Breakfast looks strange with triple sundae sandwich, veg burger and other such delicacies. We covered 155 miles in around 7 hours today which gives us confidence that our planning is going to be OK. Terry - Beawar, Rajasthan