Alas, the end is nigh, after 2 months of planes, trains & autorickshaws, the time has come to say a sad Goodbye to Mother India & leave this incredible land. To say I'm gutted, would be an understatement, but there are certain parts of me are ready to leave. Over the last week, I have suffered from a series of ailments, including a sunburnt bottom, my first bout of 'holiday tummy', a stiff neck & 5 mosquito bites on my forehead which have made me look like the elephant woman. I think this is India's way of telling me it's time to go, either that or the first symptoms of malaria or some other tropical illness. Despite this, I fear it is going to be highly traumatic leaving my beloved India behind & ending this love affair.

Things I will miss:

the chai wallahs song

south indian breakfasts

beeping horns

the indian head wiggle (meaning both yes & no)

death defying rickshaw rides

sweet masala chai

cheeky little street urchins begging for 1 pen (especially the 3 naughty girls at londa station who were straight out of Annie)

holy cows in the strangest of places (on the platform at the railway station, stealing carrots from shops)

bicycles overloaded with way too much

boys on too big bicycles

long, long train journeys (in sleeper class)

brightly coloured saris

pretty girls with flowers in their hair

scarf princes

swathi snacks

the taj mahal at sunrise

the taj mahal hotel, at anytime

faded bollywood posters

bollywood films at the train station

mtv bollywood

the times of india bollywood gossip supp

all india radio

dhai patata pani puri, masala dosa, masala omlette, masala chai, idli, vada, sambar, samosas, thalis, momos, cheesy garlic naan, tandoori tiger prawns, bombil duck, in fact all the food!

tall kingfishers & short kings

mojitos on palolem beach

banshees fighting at 3am

sunset scrabble with the scarfs

old, old men with thick rimmed glasses & moustaches

dark brown faces with big white smiles

bustling bazaars selling everything you could ever want & more

colonial buildings

towering temples

grandiose palaces

crumbling forts

holy lakes

the morning call to prayer

naughty monkeys stealing shoes

boys holding hands

the smell of the spice markets

secluded beaches

friendly fishermen

crazy train folk (that only appear at railway stations or onboard)

beautiful backwaters

pondicherry french colony

delhi tibetan colony

the great mumbai metropolis

being mistaken for preity zinta

in fact the only thing that i wont miss is the mozzies, even the stares i can get used to.

So this is it, just 1 day left in this amazing kaleidoscopic country of colours, so I guess I'd better make the most of it. We've had the best time here, I am seriously thinking about emigrating permanently! We're staying with more cousins in Bangalore at the moment, which is another cool city & has a huge expat population. Rupesh & Preity run their own recruitment company, so we are well connected for jobs if we do decide to move here, although I need to work on Vish I think! Watch this space...

But for now we have Sri Lanka to look forward to, so get ready for the next chapter...