Day 14-15: We Made It!!

We took off from Chennai this morning, happy to be reunited with Sonny. Chennai was no joy ride to get out of. Being one of the four largest cities in India during the mid-day, we skirted plenty of near-accidents with maniacal bus drivers and motorcyclists doing anything they could to squeeze in two inches in front of us. That and having two cripples in the back put me on high alert as we inched our way out of the busy city. The rest of the drive was a breeze, lined with palm trees and red and black Tamil Nadu flags, inviting us to the beautiful beach resort town of Pondicherry. We got into town to discover there was a huge political rally going on. Propaganda and patriotism for the politicians coming to Pondicherry was pretty excessive. This also led to problems finding a hotel, as many had been booked full for the weekend. We finally came across a French villa where we got a four bedroom suite on the beach for only $75! The most expensive room we've had for sure, but hey, it's like a Best Western price in America. We wish you could all see the place we're staying in as we could easily throw an epic party here. Actually we were pretty lame last night, didn't take full advantage of the place and crashed at 10. Pitfall of getting drunk too early.

Today we just lounged around, enjoying the peace and quiet of Pondicherry's French Quarter. It's almost too quiet, like we're not really in India anymore. Certainly a nice change and the perfect way of ending our journey. For the first time though, we got hassled by the police for having "POLICE" written on our rickshaw. They threatened us with a court case if we didn't remove it. Meh.

Tonight we will be attending the finish line party and share stories along with fellow Rickshaw Runners. We've already been told that quite a few times had to drop out throughout the past weeks. I think we'll win some award for being the most injured team.

I can't believe we finally made it! It's definately been a stressful vacation. But we've grown a lot from it as well. We have plenty of stories to tell you all back home that we haven't recorded in this blog. We hope to have pictures and videos up by the end of the week once we get out of Pondicherry. Allen is unsure what he will be doing for the next week as his injuries keep him from moving much. Sonny and I will be heading to Bombay and Delhi for the rest of June, and we will be continuing to blog about our experiences there. We have realized just how hard it is to explain what we've seen  in India. Our blog and media could only give you all a glimpse of what we've experienced. So I feel the only way for you all to get the full picture is to do the Rickshaw Run yourselves! There's a winter, summer, and now a new Spring run, and we highly encourage those of you brave enough to enlist in an upcoming race! We thank all of you who have been keeping updated with us and have sent us emails and messages filled with worry, laughter, and encouragement. We can't wait to see everyone back in the states!

-Brian