Chennai 2

The second day in Chennai saw us browsing the city again. First we went to Fast Fashion and Fashion Folks to stock up on factory outlet shirts and tops (Prada, FCUK etc at 4 pounds each), and then to the newly opened subway for lunch. There Colin departed for a meeting (but no talk of work on holiday!) and Rory and I went to the 'Snake Pit'. As the name suggests, the Snake Pit was a park with all the different snakes of India labeled as either dangerous (venomous) or non-dangerous (non-venomous). I particularly liked how they put the Boa Constrictor in the latter category. It was good to know all these snakes could have been slithering feet away from us in the Jungle of Mudumalai!

We wandered around for an hour or two amongst the snakes and the pits of crocodiles separated from us by a knee-high wall. However it was the hundreds of primary school children running around everywhere shouting hello at us that was more scary! We decided it was time for some more shopping and went to Spencer's Plaza, an old favourite of mine due to the the mix of expensive western shops and little stalls to practice your bargaining skills. If, when you go, you block out all the calls and people trying to drag you into shops its bargain paradise, but the shopkeepers can get a bit tiresome so we left for the oasis of Park Sheraton hotel. (Mum- everyone from Gem Palace says hello!)

We met up with Colin again and had haircuts all around at the salon in the Sheraton (much cheaper than England), and Rory looks clean-shaven again finally! Colin decided to treat us to a drink at the Sheraton bar, and we indulged in a little western life of overpriced beer and gin and tonics. We could only afford to stay for one drink and headed off to Bella Ciao, a pizzeria near the beach run by an Italian friend of ours, for food, further drinks and good company. As always there were many offers for parties but it had been a long day, so it was time for bed!

The next day was a more relaxing day but started in pretty much the same way. We first went to the Crocodile Farm, a lot like the Snake pit but more crocs less snakes. It was designed in pretty much the same way (pits of animals you walk around), but this one had up to one hundred crocodiles in some of the larger pits! Not a place you wanted to fall into. We did get up close and personal to a baby croc that a keeper was holding and gave it a little stroke (crocodiles are surprisingly soft!), and also went underground to see the bigger ones swimming around in their tanks. There were some turtles in that tank too, and fish, who were surprisingly brave and swam up to those sharp teeth! But the crocodiles weren't interested and just watched us lazily (we probably looked yummier than small fish!)

After the Crocodile Farm we went to Mahabalipuram. This is an area of old Indian Cave temples, marvelously carved with pictures of people and animals. The signs said they were from the 6th and 7th centuries BC, and they held their shape really well sheltered from the elements in 'cave' like cavities in the rock. We strolled around the monuments eating ice-creams and taking photos up to 'Khrisna's butter ball', a large round(ish) boulder that is (naturally) balanced on top of a slope! I always think it should roll down into the buildings on the other side of the road, but it never does!

It was then time for some relaxation so we headed off to Ideal Beach, ordered a sandwich and a hammock each and read, gently swinging in the breeze between palm trees, and listened to the waves. We also went for a swim and some body-boarding in the rough waves, where very unfortunately Rory lost his nice watch that I brought him for Christmas. This dampened (pun, get it? awful I know) the nice relaxed mood a bit, for it was a very nice watch. But we managed to cheer ourselves up in the swimming pool by playing games and swimming till it got dark and we had to get out due to the sudden monsoon rain storm! (Note: Today in KL Rory brought a new watch, a Seiko titanium like the old one but a higher class with more dials and half the price of the one from England). As the storm subsided we headed back into Mahabalipuram for dinner and the back to the guest house. However the rain stopped pretty quickly so we had time to squeeze in a couple of races of go-carts on the way back (Rory won both times, just narrowly beating Colin in the second race). We had the whole track to ourselves and no safety requirements to worry about apart from a helmet, so we pushed the go-carts to the limit!

The final day in Chennai had a lazy start (yet again), where for breakfast at lunch-time we went to Mocha bar for sandwiches, milkshakes (with at least a slice of cake in each) and sheesha. We browsed some shops on the way back, mostly things Colin needed, and then relaxed with a movie back in the room. When the movie ended it was time to pack up and meet some old friends from India for dinner at a Chinese restaurant (Patrick and Elizabeth Davenport), and then say good-bye to India, hello Malaysia!