As the sun sinks down into the western sky, with a final flurry of tout activity our bus drives us away from Mahaballipuram. A short while along the road we stop the bus to take this photo. The sun is fading too fast to really capture the scene, but maybe you can get some sense of how beautiful (say it all together now, "Beeee-aaauuuuuuuu-ti-fuuuuul") it was. The eagle-eyed amongst you may even spot the men in the middle playing cricket.
It was time to go back to Chennai, but not time to part - the day needed a suitable venue for closure, so we stopped at Bella Ciao Italian restaurant at Krishna Enclave, Valmiki Nagar (just off New Beach Road). This place is run by an Italian couple, and although prices are quite high for Chennai (maybe 300 or 400 Rupees per meal, without any alcohol) the setting is nice and the food is good and reliably safe.
And then the fun really began! Edgar, from Costa Rica, is not only a yoga teacher but also a storyteller, singer, dancer, juggler, all-round performer. He starts with some Salsa dancing with Vanessa, and then joins the band to sing us a couple of Cuban songs to dance to. The atmosphere was amazing, even the pale-blue Scottish blokes are dancing, and the tiredness of a full day trip seems to melt away.
Eventually though even Edgar's amazing talents cannot keep us awake and it's time for a bit of mad bus driving back to our hotels, where bed never seemed so comfy (and safe).