Have you tried the IPA?

As with most tourist destinations in the north of India, Agra had been badly affected by the fall in tourist numbers following the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai. This clearly had a devastating effect on small businesses struggling to survive. The less serious, yet extremely annoying, effect on us was an intensification in the hassle factor. It was, however, very sad to see shop owners desperately trying to sell us pairs of quality-made leather shoes for less than one pound.

Everybody visits Agra to see the Taj Mahal. Although visually spectacular, particularly when viewed from afar, we were equally as impressed by Agra’s many other sights, such as Agra Fort, Akbar’s mausoleum and the Itmad-Ud-Daulah.

The overnight train journey, in first class, from Mumbai to Jhansi, was made all the more pleasurable by sharing our compartment with the lovely Paawan and Sushma and their two gorgeous sons. As well as keeping us entertained during the long journey they continuously fed us with the delicious home-cooked food they had brought with them.

On arrival at Jhansi train station we hurriedly got an auto to the bus station where we fortunately managed to catch the last bus of the day to Khajuraho. The five-hour bus journey was our first real taste of the dreaded northern Indian hassle which we had heard so much about. We managed to ignore the persistent touts and, on arrival at Khajuraho, took an auto to the archaeological museum from where we walked to our pre-booked hotel. The battle continued on arrival at the hotel with more nonsense from a tout who appeared to be associated with, or working for, the hotel quoting us ridiculous prices. We stood our ground, however, and managed to secure a nice room at a very reasonable price.

Khajuraho is well set up for tourists with an abundance of traveller’s cafes and souvenir shops. Unfortunately, due to the recent attacks in Mumbai, tourist numbers to the area have plummeted. Although this time of year is meant to be peak season the place felt like a ghost town with local businesses struggling and desperate for our custom.

The renowned Hindu temples with their numerous erotic carvings were incredible. Although we were short on time we managed to fit in all the temples in the western and eastern groups.

The Brihadeeswarar temple made Thanjavur (formerly Tanjore) well worth stopping off at. Unfortunately we weren’t in town at the right time to see the huge monolithic Nandi statue receive it’s fortnightly milk and turmeric bath.

We had an enjoyable day exploring the remaining sights of Thanjavur. The palace museum with it’s wonderful collection of Chola bronze statues and the library with its eclectic selection (including some great maps which incorporated the ‘latest discoveries of Captain Cook’) made up for disappointment of the museum’s ‘Secret passage’ which came to an abrupt and rather smelly end.

We took a bus from Chennai to the seaside village of Mamallapuram. Renowned for it’s stone carving tradition dating back to the fifth century, the town is still home to numerous craftsmen earning a living from carving stone.

We were fortunate to be visiting during the annual dance festival which provided us with our first taste of Indian folk and classical dance. Just as enjoyable as the dancing itself was the accompanying live music.

There were numerous examples of the stone carving tradition to be seen including the Shore temple and the Pancha Rathas. After dusk the spectacular Arjuna’s Penance was lit and provided a stunning backdrop for the live dancing. A highlight for our stay for Matthew was recognising, then chatting to, the poet and Newsnight Review pundit Tom Paulin.

We celebrated news years eve with a delicious meal of sea food curries and our first alcoholic drinks since our arrival in India. The beach was the main site for the new year celebrations with bonfires, music, dancing and fireworks. The festivities were somewhat ruined for me after some idiot left off a firecracker right next to me burning a hole in my trousers