On the day we left India, we celebrated Danielle's birthday. Here she is with Dhara, one of her student-tutors.
The three of us in a motorized rickshaw.
We kept running into this family at various locations and so they wanted their photo taken with Danielle.
At a silk store/factory in Kanchipuram
Danielle made some friends at a Hindu temple in Chennai
Once again, I have neglected my blog. My excuse this time is that we have been busy and travelling almost non-stop. Since the last time I contributed to the blog, we have visited five countries – India, Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia and China! The pace is even more hectic than before: we are at sea a couple of days and then we are in a country from two to six days. We left China a few days ago, after having been there for six days. Now we are in Japan, travelling from Kobe to Yokohama (just outside of Tokyo). First, let me tell you about India …
We docked in Chennai, which used to be called Madras. The port is very much a working, commercial port that does not see very many cruise ships. So, in a way, it was a more legitimate experience than when we port in places that are fixed up for the tourists. Chennai is a huge city, but this means that it is also quite polluted, dirty and congested. Nevertheless, many of us were impressed with its grand boulevards and beautiful buildings, both old ones and new ones. Kathleen led a three-day trip to Delhi and the Taj Mahal, but I stayed with Danielle on the ship since I was still recovering from my eye surgery. On the first day, however, the three of us went on a city orientation. On the second day, Danielle and I went on a trip to two southern towns – Kanchipuram and Mamalapuram – that have old and new Hindu temples. So, not only did we see beautifully built ancient temples but we also learned about the Hindu religion. Like Catholic churches in Europe, there seem to be Hindu temples almost on every street in Chennai. The next couple of days Danielle and I spent some time on the ship resting but we did go out to a market, travelling by three-wheeled motorized rickshaw, a truly fun experience. Our rickshaw driver convinced us that he was an extra in a number of movies.
