Our trip to Mamallapuram began with a quick stop at the local In & Out. Unfortunately, they did not have burgers or fries; actually it was just a gas station. We thought it was kind of funny though. Piling up in the un-airconditioned van was a little less fun, although we made the most of it and ended up having a dance party in the back thanks to someone's genius idea of bringing an iPod!

When we finally got there, the first thing I did was climb up around the old temples. I even thought to bring my copy of The Herald so I can send it in and get my picture in the paper, as per my Dad's request. The temples were pretty cool, but it was SO HOT outside! We also saw this big boulder that has been named "Krishna's Butterball."

After the temples it was time for tons of shopping and haggling! It got quite stressful. One guy started following Tanner around, trying to sell him a drum. He eventually did buy one, and STILL the guy followed us around. He was trying to get Tanner to get an "upgrade" and buy a better one. We rode these three-wheeled vehicles called "rikh-shaws." The driver was insane and I swear I saw my life flash before my eyes probably 5 TIMES in the 15 minutes we were in the vehicle!

We did arrive in safety though, by some miracle, at the beach resort called Ideal Beach Resort. It was very nice and a great place to relax. We saw the Bay of Bengal and even swam in it, but the pool was a little nicer. We found some of the signs kind of humorous. Instead of NO DIVING like we're used to seeing in the U.S. they said things like "Please avoid"

Some people had gotten fitted for clothing and needed to come back, and guess who came up to the bus while the rest of us were waiting--our drummer friend! He was a good businessman--he ended up making two or three more sales just from people on our bus!

It was a long, long, long drive home in the bus. Like I said before, the traffic was at a standstill for such a long time! Haha one of the guys in our group climbed out of the window and stood on the roof of the bus for a few minutes. He took this picture of the beautiful sunset for me!

We stopped and got some yummy food for dinner, which I liked a lot! It was absolutely delicious.

When I got back, my girls got a hold of my camera and wanted some pictures. Of course, I couldn't say no :)

Today I went to church in Chennai. It was great! Chennai has three good-sized branches, and I was impressed by the number of people that were there today. We were not only accompanied by a pianist, but also by a violinist! The two speakers talked about reverence. Their talks were insightful and I felt the Spirit strongly. Today is Indian's 63rd year anniversary of independence, so all of us wore the little Indian flag pinned to our lapel. One of the speakers also touched on having reverence for one's country and respect for the leaders. For the rest hymn, they sang the national anthem. Every time I hear these beautiful people sing their national anthem, they express their immense pride. It is certainly invigorating!

I got to play the piano for primary today, which was fun. The kids are so cute, and some of them are from Rising Star. I think it is a testament of their faith that they will take an hour and a half ride to Chennai every Sunday in order to go to church and partake of the Sacrament. Hearing them all sing and participate in Sharing Time strengthened my own testimony. I can't get over how beautiful the children are here!