Goa and Onwards Jauntlet.comhttps://jauntlet.com/CHENNAI and Journey’s end. Last stop and a five star (nearly) Hotel Pahlava Ambassador to end it in. The hotel has a lovely pool which we more or less have to ourselves. Chennai is a bit short on tourist attractions but there are some fine old buildings, mainly coloured in a terracotta red. Fort St George is a confusing mixture of colonial buildings and a huge modern office block slap in the middle. There is a magnificent cricket stadium a block back from Chennai’s huge Marina Beach. After an aborted attempt to discover a new hop on hop off Vintage Tourist Bus we finally find it outside Chennai Central Station For a grand total of THIRTY NINE PENCE the 1980’s single decker rattles around central Chennai for TWO AND HALF HOURS making it the worlds cheapest city tour. Off to see a Bollywood movie at an old cinema this afternoon. Tomorrow it’s Emirates back to STN via Dubai. Southern India is so very different to the golden triangle up north, an absolute delight especially the west coast. https://jauntlet.com//97050https://jauntlet.com//97050Tue, 27 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530MAHABALIPURAM. This place is extraordinary even by Indian standards. The first thing we notice is the number of western tourists. Mostly tour groups but quite a few independent travellers. This being the Republic Day long weekend the place is absolutely rammed solid. The Sunday is amazing. There are thousands of devotees, the bare footed pilgrims, the women dressed mainly in a brilliant red, and the bare chested men all heading towards the temples and monuments. We follow the throng as they pass through line after line of small shops selling every piece of junk imaginable to see what seems to be some sort of cleansing ritual by the shoreline of the beach. Hundreds and hundreds are paddling into the very rough sea to let the waves wash over them. The main draw here is the very weathered 7th Century Rock Temple and also an extraordinary collection of temples cut into the solid rock.. Unfortunately very heavy rain has curtailed the sightseeing mid afternoon. There is a funky little street heading down to the beach lined with lots of roof top restaurants and the beach itself is relatively clean especially when compared to Covelong. A very interesting few days. The hotel Pahlava Dynasty has been a good find for our hotel is just off the main road which is just as well because that road on Saturday and Sunday was completely gridlocked with buses and coaches all packed to bursting point. Leaving next for CHENNAI and the final stop https://jauntlet.com//97049https://jauntlet.com//97049Sat, 24 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530COVELONG . Time is cracking on now and we are heading towards Chennai. There is a three day long weekend ( Republic Day)coming up and finding accommodation is getting difficult. Pondicherry was virtually sold out everywhere so we have found Sea La Vie , a beach resort in COVELONG about a couple of hours north. The “resort “ is a strip of about fifteen three story units each side of a drive way set out motel like each with its own parking spot. It is very run down. Nothing has been cared for . The whole place needs completely renovating starting with a coat paint on and in every unit. The so called restaurant defies belief. It is just so neglected and grubby. The pool though was very refreshing, though again just so incredibly run down all around the area. The resort faces the very rough Bay of Bengal but the beach is very dirty with dead turtles washed up on the shoreline which is a shocking site to see. Unfortunately Sea La Vie is not somewhere you would want to hang around very much but a 25 minute walk away is the 5 star Taj Fisherman’s Cove. The grounds are immaculate, it has a beautiful pool which we spend the next two days relaxing around and fronts an enormous stretch of clean beach. The same can’t be said for the rest of Covelong. It is filthy beyond belief. There is rubbish piled up everywhere, on the beach, around the little fishermans shacks and down the lanes of the very poor houses. There seems to be a bit of a building boom so hopefully things will improve a bit. As everywhere in India the people are very friendly and on the day we leave here the resort is full of families making the most of the long weekend. Next stop back down the coast a few miles to the shore temple town ofhttps://jauntlet.com//97048https://jauntlet.com//97048Wed, 21 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530PONDICHERRY We are now heading to the east coast and the former French colony of PONDICHERRY. This time by coach. An AC Sleeper and we have upper level twin bunks and a huge picture window . It is very comfortable indeed with plenty of room to lie down. The journey time is about 5 hours as it seems to stop at every town between Tanjore and Pondy. Still we get plenty of views of Indian life way off any sort of tourist trail. Pondicherry may been a French Possession but apart from plenty of alcohol stores and scruffy bars the centre of town is still very much the typical chaotic Indian city. The French Quarter, known as White Town, is very pleasant indeed. There are leafy avenues and streets all with evocative French names like Rue Dumas or Rue de St Martine. The streets are laid out in a grid pattern so it,s easy to navigate around. There are some very fine colonial buildings in a dazzling white and a long traffic free promenade along the seafront. Nearly all the prominent hotels seem to have a rooftop restaurant and bar. We are staying at the Executive Inn just a few minutes walk from the prom. There is a city beach but it is not advisable to swim . Supposedly there are beaches north of town so we hire a scooter to visit one called Paradise Beach. The traffic is insane on the main road so we manage to get there down some very narrow back streets. Paradise it certainly isn’t. The beach is full of rubbish and everything is very run down . We head back to town and swap the scooter for a pair of bicycles and explore White Town by the much safer option of push bikes. All in all Pondicherry was a unique place to visit and well worth the effort of getting here. https://jauntlet.com//97047https://jauntlet.com//97047Sat, 17 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530This is how the masses travel on Indian trains so we will see what’s in store. The train journey; third class sleeper, open windows, three tier , was absolutely fine. Not too crowded and pretty comfortable after all. Arrived on time at 10 pm. We head to our hotel, the Park Avenue, which is behind a Burger King and opposite a KFC. Modern India! The main attraction here is the massive walled temple complex across the river and any thoughts of modern India are pretty soon gone. Our auto rickshaw ( tuk tuk) takes us through winding ancient streets and alleyways lined with fruit and flower stalls, wandering cows and of course thousands of beautifully colourful dressed people. There is a festival called Pongal on at the moment which is basically a harvest festival. We were told about this on the train and that we would likely see lots celebrations. They were not wrong. The entry to the temples once through the thick walls is just amazing. The brightly sari dressed women, the bare chested men plus some in black and gold costumes and painted faces is stunning. The temples themselves are stunning. There is a huge crowd lined up for a special blessing which we think is for Hindu’s only but other than that we are free to wander anywhere. The following day we visit the very impressive Rock Fort which dominates the town. It’s a pretty stiff 450 steps up to the top but it’s cut through the solid rock and there are several temples cut inside the rock on the way up for a rest. Apart from the temples and the fort, Trichy is fairly ordinary but it’s been really enjoyable nonetheless. We even managed to find a few dark and windowless bars to while away a couple of hours in the evenings. https://jauntlet.com//97045https://jauntlet.com//97045Wed, 14 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530Thanjavur. We travelled through pretty nondescript countryside of parched fields to arrive at Thanjavur. The road into town is filthy with rubbish piled up everywhere. We are staying in a very nice hotel called the Parisutham. It looks like the architect learned his trade in East Germany as it has a certain brutalist vibe. Still, there is a lovely pool but no beer as it’s a dry Pongal day. Opposite the hotel is a very dirty canal with a bit of a walk alongside it but nothing else in the vicinity. The main draw is the huge Chola Temple complex we will visit the next day. BRIHADISHWARA TEMPLE and FORT. This complex is completely mind blowing. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are thousands of devotees, Indian tourists and a handful of western tour groups all packed into this enormous walled compound. It’s the high point of the Chola Kingdom architecture and the main temple stands 63 meters high and has been worshiped continuously for over a thousand years.. By far the most impressive temple complex we have seen. Absolutely incredible. We make a fairly brief visit to Thanjavur Palace but somehow we seemed to have missed most of as it didn’t seem very palatial . Four days of hectic Indian city life with the constant blaring of horns, the near misses from scooters and auto rickshaws and the near suicidal attempts to cross the road are coming to an end as we are heading to what we hope will be a more relaxed visit to the former French colony of PONDICHERRY.https://jauntlet.com//97046https://jauntlet.com//97046Wed, 14 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530Ooty to Calicut and Kappad. Back off the mountain through the most glorious countryside of thick jungle, clad hills and forests of eucalyptus trees. Through miles and miles of tea plantations and animal reserves before reaching the flat coastal plain. Then it’s back to India. An almost continuous sprawl of houses, shacks, restaurants and hotels all the way into Calicut. We arrive at a beautiful, clean well kept little resort called Kappad Beach resort. All the rooms are in small four unit blocks and all with a sea view. Another Indian bargain at £37 per night inc breakfast in a very nice restaurant overlooking the beach. Kappad is just great. It is a genuine slice of Indian coastal living in this part of Kerala. There are little fisherman’s huts, tiny roadside food stalls, a few small restaurants and one resort that doesn’t appear to have anyone in it. The whole beach trip comes alive in the evening especially at the weekend when it’s packed with locals. Kappad is where Vasco de Gama first landed in India and there is a small commemorative obelisk to mark the spot. Blink and you’d miss it. It’s so beautiful and peaceful we are spending a week here. We take one trip into Calicut AKA Kozhikode on a packed local bus. The city has a long beach front but it’s very dirty and you certainly wouldn’t want to swim in the sea. There are a few rundown reminders of British colonial times along the front but not much else. The traffic is crazy and the usual blaring of horns and people everywhere sets the tone for a typical Indian city. The plan is to try and get the train at least halfway to the Bay of Bengal and then up the coast to Chennai. Finally managed to secure rail tickets after a week. It’s the train from Calicut to Trichy and goes once a day direct. All classes were showing full and waitlisted so we have had wait to get a Tatkel Ticket which are tickets released at 10 AM the day before travel. Could only get 3rd Class NON AC Sleeper. This is how the masses travel on Indian trains so we will see what’s in store. https://jauntlet.com//97037https://jauntlet.com//97037Wed, 07 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530Mysore to Ooty. Snooty Ooty was a former British Era hill station and is famous for its narrow gauge toy train that winds it’s way up to the town. It’s just as well it has this attraction because the rest of the town is a sprawling mess. Our train trip up the hillside to Ooty is at 12.30 and public transport is not available to get us there, so we have a private transfer. This is a fabulous road trip, first through Bandipur National Park where we are lucky enough to witness elephants, deer, monkeys, warthogs and an abundance of bird life and then up to 7,000 feet of tortuous hairpin bends. Unfortunately the weather is very poor. Cloudy and foggy. The views would be fabulous on a clear day. Our hotel is a long way from the centre which we have yet to see. We visit a couple of old hotels which are quite atmospheric but other than that there seems to be very little evidence that the British were even here. It’s cold, damp and foggy. We are leaving after one day.https://jauntlet.com//97036https://jauntlet.com//97036Tue, 06 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530We left Hospet at 9 pm and after a comfortable overnight train arrive in Mysore at 9am. On time! Straight to the modern Le Ruchi The Prince Hotel and we’re able to check in straight away. What luxury after Hampi! A balcony, a fridge and a lovely room looking over the gardens. A bit out of town but a tuk tuk to the city is under a pound. The hotel is unbelievably cheap at about £25 per night and they have thrown in breakfast as well! Mysore is a lovely, easy going city of wide tree lined streets, lakes and palaces as well as some superb colonial architecture. We are spending 4 nights here. The highlights here include the fabulously over the top Maharaja’s Palace and some glorious Raj Era hotels . The Metropole and the La Litha Mahal are both former palaces now 5 star hotels. Another highlight is the amazing fruit and flower market. This area around the market is just fantastic. There is so much going on in the market square that it’s like a Canelleto painting Just walking around and getting lost amongst the back streets is an absolute delight. There are little mini villages of Muslim and Hindu and Christian that seem to get along ok. Once away from the frantic main streets these little communities are tranquil and quiet. The traffic is crazy but the tuk tuk rides are exiting and how they all manage to miss crashing into each other is a miracle. Mysore is famous for its Palace which a fabulously over the top mix of every architectural style of the orient. It’s very busy, but pretty impressive. In the evening is a Sound and Light Show in the local language (Kanada), which is projected onto the front of the Palace. The sound is terrible and it goes on for an interminable 45 min after which the whole building is lit up in 100,000 white lights. Mysore has been superb and is deservedly most peoples favourite Indian city. Green and clean.https://jauntlet.com//97035https://jauntlet.com//97035Fri, 02 Jan 2026 03:40:00 +0530Madgoan to Hampi by train. And very pleasant it was too . 2/AC so 4 persons per section. Up over the Western Ghats passing dense jungle and a massive water fall where the Mandovi river falls off the mountains into the valley below. Once out and over the Ghats the landscape is poor and rural with tiny parcels of cultivated land . Once in Hospet we leave the train and take a tuk tuk to Hampi Bazaar. There are ancient ruins everywhere as far as the eye can see. The main draw is the Virupaksha Temple right in the centre of the village. There are thousands of people milling around. Honking spluttering tuk tuks, taxis and buses and coachloads of Indian tourists and school children jamming the Indy road into town. Once through the melee and past the tourist shops, wood carvers, jewellery shops homestays and many restaurants we find ourselves at the end of town at our homestay. We spend our days here roaming the multitude of temples and museums and on our final day - Jan 1st we take a hot air balloon ride over fabulous Hampi at sunrise to see the new year dawn. https://jauntlet.com//97034https://jauntlet.com//97034Sun, 28 Dec 2025 03:40:00 +0530Heading south again for Christmas to Patnem about 20 minutes south of Agonda. Staying at a modern hotel on the road to the beach called Crystal Goa. It’s ok but a bit characterless and is busy with families. The beach is superb and sits in a crescent of soft sand backed by forested hills. Unlike Agonda, which is a turtle laying beach and therefore does not have a lot of dining tables and loungers on the sand, Patnem is the opposite. The beach is not crammed solid though and is a fantastic way to spend six days of beach life. Weather is near perfect, food is excellent and still ridiculously cheap. We head over the hill to Palolem one day and it is absolutely packed so best avoided. https://jauntlet.com//97018https://jauntlet.com//97018Mon, 22 Dec 2025 03:40:00 +0530Next stop further up the coast to the much more developed Cavelossim. There a two very large luxury hotels, the Novotel and the Raddison and lots of other mainly apartments and smaller hotels. We have lucked out and are in a very posh gated community of bungalows set in beautifully manicured gardens with two decent pools. It is very nice indeed and looks like a little Portuguese village with lovely roof tiles and individual terraces. Outside there are lots of modern restaurants and bars. A river runs behind the town and there are some very nice restaurants on the river front. The beach stretches for miles with a few beach shacks clustered together at various points but otherwise it’s pretty much deserted. Four days of doing virtually nothing and then moving south back down the coast just beyond Agonda to Patnem. 80% Russian tourists. Won’t rush back because of that. https://jauntlet.com//96886https://jauntlet.com//96886Thu, 18 Dec 2025 03:40:00 +0530We have arrived at the South Goa beach village of Agonda and checked into a beautiful little resort called The Cinammon. Step through an ornamental archway into a little piece of Bali. Lots of little sculptures dotted around, a nice little central pool (cold in December) and nicely spaced wooden cottages all with a veranda. It’s a little off the main Beach Road down an unmade dirt track and is very quiet and chilled out. Agonda is a remaining piece of what Goa used to be like before massive development in North Goa. The beach is a superb crescent of fine sand backed by low key (for now) small resorts and beach shack restaurants and thickly forested hills beyond. Everything is ridiculously cheap with an exchange rate of nearly 124 rupees to the pound it’s hard to find a meal much beyond £5 and a large Kingfisher at about £1.20. Here for four days of total beach life. https://jauntlet.com//96885https://jauntlet.com//96885Sun, 14 Dec 2025 14:10:00 +0530