India is an absolutely incredible country.
I know, I am not the first one to say this. But I am happy to be the umpteenth person that can prove it.

We left home with mixed expectations and feelings. We had read about the poor hygienic conditions, the dirt, the crazy driving modes, the noise and the crowds..but also about the delicious cuisine, the serene attitude of the people, the spirituality, the colorful clothing style. And I must say that all of this was just true.

We organized all the trip by ourselves, given the tremendous saving you can achieve with this approach when compared to the fancy travel agencies. Booking.com helped us with the hotels, and Evaneos gave us a hand to find a driver – which, by the way, is a very good idea for a fully hassle-free trip.

Once we jumped off the plane, last 18th of January in Chennai, we were faced by a mosquito invasion, a very long queue at the e-Visa counter and an unimaginable fleet of honking motorbikes right outside. A memory that will be hard to wipe out. We were welcomed by a representative of Indian Panorama, who introduced us to the person that would drive us around in the coming 7 days: Kanaan! Despite his not-so-fluent English and his not-so-monotonous driving skills – 100 km/h in any weather or traffic condition -, he showed and described us the aspects of the country that we could have otherwise missed.

The itinerary we visited was pretty standard:

-2 nights in Mahabalipuram (Intercontinental, amazing service and premise.. but VERY expensive :O ) to visit the old ruins – nothing much, especially if you forgot to buy the guidebook and you have no idea why you are following dozens of barefeet indians in a cramped temple room.

-2 nights in Pondicherry. Here, the hotel (The Dune) deserves a mention for the incredible work in keeping an area green and clean and tourist-attractive, despite the holy mess that is just around the corner. This eco-friendly hotel has all special rooms, one on the top of a tree, one all made out of bamboo, one shaped as a control tower, … Our first night in the Bamboo House 1 was not the best, with water entering from every hole of the roof – we were lucky enough to get a storm right after our arrival- and a mattress a bit too “eco”; however, the reception was extremely understanding and they immediately proposed an alternative solution/ The second night in the Nawabi House 3 was awesome! And the food, mmmh..I still remember the paneer cashew curry..
Around Pondicherry – which did not tell me much, honestly – , Aurorville is absolutely worth a visit! We had very different opinions on it (my better half liked to define it as a “paradise for hippies”, while I loved everything about its conception, history and design!!), but I believe that the uniqueness of the place is per se a reason enough to hava a walk in it. food was good and cheap, even though the water offered at the restaurant was probably not the best around..

-2 nights in Trichy, in the Ideal View Resort. The hotel was average and not exactly targeting young folks, but it was still a good starting point for the exploration of the temples nearby. The highlight of that bit of the trip was the cobra that crossed our way to the hotel, the Rockfort temple with its astonishing view over Trichy, and the bronze factory not too far from it (no idea on where it was located, the driver just brought us there). On the way to Trichy, we also had the chance to visit the Chidambaran Temple with Saravanan, a young guide that helped us understand the symbolism and the various buildings of the complex (recommended), and the huge Brihadeeswarar Temple, a wonderful mixture of sacred and secular deservedly granted UNESCO world heritage. And when a complete family of locals approaches you shouting, laughing and asking for selfies..well, the result is a memory that will hardly fade. One of the best laughters of our lives:-)

-1 night at the Heritage Madurai (in Madurai:-) ) – extremely good hotel with great choice of facilities and impeccable service. Maybe the least authentic of all the hotels we have visited, but is surely helped to survive the chaos of Madurai! Absolutely recommended to visit the Sri Meenakshi Temple – one of my favorites by far, both for the colors and for the variety of halls and spaces (and probably because we had a very good guide, Pandi, that wonderfully toured us around and answered to all our questions with a smile:D).

As a concluding note..well, this was just a week, but it felt very long and very short at the same time. Tamil Nadu is an incredible region, full of spirituality which blended into every single aspect of life. It was very overwhelming, confirming what we had heard about India, and everything felt ages away from what we are used to in the Western world. Nevertheless..it left a trace in our hearts that will be hard to be deleted. The smiles and the generosity of each single person we met, the selfies with the locals (shocked by my skin and hair color 🙂 ), the history dripping from every brick, the sense of inner peace despite the chaos and the dirt all around..it feels like a dream, now.
And we can’ t wait to go back!:-)

Practical suggestions:
– January is a PERFECT month for visiting Tamil Nadu, the temps were ideal to walk around with a light shirt and trousers, thus avoiding to break the local dress code. On a side note, I feel this was very appreciated by the locals – we already attracted enough stares with those decent dresses, I can’ t imagine going around with shorts and spagethhi tanks!

–Indian panorama (booked via Evaneos) provided a superb taxi service. Our driver was serious, discrete and very professional, and welcomed us straight at the airport. The only remark is that his English wasn’t tip top, so we sometimes could not understand his explanations on the local culture and costumes – however, that felt part of the whole game, and still we hear his “Yessss” resonate in our memories:-) Overall, we would definitely book with them again!

-Take a decent guide book with you, if you plan on visiting the temples, or try your chance with one of the many :guides: that will approach you at the entrance of the temple. We were very happy with both, as for little money (5 to 8 eur) they gave us also the chance to have a more human perspective on the temples, but the choice is personal. Other unmissables: sunscreen, mosquito repellent, and CASH!

-A DYI tour ike this, with a driver that takes you around, is perfectly feasible, safe and time-efficient. I would also not choose lower-category hotels (at least if you plan on having a relaxing holiday..backpacking is a different story), as they provided the hygiene standards we are used to. The in-house restaurants additionally understood the meaning of the “no spicy” expression better than the restaurants normally attended by locals – if your belly is not the strongest, this is definitely a point to consider.