We left Delhi on the express sleeper train to Goa.  Within 30 minutes of leaving the city we were surrounded by the lush green Indian countryside. As we travelled further south we watched ladies in saries working in the fields, men hurding cows, goats and even camels, whole families on motorbikes and people walking between villages.  The service on the train was great – we got fed five times a day – curries, dahls, chipatis, curd, tea, cakes, yum :)  At night our seats folded down into two double bunks, allowing us to sleep for much of the journey.

26 hours after leaving Delhi we pulled into the heat of Goa.  We got a cab to our digs – the Blue Corner, a small enclave of coconut huts by the side of the lush beach and warm waters of the Arbian Sea.

We spent a few days in Goa, and didn’t really do much – our plan was always to use this time to relax.  We walked into town a couple of times, but mainly hung out, reading, sunbathing, swimming and eating.  Food was amazing – very fresh, really tasty and as expected, a bargain.  You had to try really hard to spend more than a couple of quid on dinner.  There’s quite a few ex-pats here in Goa and a good mix of nationalities – we think a few people escape from the resorts up the road to come to our little place in the sun.  Including Manu, our new friend from Rajastan who despite never seeing a pool table before managed to ace me after I potted the black.  Git.

I really enjoyed our stint in Goa, it’s been a great wind down from the build up and stress of getting this far, I now feel ready to take on the rest of India.  We’ve planned the next leg of our trip – we’re off to the holy town of Hampi further south (7 hour train, £3), then onto Mysore and Kochin.