Athirappilly & Vazhachal Falls

It is monsoon season now in southern India, something I overlooked when taking this assignment (not that it would have changed my mind). The rain comes down really hard but only lasts for about and hour or so. The one advantage of being in southern India during monsoon season is that you have the opportunity to see some really cool waterfalls! On Sunday, I took a day trip to see Athirappilly & Vazhachal Falls.

Overlooking Athirappilly Falls

Athirappilly Falls from the bank of the river

Monkey business...

Vazhachal Falls

Agra Fort

Agra Fort dates back to the 11th century. This fort was occupied by several Mughal Emporers including Shah Jahan, who built the beautiful Taj Mahal. Agra Fort was also the site of one of the battles during the Indian Rebellion against the British.


One of two gates to Agra Fort

Diwan I Am is a large public hall in the center of Agra Fort

A mosque located inside of Agra Fort.

Elaborate carvings

Shah Jahan died on this balcony overlooking the Taj Mahal.

Taj Mahal

I arrived in New Delhi around 10:00 pm on Friday and took a 4 hour car ride to Agra. I slept for about 2 or 3 hours and arrived at the Taj Mahal at sunrise on Saturday morning. The Taj Mahal is the most amazing man-made structure I have ever seen!

First glimpse of the Taj Mahal from the Great Gate.

The Taj Mahal was constructed between 1632-1653 by Shah Jahan, who built the beautiful Taj Mahal in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj is flanked to the East and West by identical red sandstone buildings, one of which is a mosque.

Tommy @ the Taj Mahal

NE view of the Taj

East side of the Taj at sunrise

Taj Mahal

The reflecting pool (which was dry Saturday morning) leading up to the Taj Mahal.

A view of the mausoleum from the Chahar Bagh gardens.

The Taj is covered with Islamic calligraphy and floral decorations.

Plant motifs are carved on the inside and outside walls of the Taj.

The elaborate inlay consists of jasper, jade, turquise, lapis, lazuli and sapphire.

Kate and Tommy @ Maldives

Kate and I took a 1 hour flight from Trivandrum, India to Male, the capital of the Maldives. Male has a population of 100,000 while the Maldives has a total population of 350,000. The Maldives is the smallest country, in terms of size and population, in all of Asia.

A view of the city's skyline from Male airport. We transferred to the resort by speedboat!

Kate and I had so much fun here. We definitely got our fill of sun, white, sandy beaches and cold drinks! We even fed sharks in the lagoon behind us in this photo!

Views from the patio of our beach front room.

Kate at the Anchorage Bar at sunset. I am one lucky man! ;)

Kate and Tommy @ Maldives

Kate and I snorkeled at Banana Reef and Kudo Banos. We saw a wide variety of fish and even a sea tutle! The coral was very colorful and the reefs dropped off steep!

Above is a school of Moorish Idols. They look like giant angel fish with black, white and yellow vertical stripes.

Loggerhead Turtle

Kate and Tommy @ Maldives

We went island hopping on our last full day which included stops at a local island, Paradise Island and Kuda Bandos Island!

Kate with the crew on the way to the local island.

Nice views along the way

A few pics from Paradise Island

Kate and Tommy @ Maldives

Kate negotiated a trip to the Maldives before she agreed to let me go on assignment to India. Ha! It actually worked out great b/c she got to see India and the Maldives and I got a nice vacation in the middle of my rotation. We were really excited about this trip! And it turned out to be our best one yet!

The Maldives is a group of about 1,200 coral islands located just north of the Equator in the Indian Ocean. Only 200 of the islands are inhabited. We spent 5 days/4 nights at the Sheraton Full Moon Resort on North Male Atoll.

Aeriel views of the Maldives islands.

Kate and Tommy @ Fort Kochi

The Paradesi Synagogue was constructed in 1568 and is the oldest synagogue in all the Commonwealth of Nations. Paradesi translates to "foreigners" in Hindi.

The inside of the Paradesi Synagogue is absolutely beautiful.

The spice warehouse in Mattancherry.

Kate and Tommy @ Fort Kochi

Kate came over to India for 10 days halfway through my assignment. We had such an amazing time together. I am so lucky to have such an adventurous wife! After 3 flights and over 30 hours of travel, I convinced her to take the public ferry from Ernakulam to visit Fort Kochi. Needless to say, she was shocked! We visited St. Francis Church, the Chinese fishing nets, Dutch Palace, spice warehouse and the Paradesi Synagogue. We also did some shopping as I had to reward her for her for being such a good sport!

St. Francis Church is the first European Church built in India. It was constructed during the Portuguese Expedition in 1500. Vasco da Gama was laid to rest in St. Francis after he died from Malaria in 1524.

Inside St. Francis Church

Grave stones from the Portuguese and Dutch were removed from the floor and reattached to the side walls of St. Francis Church.

Kate overlooking one of the Chinese fishing nets