Success at last with a visa

The trip back to Australia was for one reason - to complete the process of getting our new visa for the UK. And despite filling out the wrong form and starting to decend in to a panic when I realised this on the day before I was due to fly out again - it arrived that day!!

A Bollywood movie and a few puddles blocking the path...

Dance Baby Dance!!!

On my last day off before heading back to Australia, I went off to the local movie cinema with a couple of my Indian friends (Nirav and Krupa) to go an experience a Bollywood movie. When I suggested this, they said 'you know its not in English?' 'yep', 'You know there aren't any sub-titles?' 'yep, no worries - there's plenty of singing and dancing isn't there?'.

So to make it easier, I read a summary of the movie on the internet so I could figure out what is going on. When we turned up to the cinema, people were coming up to Nirav and Krupa and asking 'does he speak Hindi?' and all laughing when they replied no! Long story short (and it was long - 3 hours, plus intermission), it was pretty funny and I figured out most of what was going on.

The next day I was due to fly out but unfortunately my flight was cancelled and then I spent 7 hours on the road with 2 other guys, at one stage walking around in calf deep flood water! I'll let the pictures tell the story...

First point in the road that stopped us

These guys aren't waiting for their bus to take them home!

Nice and dry up on the back of the truck

Waist deep water? No worries!!

I watched this car for 4 hours waiting for the road to give way, but it didn't

Second stopping point - this bridge is normally about 10m above the water

Third stopping point. After it cleared we made it back to town.

A trip to Gandhi's birthplace

The next weekend after going to Dwarka, I went for a day trip to a town called Porbander, where Gandhi was born. The original house is there which you can walk through and there is an adjoining memorial/shrine and museum.

They even mark the spot where he was born with a swastika (a lucky symbol in Hindu culture) and some flowers. He only lived there for a few years before moving away but it gives you an idea of how much people loved him!

Sorry for the lack of posts...

As I have finally logged in to the blog again I realise its been over a month since my last post. I have some good excuses though. Since my last entry I have been to Ghandi's birthplace, got fairly sick for a week, got stuck in monsoon floods for 7 hours on a road (standing calf deep in water at one stage), had 2 flights cancelled due to the 'mini cyclone' associated with the floods, travelled back to Australia, got a new visa for the UK, spent 12 hours in Kuala Lumpur, back to India and the most painful of all - just been in a 4 day meeting.

Anyhow, I will now try and update the blog. I only have a few days left in India and then its back to the UK for a week. Then Melinda and I are off to Malta for a week and then the Greek Islands for 9 days.

Its a tough life.