14-17 October 2012 I left Kanyakumari with Mairead, heading for Varkala by train. It was my first experience of the Indian Rail ways and it was a reason in itself to visit India. As we sped along you could see the coast and rice paddies on one side, and the Ghats and swathes of coconut trees on the other. At Trivandrum we stopped to change trains and have a spot of lunch at a chain cafe called the Indian Coffee House. The building was very unusual, it was a sp...

Next morning I was woken by an almost deafening noise outside the hotel. The local church blared out a 5.30am wake up call. I had set my alarm to watch the sun rise anyway so wasn't too bothered. The sky was full of cloud and it had rained during the night. The sun rise was a massive let down. Couldn't really see the sun at all. At least I could say I have watched specks of light rise over three oceans. Hopefully the sunset would be better. After grabbing some b...

After a fantastic week in Rajapalayam, I left for Madurai with Gokul and Aishwarya. I visited the famous Meenakshi temple and was shown round by a driver who works for Gokul. Simply put, it was awesome. A vast network of shrines and statues mainly dedicated to the god Meenakshi. Despite the vast numbers of people walking around, the Hindu chants that echoed around the temple made you feel that you had entered an almost unworldly place. The detail both inside and ...

One day I was invited to play badminton with the factory workers by Mr Veluchamy. I instantly said yes and was then told that we leave at 5.30am, matches start from 6am. Guess everyone must like early starts in Rajapalayam. The workers play at this time most mornings so felt a bit of pressure representing the UK. Mr Veluchamy said there will be around four or five of us playing the next morning. When we arrived at the indoor sports hall at the school, it seemed ...

8-12 October 2012 My apartment in Rajapalayam was located next to a cotton mill, where most of the mill managers live with their families. During the the course of the week I was looked after by two very generous managers, Mr Ramanan and Mr Veluchamy. I had coffee and dinner with their families often. The town has a long history of cotton growing and textile production. The mill is run by a family who also established the school, Sri Ramana Vidyalaya, in 2004. ...