Thiruvannamalai

Dear bloggers,

Get up at 6.30, as usual, and a very long trip on the bus expected for us! The destination is the famous Shiva Temple in Thiruvannmalai.

We had estimated 4/5 hours on the bus, but thank to the profound madness of our great driver, in three hours, more or less, we were there!

It was really a kind of experience: if you were sit in the back, you felt like on a roller coaster, if you were sit in the front, you really risked a heart attack!!!

We broke off our journey in a typical little Indian village, just on the road. We spent there quite a lot of time, playing with the children, which challenge us to a cricket match. Unfortunately we were in a hurry, because the temple would close at 13 o’clock pm, and they couldn’t find the ball, so the match never took place.

We get to the temple around midday and as usual we had to take off our shoes.

A Brahamano escorted us in the core of the temple, where we took part of a benediction ritual. We came out of the temple with the third eye painted in red on our forehead, symbol of the reached illumination by the divinity.

Then visited the little market just outside the temple, but the tour was very short: the weather was really hot and humid, so we sheltered in a cute restaurant in front of the Thiruvannamalai Ashram.

Unbelievably the menu included also western food, so some of us run the risk of ordering a pizza margherita!! Actually it was not so bad…it tasted like the Speedy Pizza!!

While we were waiting for the lunch, a Hindu funeral procession took place in the street nearby the restaurant. We all came in the street due to the fireworks (and a cracker was nearly to hit Paolo!).

After the lunch we dragged ourself on the bus and we left for the XIME…but after five minutes, in spite of the guidance skill of the driver, everybody fell asleep!!

Adry & Val