Further south in India is the capital city of Kerala, Trivandrum. I had decided in the last week after meeting loads of people who had seen lots of India that it was a good idea to get a taste of the different types of India. As I was here I figured it was a good idea to see a bit more than kochi. I decided heading further south would be a base for exploring some of the other things Kerala had to offer.
A train from Ernakulum to Trivandrum was the most advised option, at 5 hours long it would be a reasonable introduction to Indian Trains. Eeeek! I had still not gotten a bus yet so these seemed even scarier.
Jan shabdi express AC seated was what I went for and it was fine, comfy and a little heavy on the AC but I was prepared with my jacket.
Trivandrum was really a city, Indian stylie, seriously no one stays on their side of the road, the tuk tuk drivers are hungrier than ever to rob the first tourist off the train with claims of their destination being 30% longer than it was. Be Aggressive, is the advice I was given by Ida and it rung out every time I got off of any transport, these guys were pushy and I’m not one for being bullied. So backpack on I power walked through the crowds to the places to stay I had roughly planned out to check if they had rooms.
Nope, they were rough guide recommended so the chances were slim anyways. This tuk tuk driver had followed me and was waiting outside….”Room! Tuk tuk!”
The rule of thumb agree the price before you get in, so I did, I was going 500 meters up the road so his 50 rupees price was a joke, I told him I have been here for week now so don’t try it. Negotiated to something still inflated for the journey but I had succumb to the fact there was a strong expectation everywhere that I would pay a westerners tax on everything without a price on it.
YwCA, cheap but a hot mess, I stayed as I wanted to support the work they were doing providing refuge for women who needed it. I had to scrub the bathroom though for my own piece of mind. There was a TV though and I enjoyed the exaggerated Indian adverts, soaps and films so I had a great time staying here watching TV whenever I was in
