in paradise

i left the cool mountains of kodaikanal after having been ill for 2 days heading to madurai where i would get the train to cochin on the west coast. the bus ride was only 3 hours but in this short period of time the temperature increased by about 15 degrees. when i arrived in madurai it was torrid, noisy and busy. i easily found a hotel in the center which was surprinsingly nice. the only catch was that everytime there was a power cut, and there were many, all the town's generators would start their roar in unison reverberating through all surfaces to reach my ears.

i was set to travelling south to cochin, in the state of kerala, in the vague hope i could finally go to the beach. but then i got a message from elodie saying that she and her friends would be in pondicherry at the weekend. after spending all this time on the road with very little company, the thought of meeting a familiar face was very appealing so i went to the train station and got myself a ticket to leave to pondycherry the next morning.

this turned out to be a really good decision. the train journey an absolute joy - the people sitting next to me were very friendly and shared their newspapers. we discussed politics and indian customs and they asked many questions about the differences between my country and theirs. after, the man sitting next to me insisted i'd share his home-cooked breakfast and didn't let me leave the train without a handful of chikoos (a fruit) from his garden.

and then i arrived in pondicherry. how to start? pondicherry is a former french colony which is immediately noticeable in the architecture and in the city's planning. it's very clean, the streets are wide and sided by trees which provides a great relief from the blazing sun. and then, lots of people speak french.

i went to the guest house where my friends were staying - the most charming and homely place i've stayed in so far! - left my stuff and went to meet them. the manager of the guest house offered me a lift on his scooter - wind in my hair! - and dropped me at the meeting point. i met my friends, and their friends - so many nice people! - and we got the boat to go to the beach. sun, sand, water, heat, summer in all its splendour! and the best company, too. i swam - pure bliss! - and chatted and slowly got to know these people with whom i'd spend some of the best days of my stay in india so far...

at the end of the day, when i was leaving on the boat, i looked back and noticed the signpost written in big letters: welcome to paradise beach.