We made it!!!!

Whew! We made it to India safely and absolutely love it. It is lively, colorful, open and warm (and hot too).

We arrived without any problems except that our driver didn’t show up at the airport in Chennai. Oh well, all part of the adventure. As a result we met two wonderful Americans who work for USAA. They hooked us up with their driver and also gave us some good travel tips. Good thing, since their was a sea of people, taxies and absolute chaos as we exited the airport. The 2hr ride south was also interesting, especially after being awake 30+ hours from the air travel and layovers. Cows in the road, constant horn beeping and flashing headlights. Very interesting. Dubai layover gave us a chance to do our own city tour. And yes, we did see the tallest building in the world, the Burg al Arab Hotel and the Emirates Mall which has its own built-in ski slope.

We had a fantastic day today and walked to the Shore Temple on the Bay of Bengal, streets of the town which are fascinating in itself and tonight one of the music festival concerts just around the corner from our hotel. The food is OUTSTANDING!!! Our tummies full, Steve is now taking his first of many naps. Good thing, since it is hot, humid and sunny – best to stay indoors during the really hot hours. I thought we’d be doing laundry once a week, but it may end up twice a week as we changed cloths once already today. The people are fantastic, very friendly and welcome you openly. Already shared photos and e-mail addresses with William the security guard at a local hotel. We are loving the interaction with locals and of course Steve is eating it up.

It really is a third world country however with dirty streets, shabby buildings and chaotic street life which makes it an adventure. I’m actually shocked our A/C works and that the hotel has Wi-Fi.

More to come as we explore Mamallapuram for the next five days.

Laurie