Kochin

In Fort Cochin, Kerala and the difference is immense!! It's cleaner, and more organised and when people stare at you they realise they're doing it and sometimes look away. If only for a few seconds before the compulsion overtakes them again!! But by which time you've smiled at them and they respond in kind :-) Been eating amazing fish, bought straight from the fishermen, then you bring it to the dodgy restaurants alongside and get it cooked, heaven!!! Will put a photo of it up when it's emailed to me, v cool. And took a backwater tour yesterday, what Kerala is probably most famous for. Got a small 6 man wooden canoe and were punted up little streams and saw people making coconut fibre ropes (so weird, the fibres actually knit together by themselves... with a little help but it's still freaky) and drying coconuts and our punter climbed a coconut palm tree (using the rope wrapped around his feet and the tree, we tried, bloody impossible above 2 feet off the ground) to get us coconuts that were chopped open so we could drink them. Then we got served food on a houseboat and went for a river cruise. Best money we've spent so far. Saw a cat battling a live snake on the way home and we were eaten alive by a million midges that somehow got into our room at night, not pleasant and the heat is incredible!!!!!!!!

Met loads of people, some from the bus to Kochin and another Irish girl who we met a few weeks ago and wandered into our internet cafe and some randomers. Great to have people to meet for dinner and chat and stuff, breaks up the days.

Apart from that, got a public bus to Munnar, one side of me is very sunburnt... Munnar is amazing, the scenery is unreal. It's a lot higher up so it's cooler though still as sunny but the mountains are covered with tea plantations which are an incredible sight, a vivid green patchwork across rolling hills... Wow!!! Booked a 2 day trek through plantations and jungle with an overnight camp. It's also bloody cold so no mossies thank God! All we have to bring with us is a jumper, everything else is provided. Looking forward to it, and cos this won't go up till Sunday you may very well be reading how I got on in two seconds.