Wednesday 27th Feb - Day 24

I'm to miss some sights around Kochin by leaving early, but anything to get away from that air-con smell.

Another first, I'm travelling by train: AC3. In India trains aren't: first class and second class. They're : AC1, AC2, AC3, sleeper, standard. Have a look on the web to see what they mean. I'll give you a clue, 'AC' stands for 'air-con'.

I meet a guy named Hari at the railway station and fortunately, he will be on the same train, but in sleeper class, and agrees to help me find a hotel when I get to Trevindrum. I enter a carriage, after running about a hundred yards down the platform with my stupid suitcase. I end up in a carriage of 3 backpackers from England. Unfortunately, they are to get off at the next stop, but do give me a little advice. E.g. don't bother booking a room in Bangkok, just wait 'till you get there.

After they leave, a businessman, named Sirikantha, joins me on this 6 hour journey and we have an interesting conversation about the differences between India and Europe. For one, in India, you work 6 days a week. By the end of the journey I've learned quite a bit about India.

In Trevindrum Hari meets me on the paltform and we walk out of the railway station in the direction of agroup of hotels. It's nice to meet a friendly local who isn't after anything, but just helping. We even walk to a nearby travel agent and I book a trip for the next day. I thank him for his help.

It's about 7:30pm and I go to the hotel resaurant to have a meal. You don't get a table to yourself here; if it's busy you have to sit where they put you. I'm lucky again, because I sit at a table with a guy named Prajeesh who speaks excellent English. In Kerela they speak a completely different first language to the basic Punjabi I know. We exchange mobile phone numbers and agree to meet at the restaurant again the next day.