Center of a flat world...

Ok - I was wrong about the USB ports in Bengaluru (Bangalore). I'm wrong a lot of the time and I've made my peace with it.

Mysore and the Maharaja's palace made for a good few days. My hotel had roaches and you aren't allowed to photograph the interior of the palace (which is so the best part!) but still - a nice few days. I actually photographed an intersection because it had a proper cross walk (a first on this trip). No one (foot nor vehicle traffic) really minds the little glowing Walk/Don't Walk men, but they exist and that pleased me. The Indian people seemed rather amused - by me, not the intersection - I guess I deserve that this time. Also, I procured another batch of postcards allowing me to contact those loved ones who refuse to enter the computer age (*cough* Grandma *cough* Dad - love you guys!).

The traffic in Bangalore is even worse than typical but there's a Hard Rock Cafe (yes, I took a picture) and a surprising amount of green(ish) space. I came mostly for the rose garden and to catch a ride to Hampi. Somehow I'm stretching that to cover four days (my room has a TV...). Dreading the nine hours to Hampi helps too. Train or bus - that's a lot of sitting. But there on out every journey is less than three hours by bus or 10+ hours on an overnight train. And I'm getting a 2AC berth - the India Railway and Catering can have Rs400 (~$10) for the upgrade.

From Hampi, I head into Goa. I'm not into the drug and dance scene so I'll be sticking to the spice plantations and Old Goa for most of my time. A few of the northern beaches sound enjoyable - 'discovered' enough to have permanent shelter but not enough for package tourists and mega-hotels - however, transport can be a problem. Still, it doesn't seem right to come to Goa and not stay a few days at the beach...

Depending on the 'weather' (read: frequency of attacks on public transport and civilians) in Mumbai (Bombay) that will either be my next stop after Goa or the place where I switch trains. I haven't seen any flaming rickshaws on the news... lately...

As I'll stay in Goa until April (for Easter), I'll only have a month to see north India. Depending on the 'weather' (read: heat and its buddy humidity), north could mean a hop out to Sikkim (permits in hand) from New Delhi (after Agra) to cool off. I fly Delhi to Amman so this would mean backtracking... but it would also mean not melting like the wicked witch of the west. Or I could go up to Kashmir - all the souvenir shop operators insist it's lovely there. And there aren't nearly as many bombings as people think. So much depends on the weather...