The Ellora Caves

On the road.

We arrive in Aurangabad and find that at our guesthouse, an Indian wedding is under way. The groom sits handsomely on a white horse, and women sit in glittering saris in the shade.

We travel by local bus to the Ellora Caves- ancient Buddhist, Hindu and Jain temples cut from the cliffs.

The caves are dark and cool, the temperature outside is hotter, and it is more humid than the North. In the Buddhist caves, the Buddha sits calmly smiling, and we hear an Indian family chanting. The father sings in a low drone, the mother in a soft and high voice, and the children in strange, excited melody as they run between stone pillars.

Many of the caves are home to hundereds of bats that swoop past your head as you walk by.

The Hindu caves show beautiful carvings of the gods, Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma as well as curvacious godesses whose breasts are shiny after centuries of groping!

To reach the farther caves we have to walk across a narrow ledge in the middle of a cliff-face. We take off our shoes in order to have a better grip. Don't worry Mum- it wasn't as bad as it looked! The largest structure is the Kailasa Temple built in AD 760 which covers twice the area of the Parthenon in Athens.

We viewed it from above, since it sits in a gouged out chasm.

We travelled on to Pune- a city famous for Osho's ashram which offers dubious spirituality at great cost to a largely Western clientelle- a stark contrast to the teeming streets outside where it is not unusual to see people lying on the roadside or sheltering under corrugated iron shacks.

Finally, we are heading to Panaji, Goa, then North to Arambol where, if you are there, Rosa, Denise, David and Alan (and Fion if you change your mind), we would love to see you again. Keep in touch.