Just arrived in Madurai, in Tamil Nadu. I think I’m now back in real India. What a contrast between a cool, damp and friendly Keralan village and a hot, dry and bustling Tamil city.

As soon as I arrived at the bus station (there are 4 here), I was hassled by auto drivers. I tried to duck by dodging into a toilet, then getting some lunch. I wanted to avoid plastic-bottled drinks, so ordered a chai from a stall. It came in a plastic, throw-away cup. The best-laid plans?

Next stop was an ATM. (I had to borrow some money for my bus here.) It was being filled when I arrived. So I now have a nice pic of the armed guard, Mr Balakrishnan. He has a huge shot-gun but was very friendly. Gaaah, this Sify iWay PC’s locked down so I can’t post it here. I did discover a way around this but I can’t remember what it is!

The journey was fairly uneventful, apart from spotting a poster of that old hero/criminal/joker, Vladimir Ulyanov. I’ll bore you with more details later.