Start in Bedford

In the taxi
Cheers ......let's go..

Glass of fizz....they let anyone into Premium these days...
Breakfast at The Leela

What no pants

Andrew found out he didn't pack his undies......off shopping for some tonight.....
Port and grapes......

Great meal veggievwrap....Mike got a little carried away with the Port.
Day trip around fort .....

Great breakfast......3 curries later hope no repercussions
Great day in fort Kochi.....

Started shopping even found some Creed......
Off to the seagull......

Lovely fresh grilled fish........interesting electrics at restaurant. Quiz 10/20. Found 2 pairs of undies for 40 rupee each.....nude colour (.Brown we are in India after all )
Tonic water refuelLes mer
Munnar.....time for tea

Arrived yesterday internet a bit dodgy hence delay, 5hr zig zag drive, stopped off for a pleasant coffee for 20rupee, all regretted not having the local lunch served on a banana leaf. Mike a littleLes mer
Tea plantation walk

After a short drive we reached the local tea plantation and met our guide ' Monie'......we then started our 4 hour trek up the steep mountain tracks. He pointed out birds,trees etc. Along the way. DueLes mer
Gin and quiz

Not too good the quiz scores and number of gins are equalising, which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending how you look at it.....
Tea factory

Interesting tour ( 400 rupee ) around working tea factory, guide a little difficult to understand but we eventually worked out the process; white tea the uber best, then green ,then a series of gradesLes mer
Lunch at Ali Baba....

4 Thali ( mixed selection ) kerala parata and tandori roti, water 650 rupee..... bargain.
Gin and quiz.......

Quiz score 13........ helped with generous marking by Linda. Mike pulled it out of the bag with the best answer about the reserve teams in the boat race.
Raining +++
Munnar to Kofiland resort in Thekkady

Very interesting and twisty driver from Munnar, took about 3 hours and had a pleasant stop by a massive dam, with coffee at 20 rupee each, even splashed our on a Kit Kat. Last bit of drive through theLes mer
Kofiland resort

Great jungle themed hotel, quiet we were only guests! Usual confusion re breakfast order, 2 eggs = 8 arrive. Etc
Continuous wildlife sounds great apart from some irritating bird that sounded like aLes mer
Elephant trip & Spice garden tour.

Ride, wash/ scrub and then bath with the elephants. Very clean location , elephants very well behaved and seemed content and well cared for. Leela 32 and Meena 35. Getting on off them was a bit of aLes mer
Dinner at the Bamboo

Last meal in Periyar..... popped along to the bamboo restaurant...( term restaurant probably over states it a little, tin covered shack more appropriate ) Fish tikka, chicken tikka, fish sweet n sour,Les mer
Houseboat first day.....

Arrived after a 4hr drive, interesting scenery.... a.c. houseboat.....straw and wood. Jimmy the driver, Babu front of house and the chef....Litten. Managed to get all the baggage across the wobblyLes mer
Houseboat day 2

Spent the might moored in the middle of nowhere, chef conjuring up some amazing meals, digestion seems to be surviving the 3 curries based meals per day.
Linda & Karen hoping for another shoppingLes mer
CRUNCH time

Very worrying time Mike managed to fall / trip / swallow dive / horizontally piroett off the houseboat falling 5ft onto rough concrete steps, wedging himself between the boat and the concreteLes mer
Day 3 on the houseboat

Final day drifting along the backwaters..... amazing sites with everyone going about their daily lives; washing, swimming, fishing for tea. Passed several highly decorated Catholic churches.
AnotherLes mer
Boat, car, tuk tuk, train and plane!

Back to Mumbai today, catching the 14.35 Cannanore Express, from Alleppey to Aluva, platform 2 , coach c1 class ( air conditioned seat ) comfortable and relatively clean. The bio toilet a bit trickyLes mer
MUMBAI......Trident Nariman Point

First of our 3 days in Mumbai.....Mike fixed a few things to do, hopefully will use the complimentary limo ( mini ) to get us going. Great city view from 32nd floor. AW's shirt which he left at theLes mer
Full on tour Mumbai....

5hr tour of the highlights of Mumbai. Encountered the dabbawala's who deliver 250,000 meals each day from workers homes to their offices.
Watched the cricket games at the Oval.......
Jain templeLes mer