[TravelMonk]

Originally Posted by Balthazar

Excellent travelogue. Being cooped up inside for a couple of months has me itching to step out and go somewhere, anywhere. These posts scratch that itch to a some extent.

Thank you!
For the same reason I re-read my own travelogues as well and go through the photo gallery

[pduttaghy]

Wonderful!!!! Thoroughly enjoyed going through your T-Log.

[mohansrides]

Originally Posted by TravelMonk

..How long does it take to get back that itch to ride long distances? Not much I believe....

Travelmonk..... Nicely done. Both for the trip and for your write-up.

I really enjoyed your wry humor. Especially that bit about Gangaikondacholapuram, or should I say "G" Yes, Tamil names can be a bit of work. But, they are worth the effort. I also enjoyed your smart piece of advice to KA folks about headlight concepts. Very nice.

Coming back to your trip, first, I want to congratulate you on being a student of history. It is a beautiful thing to look into the past and to dwell on life as it was in the days past. I myself am a throwback of sorts. I feel like I should have been born a few thousand years before I was. I think I would have enjoyed life back then.

Like someone said, get yourself a translation of 'Ponniyin Selvan'. It will be worth it. And after you are done with it, courier it to me

Next, I want to say that your write-up exudes a positivity and confidence that I rarely find in the descriptions of travel in the South from people in the North and West. Even if not explicitly, most accounts carry a subtle undercurrent of displeasure about the language barrier and about the general resistance of TN folks to freely engage with the Hindi speaking population. I found no such reservation in the tone and substance of your narrative. Great job on keeping yourself focused on the positives.

Finally, coming to your itinerary, I will say that you guys did good. But, you also rushed it in parts. I myself have visited these parts; but not entirely. Believe it or not, despite 2 decades in Chennai, I have not had the pleasure of visiting the Shore Temple. But, Periya Kovil in Thanjavur? Yes sir, on a couple of occasions. That temple is unlike the usual temples that I visit in the Trichy and Madurai area. My hope is that I will be able to show my kids the big temples of TN. If not all of them, then at least the Periya Kovil. It is truly magnificent. Unlike many of the other temples in TN, the Brihadeeshwara Temple has a simplicity and an openness about it that I find very comforting. Also, the architecture is magnificent. I was an architect in another lifetime, you see. On that note, next time, chalk up about 3 weeks and do the stretch from Thiruvannamalai to Rameswaram. Before you do so, ping me. I just might join you. And who knows, maybe you can use the linguistic assistance.

Before I close, I want to congratulate you on not being a slave to your schedules. Waking up early to get on with it is a wonderful idea. On paper. But, more often than not, it is not practical for everyone. Good job on not beating yourself up over it. Being hard on oneself isn't worth it. Certainly not out on the road.

Really enjoyed this travelogue. I hope that you get back to riding and writing soon. Actually, you and me both.

P.S.

What's up with RE not providing tubeless tires on that Himalayan? I TRed that bike twice; but missed that detail. By the way, RE is a champion on extracting less and less power from bigger and bigger engines, and that too without compromising on the amount of engine heat being shovelled onto the rider's legs. No sir. No compromises on that front at all. Going by how my thighs were getting roasted on the Himalayan, I thought the bike had a high compression engine putting out 60 BHP. Oh, if only that were the case!!

Originally Posted by Thermodynamics

......I can relate with your journey because Bengaluru is where I work, Thanjavur is my second home, Pondicherry is my Father's native, Mahabalipuram is my cousin's place, Chennai is my first home.....

Mate... with respect to Travelmonk's itenerary, you are the perfect join-the-dots-to-draw-the-picture guy. You have life episodes in each of the places that these guys visited. Nice!!

Cheers

[TravelMonk]

Originally Posted by mohansrides

Travelmonk..... Nicely done. Both for the trip and for your write-up.

Wow that's the most comprehensive review I've received on my travelogues so far!

Thank you for taking the time out to read all of it and thank you for the comments!

Your comment about the life in the past reminds me of Woody Allen's Midnight In Paris . Do watch the movie if possible.

There is always a language barrier in the South for me, though I don't find that as an issue. It's always possible to communicate with broken Hindi+English and signs Maybe that's a part of the adventure!

Yes I agree our itinerary was very tight. We could squeeze out only 7-8 days and we wanted to do as much possible in that limited time. Greedy, yes! Maybe someday I'll be able to take out a whole month, reserved just for TN. I'll ping you then!

Being slave was never an option We ride to get out of our regular schedules, why stick to another one then!