Choo-Choo Train

On the 21st we had one of our greatest days in India when we took the miniature train from Mettupalayam to Ooty. The small train, called the Blue Mountain Railway, is pushed by a steam engine (complete with the signature whistle) and climbs steep hills on its 46 km route. The trip takes 5 hours and includes beautiful scenery along the way. We saw waterfalls, ravines, mountains, and tropical forests. Here is a video taken from inside the train:

And here is the video from the outside taken during a stop:

We took the 2nd class car, which was crowded, but fun (and a bargain at less than $2 between the two of us). Everyone on the train was friendly and talkative. One man on the train pointed out to us each of the upcoming waterfalls. The windows were wide open so you could stick your head out the window to catch a glimpse of the steep drops below and the scenery ahead. The train also made several stops so people could get out to pick up a chai or a snack and to look at the views below. At one stop during the trip we encountered a group of monkeys, including a mother carrying its baby. During the ride each time we went through a dark tunnel (which maybe happened 10 times on the trip), everyone on the train would start yelling and screaming, as if we were on a roller coaster. It was quite amusing.

The city of Ooty, the final destination point was okay, but nothing too exciting. Years ago it probably had a charm similar to Kodai with its nice lake and mountainous climate. Today, however, the town is crowded and dirty. There was a small amusement park in town, which looked kitsch and run down.

Drive to Mysore

We arrived in Mysore on the 22nd. The drive there was really great. It took us down a winding mountain with 36 hairpin turns, with counting them down. Thank goodness our driver was extremely slow and cautious -- the best driver yet we've seen in this country. Then the ride went through several wildlife refuges. We saw monkeys, deer (different from those in the U.S.), and three elephants! We got out of the car to see the elephants -- a mother and two young elephants. One of the baby's started to chew on a parked car. The elephants probably weren't "wild" since they had bells on their neck and would get quite close to the people.

Mysore

Mysore is by far our favorite city that we have visited in India. Its streets are wide, and even have sidewalks in many places, and are somewhat cleaner than other city streets. The climate here is nice -- high 80s in the day, and cooler in the evenings and early morning. The buildings are quite pretty and in the center of town has a huge, gorgeous palace.

On our first day here we spent the morning visiting the Maharajah's Palace. This palace was the seat of the maharajas in Mysore. The original palace burnt down in 1897, and what stands there now was designed by an English architect and built in 1912. Unfortunately we couldn't bring our cameras inside the palace, though we do have a number of pictures of its outside. Inside was incredibly ornate with stained glass, painted walls and columns, and intricately carved wooden doors and ceilings.

That afternoon we took a trip to the Mysore zoo, which is one of India's best zoos according to our Lonely Planet guide. It holds the only gorilla in India and it was the only zoo in the country to successfully breed African elephants. The collection of animals really was quite impressive. The highlights were the Siberian tigers and some really charismatic monkeys that we sat and watched for quite a while. The animals seemed to be healthy and well treated, and most had open areas to live in. Still, some were sadly caged in smaller spaces.

After the zoo we returned to our hotel to rest for a while, and then the zoo visited our hotel room. Alison was looking toward window when she saw a little hand reach and pull back the curtain to reveal a little monkey face staring in at us. We have no idea how he climbed up to our 4th floor window, but we were thankful that he didn't come inside! We managed to scare him away, but probably he scared us more.

Our second day we had a pretty low key day. We walked around, and went to the government sponsored craft store and stocked up on some wooden toys -- a specialty in Mysore. Then we spent a couple of hours dealing with mailing it home. You have to take packages to a tailor in India, so they can be wrapped in canvas (a post office requirement) for shipping. Then, of course, dealing with the post office bureaucracy can take an hour in itself -- filling out forms, waiting in different lines, etc. We will never be impatient in the long Cambridge post office lines after our experiences here.

This morning we visited the huge market here. We wove our way through isles of fruits, vegetables, incense, oils, and paints. At every stall someone says, "hello, yes, please come" or "where are you from?" or "very good price." Friendly, but not overly aggressive like in other places.

We are wrapping up our time in India now. Only 2 and a half days left -- tomorrow we leave for Bangalore, and then the next morning we fly to Mumbai, and then we leave for Tokyo. We have had a great time here in India, but are truly excited to begin our next adventure.