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Mark Moxon's Travel Writing

India: The Sound of Indian Politics

The lake in Kodaikanal
Indian political campaigning even shatters the peace of peaceful lake towns like Kodaikanal

The bus trip west into the hills containing the little town of Kodaikanal was predictably hair-raising. Grabbing onto any handhold I could find, I was thrown around the back seat of the bus like crockery in a marital dispute, clutching at my airborne backpack with my left foot and desperately trying to stop myself smashing into my neighbours every time the videogame-junkie driver tackled another hairpin. On the way up into the Western Ghats I noticed that above the rock-painted adverts someone had scrawled 'Jesus never fails'; I sincerely hoped that the bus' brakes were as reliable as the Son of God.


1 Which reminds me of a story that Howard told me. The scene: Howard and a new-found Cockney travel mate are in the back of a taxi in Goa. Cockney Man says to Taxi Driver, 'Got any good tunes, mate?' Taxi Driver says, 'I have some Hindi music.' Cockney Man says, 'Yeah, cool, shove it on.' Taxi Man does so, and out screeches Hindi music at full blast. 'What the bloody hell is this?' screams Cockney Man. 'This isn't bleedin' indie music!' What a great export for our country...