7thDecember 2004– London to India 13 hours

Arriving at Chennai airport at 1.45am was pretty hassle free. Far more plesent then the Delhi airport nightmare every traveler is apparently subjected to. Waking up the next morning and stepping outside India immediately brings your senses alive. The sound of car horns, scooter horns, rickshaws, shouting, screaming, crying, laughing, whistling, hissing, spitting, haking, farting, burping, dogs barking, pigs squealing and cows mooing. The smell of vehicle fumes, sewers, cow dung, incense, sweet chai, deep fried food on street stalls and spices. Ahhh good old India.

Being the 4th largest city Chennai is extremely polluted. It was called Madras until 1997 and is famous for its Tamil films.
We headed for George Town which is a bustling maze of streets each dedicated to selling a specialized product e.g. metal materials, cosmetics etc. We even spotted a shop that only fixes airline luggage. India is so good for recycling in that way. The red brick architecture of the law courts was stunning and is apparently the largest in the world after the courts of London. The grounds of the courts were pretty chaotic, not what you would expect but then I don’t think you should have any expectations about anything in India. I did expect to enjoy Chennai but instead we looked forward to leaving and getting to our next destination, Pondicherry.