Still thrilled about the tiger we sighted in the Mudumalai Reserve, we leave for the former princely state of Mysore. En route, we see prize buffaloes being bathed in milk for Pongol, South India’s “Thanksgiving” celebration. Our first stop is the 18C summer palace of the “Tiger of Mysore”—Tipu Sultan, who ruled much of South India … Read more
Tiger Reserve entrance, Mudumalai website We set off from Ooty at dawn, eyes peeled for elephants and other wild creatures known to roam the roadside. We head further uphill amid foggy greenery, following the narrow winding road through the Nilgiri—Blue—Mountains and down toward the plains. 36-hairpin turns later (!), we near the Mudumalai—Land of Ancient … Read more
An old-time steam train! In India! Sign me up! Long smitten with North India’s fabled Darjeeling Himalayan “toy train,” I embrace the chance for an equally dramatic and harrowing trip in South India. Another UNESCO World Heritage site, the Nilgiri Railway climbs Tamil Nadu’s Blue Mountains to Ootacamund—Ooty—on the steepest track in Asia! The Indian Railways … Read more
Continuing my book research, we fly from Sri Lanka to the old British port of Madras, now Chennai. During WW2, my character arrived by ship in Bombay, then traveled by train across India and down the southeastern coast en route to what was then Ceylon. Our hotel is Leela Palace, an elegant haven of art, … Read more
On arrival, like many of the characters in my WW2 spy novel–including Lord Mountbatten himself–I check-in at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo, capital of Sri Lanka, then known as Ceylon. Having written a first draft and read multitudes of books, I’ve come to discover their world. Despite modernization, much of the land remains as … Read more
The Promenade Plantée is an abandoned railway line transformed into one of the secret parks of Paris, passing over viaducts and through tunnels. I decided to walk the almost three mile trail from Place de la Bastille to Bois de Vincennes, the enormous park in eastern Paris. There are wonderful high angles on wonderful buildings. … Read more