MAMALLAPURAM - MAHABALIPURAM Pop 12,345 After forward planning, the speed and precision with which we found our coach, stored our bags and seated ourselves was executed to perfection. We decided to pay a little extra and splash out 1.60 for both of us to travel in comfort on an AC coach instead of the state bus. This was the best decision and we had a comfortable two hour journey taking in the farming communities and bustling towns. We pulled up at the side ...

PUDUCHERRY - PONDICHERRY Pop 220,749 We had an autorick booked to take us back to the new bus stand, which was in fact not much different from the old bus stand except the rubbish had not quite covered every surface and the street beggars had not formed the same kind of community dwellings. In the old bus stand they have constructed an impressive row of terraced boxes and banana/palm leaves that Bear Grylls would be proud of. The driver was great, we gave him...

TANJORE - THANJAVUR. pop 215,314 We got on the locals bus early the next day to get out of Trichy as fast as we could after another sleepless night. We didn't have far to go this time as the bus was directly across the road from the hotel so we loaded up and shipped out. This bus was a rickety old heap of junk but it was only an hour and half journey to Tanjore so it was fine for us. We managed to get the back seat and with a pleasant conductor not barking o...

Trichy - (Tiruchirappalli) - Population 866,354 HAPPY DIWALI!!! We left Madurai behind and headed for the local bus stand. As we expected it was well organised chaos with street sellers and dwellers selling you something or begging from you, passengers heading back and forth trying to locate which stand their bus actually leaves from as it is never the one that it says it will be, drivers standing around chatting amongst themselves avoiding any eye contact with...

MADURAI ... Well after an excellent seven hour journey on the state bus for 2.75, taking in the sights of the lively towns and villages including Nagercoil, Trirunelveli, Virudunagar and Tiruparankundram (we know easy for us to say) following an actual tarmac dual carriageway the NH7 we arrived in the central bus station of Madurai. Now the clue here is in the name ... it is Mad! We quickly had to switch from laid back beach bums to hard faced city dwellers as...