Triplican High Road - Let me take you for a ride !
We spent our first few days recouping in a flash hotel in Chennai - flash means clean - not swat toilet referred to as the 'classic European' (you could be forgiven for thinking that it was a car they were showing you) spacious and of course that magic word in India which doubles the price A/C (air conditioning) which funnily enough we switched off the moment we entered and did not turn on again.
After this we moved to a less sheltered part of town called Triplicane to experience the 'real India'. We booked into much cheaper hotel with no a/c or running hot water but with a lot more charm and dingy travelers like us, called Broadlands.
Until we got to Triplicane my impressions of India was that it was fascinating, interesting, funny and a little bizarre - Triplicane however gave me my first taste of culture shock - I was taking it all in my stride and then I saw two chicken and a rooster I was deep in shock. Let me take you for a ride on Triplicane High Road.
Chennai is the fourth largest city in India if you haven't been to the others the rush of this road has you suddenly wondering what the hell the other cities like and how the hell you are going to survive them. The thing that is most striking about this road besides it chaotic activity, is the total lack of footpaths especially noticeable if you are walking everywhere. Triplicane High Road is actually a side street off the main road and as such they are no visible lanes, traffic weaves in an out of every conceivable space and the pedestrians walk along side the cars, trucks and auto's as best as they can. The space between your toes and the wheels of a bus are sometimes as close as 3-4cms.
Where there is some semblance of footpath whole families set up house and do everything from eat, sleep, shit, wash clothes, dry clothes, and groom themselves as if a hundred cars and people weren't passing them every minute. On the corner a family had a whole load of washing neatly laid out on the path drying it was quite something to see that everyone walked carefully around them.
Thrown into this already astonishing picture are a variety of animals from the standard cows who chew on the strewn rubbish as calm as if they were out on a pasture somewhere, to goats excitedly licking every surface (we are yet to figure this one out) to of course the afore mentioned poultry who proudly strut in on their corner.
After shakily navigating the non-footpaths my first truly terrifying moment came when I had to cross the road (something of an extreme sport in India) I believe there are refugees in some parts of the country who simply settled because they couldn't get to the other side of the road.
But seriously the roads here and their delicate navigation have me a little spooked -but then I walk along and see a little 6 month old baby naked, dusty and crawling frighteningly close to the road, with not a soul to claim her or protect her, and I remember at least I have Greg and a hundred other eyes watching me.
After this we moved to a less sheltered part of town called Triplicane to experience the 'real India'. We booked into much cheaper hotel with no a/c or running hot water but with a lot more charm and dingy travelers like us, called Broadlands.
Until we got to Triplicane my impressions of India was that it was fascinating, interesting, funny and a little bizarre - Triplicane however gave me my first taste of culture shock - I was taking it all in my stride and then I saw two chicken and a rooster I was deep in shock. Let me take you for a ride on Triplicane High Road.
Chennai is the fourth largest city in India if you haven't been to the others the rush of this road has you suddenly wondering what the hell the other cities like and how the hell you are going to survive them. The thing that is most striking about this road besides it chaotic activity, is the total lack of footpaths especially noticeable if you are walking everywhere. Triplicane High Road is actually a side street off the main road and as such they are no visible lanes, traffic weaves in an out of every conceivable space and the pedestrians walk along side the cars, trucks and auto's as best as they can. The space between your toes and the wheels of a bus are sometimes as close as 3-4cms.
Where there is some semblance of footpath whole families set up house and do everything from eat, sleep, shit, wash clothes, dry clothes, and groom themselves as if a hundred cars and people weren't passing them every minute. On the corner a family had a whole load of washing neatly laid out on the path drying it was quite something to see that everyone walked carefully around them.
Thrown into this already astonishing picture are a variety of animals from the standard cows who chew on the strewn rubbish as calm as if they were out on a pasture somewhere, to goats excitedly licking every surface (we are yet to figure this one out) to of course the afore mentioned poultry who proudly strut in on their corner.
After shakily navigating the non-footpaths my first truly terrifying moment came when I had to cross the road (something of an extreme sport in India) I believe there are refugees in some parts of the country who simply settled because they couldn't get to the other side of the road.
But seriously the roads here and their delicate navigation have me a little spooked -but then I walk along and see a little 6 month old baby naked, dusty and crawling frighteningly close to the road, with not a soul to claim her or protect her, and I remember at least I have Greg and a hundred other eyes watching me.
posted by My Little Life at 6:10 AM
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