Day 158 29 Nov Tues Cochin

This has to go down on record as our worst and most emotionally charged day on the trip. We are disappointed that our plans for the day to return to Fort Cochin and the sights we missed yesterday are thwarted  by a regional strike from 6am to 6pm  where everything is closed, no taxis, tuk tuks or public transport. We are confined to the hotel and cabin fever and frustration set in. Tempers become frayed and eventually we all melt down and explode - mostly at each other.  

Eventually after tantrums, tears and then lots of hugs we all calm down and venture out for a stroll in the eerily quiet local streets. As 6pm draws closer there are signs of life and traffic starts to appear and shops begin to open. As we walk through the back streets we are again confronted with the piles of rubbish and mess left everywhere. 

 

Mercifully, after an early supper, the time to leave and board another overnight bus arrives and we pile into an auto (tuk tuk) and trundle off to the bus station saying goodbye to our wonderful hotel doorman - who looks exactly like a very distinguished Indian gentleman!

The girls immediatley make friends with the driver and conductor who agree to help them animal spot in the early morning as we approach Mysore and offer them the front seats to do so! We drive for an hour or so before stopping at a little parade of restaurants where we have a snack and our last loo stop until the morning. The bus isnt full so the girls stretch out on the back seats and we pass a relatively comfortable night on the road.