up to Weds lunchtime ish

(this was written Weds lunch time (ish(), so there is continuity issues with the sms updates)

After we blogged last time, we left the internet place to see a night time festival of traditional Orissa dance and songs. All the women sat on the left, the men on the right and the holy men it the middle. Not realising this to start with, we sat down in the middle. After a couple of minutes and a few stares we quickly moved to the right. A friendly local explained that this festival was a very erotic affair where the opposite sex came to "say hello". We left Golpapur - on - sea and fancied a break from the highway and death gamble of oncoming buses and trucks, so on hearing there was a ferry across a large lake to our next destination, Puri, we decided this would be a good rest for us and the tired little machine. The road started off fine and very picturesque, this soon changed to a heavily pitted track that continued for over 2hrs. We were getting very lost on the rural tracks with no signage and whenever we asked anyone they would always say 50k in any direction. So when a motorbike pulled alongside and asked if we'd take a guy to the ferry we jumped at the opportunity to have a guide! The relentless pot holes took out first gear so we had to negotiate getting on/off the boat in second. On Easter sunday and monday we stayed in Puri, a great super friendly seaside town split into two parts. One side was for the travelling foreigners, the other for Indian holiday makers, this side was the better of the two with an amazing night market selling all kinds of useful and not so useful items for the home and for personal decoration. Dylan bought a couple of things, a garish picture that lights up for his flat and a skull with glowing red eyes for the tuk tuk. There are stray dogs everywhere, with varying degrees of mangyness. Every block is patrolled by a pack of them and on several occasions we've been chased down backstreets by dogs gnashing their teeth either side of the rickshaw trying to bite our legs off.  We now carry two big sticks on board. We got the rickshaw gear fixed by the friendliest rickshaw drivers who also tweaked and greased various bits and would accept no money. We now part of the rickshaw gang. We also went to the welders to get the roof structure fixed which was about to collapse.  Again the guys were brilliant and we had a good laugh. They were trying to get us to drink and smoke with them, but as it was only 10am we declined. We went to the Sun temple in Konark on sunday, a totally stunning place, built around 800 years ago in a way to align the suns rays towards a temple sactum, it was like something from Indiana Jones film. The whole structure is covered in intricate sandstone carvings, a lot of them from the Karma Sutra- very saucy! Got a swim on a nice beach with crashing waves then had a few beers with some locals. We watched some night fishermen catching crabs from the shoreline, only two guys but they we pulling in hundreds. After a reasonable nights sleep we started to load up the tuk tuk to set off again but realised that we had our spare wheel, funnel for the fuel, along with Dylans new items stolen in the night, they also syphoned our fuel...(Expletives)!!! After we weren't getting any help from the place we stayed at, we carried on to find some water, it was around 9am and was aleady mid-30's. Whilst at the stall, around 1km away, the manager from the hotel pulled up on his motorbike holding Dylans passport...with all the goings on of that morning, the manager forgot to give it back. It was so lucky we stopped, as the next time we would have realised would be a days drive away north. The morning didn't get any easier. We then ran out of fuel as we didn't yet know the tank had been syphoned.  With no jerry can and nowhere to buy one we turned to litre water bottles. In the fuel station a beggar boy leaped onto Si's leg and wrapped himself tightly so he was walking along with the kid. The petrol station attendants were going mental at the kid.  It was a dark moment. Then Dyl went to get some much needed coffee from a stall and a guy tried to steal cash out of his wallet. Finally we got on the road. Its definitely getting a lot hotter, over forty, so mid day is sweaty time.  We got a few hours up the road and the engine cut out. After a spark plug change and a rest she started again. Then we had another 20k of bumping around in the dark, which broke the roof rack, then got lost in the dark we accidentally drove into a military base.  Finally we got to a small hotel on the coast, very weary. This morning we set off early but the hotel guys hampered our start as they wanted to photocopy our passports, the nearest photocopier was an hour away!  After 12k we broke down. We pushed the thing to a mechanic who changed the oil filter.  After 2k we broke down again. We stopped and started, spoke to loads of people until we found another mechanic. We got all our oil changed and various other bits fiddled with and it seems to work again.  After some roof rack welding we're off up the highway. Whilst at the last mechanic another team got towed in. They've spent 3 days going up and down the same 30k of highway constantly breaking down. The  poor couple are at their wits end. So we're now heading north in convoy as we want to make sure they get to the next stop.  Their engine cuts out every 20k and they can only do 35kmh so its slow progress. The temperature has dropped as dusk descends, we're passing lush green fields as the sun sets again to our left. Banana update -its now black putrid, but still hanging in there! We've heard news along the way other teams have been caught in the middle of Mauist terrorist and held in police cells for questioning. Another team have been hospitalised after rolling their rickshaw. And so many breakdowns. Ciao for now

SMS Update

power cuts last night meant no pics. Few beers in a spit n saw dust joint- dirty, cheap & local. Guys r pretty touchy feely here so Si started putting his arm round me @ fuel stations to fit in. Aiming for 400k tday - long stint. Ricks holding up so far apart from back seat came off-fixed now.

SMS Update

arrived into Nellore after dark for some gnarly night time city driving. A good few near misses, u turns across 6 lanes, animals, slightly stressful!

SMS Update

Just drove straight through the centre of Chennai - it was absolutely mental!! The Italians could learn a lot from these guys.