This weekend was a whirlwind of a trip to Kanyakumari at the southern tip of India.  People travel from all over India to see the sun rise and sun set simultaneously over the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean, and the Arabian Sea.  We took an overnight train on Friday night and arrived at 4:30am.  This time of year it’s a bit cloudy on the horizon, so we weren’t able to get the best view of sunrise but it was still I peaceful experience.  Later that morning, we took a ferry to Vivekananda Rock Memorial and the Thiruvalluvar statue.  I was content to sit on the stone steps with the sun shining in my face and the ocean breeze hitting my face.  Fresh air and quiet!  A needed change from the noise and pollution of Chennai and Madurai.  The city itself was quite touristy and less than relaxing.  Here I saw some of the worst conditions I’ve seen yet – elderly people who are starving, deformed, and living in squalor begging outside of Ghandi Memorial and beside them people selling their cheap tourist souvenirs.

Saturday evening, we packed into two vans and headed to a more remote beach to watch the sunset.  Unfortunately there is still damage from the recent tsunami, and many roads are still partially washed out.  The vans raced through pot-hole ridden dirt roads to try to get us to the beach in time to see sunset.  Race = 80 miles per hour through tiny coastal villages.  Maybe to distract us (?), our driver played Bollywood music videos.  The whole experience felt drug-induced.  The vans screeched to a halt on the edge of a small cliff overlooking the beach.  Literally, screeched to a halt a 1-2 feet before the edge.  While we missed the sun setting, the clouds were still colorful and the ocean was beautiful.  I walked down the beach and watched local fisherman preparing their nets for the next day.  These fisherman use hand carved wood boats made out of 3 tree trunks fit together and secured with coconut rope.

Sunday a few of us took a side trip again to the more rural coastal towns to visit the tallest footbridge in India, Mathur Hanging Bridge.  Our driver stopped multiple times along the way to ask villagers where to take the next turn.  The twisty, extremely bumpy ride was well worth it.  I hiked up to the top and walked across this bridge and got a birds eye view of beautiful southern Tamil Nadu – the streams, the banana tree plantations, endless palm trees, woman below washing bright colored laundry against the rocks, the Western Ghatis in the background.  Next we toured Padamanabapuram Palace which is the only palace in India made out of teak wood.  It looks and feels more like a southeast Asian palace but of course with Indian influences.  Also set against the charming landscape of rural Kanyakumari, it was a more enjoyable part of weekend long trip to Kanyakumari.

We arrived back in Madurai at Lady Doak College around midnight last night after braving 6 hours on what we are calling the “roach coach” train.  It was quite an experience.  We were all thrilled to be back in our beds at Lady Doak, safe from cockroaches and abominable stenches from overflowing train restrooms!

There will be more to come on visiting the Russ Foundation today and my trip to Kochi in Kerala… stay tuned.