In Australia, "family beach house" usually means some rundown shack near the beach, full of the furniture and crap the kids have made which no one has any use for but can't bear to throw away. It inevitably looks like some forlorn relic from the 80s, and is full of kitchenware comprising broken mugs with things like "world's best dad" written on them. V's family beach house was a world away from all of this. It's right on the beach, with amazing views, and was as beautiful inside as out. Admittedly, it was ever so slightly less beautiful after G managed to break one of the french doors leading out to the terrace, but hopefully V's parents haven't identified G as the culprit for the broken door... yet.
The next morning we had breakfast at one of the Taj resorts just outside of the city before heading to Mamallapuram. This is a UNESCO world heritage site full of incredible temples and rock carvings. It feels like an archeological site and, indeed, the five rathas, which are monoliths carved from single pieces of rock in the 7th century, were only discovered about 200 years ago by the British. Before that, they lay hidden under the sand.
V hired the services of an official guide from the archaeological survey of India to show us around. While our guide was both interesting and extremely knowledgeable, unfortunately it turned out his English wasn't the best. He seemed to know a few descriptions in English very well, and whenever he was at a loss tended to repeat these, like a broken record. After being subjected to being told something was "mono-lithic, mono meaning one, lithic meaning rock" for the umpteenth time in the same monotonous tone, V discovered it worked best if the guide imparted his knowledge to V in Tamil and V then passed on the information to us in English.
The guide and his repeated monotonous phrases proved a source of endless entertainment for the rest of the trip, however, as every now and then for no reason either G or V would suddenly say in a monotone "mono meaning one. Lithic meaning rock" and the two of them would burst out laughing. On a slight digression, I think the desire, and ability, to quote something ad nauseam and still find it amusing is a peculiarly male habit. It seems to be only men who, however many decades after they saw the film, are still able to quote lines from Ferris Bueller's day off and find them hilarious.
After the Five Rathas we saw the Shore Temple, which is nearby. This too dates from the 7th century. It has long been believed to be one of a series of buildings that existed along the (now submerged) coastline. Interestingly, the 2004 tsunami revealed the outlines of what seem to have been other temples in the series, lending support to that long-held view. 
Then it was on to Arjuna's Penance, an incredible relief carving, and Ganesh Ratha, formerly a Shiva temple.
Near this is a huge boulder which, misleadingly, looks rather precariously balanced, and is known as Krishna's Butter Ball. 
There are several other interesting temples, including a cave temple, around the area too.
There are several other interesting temples, including a cave temple, around the area too.
After spending a few hours exploring the area, V took us off to a cultural centre and performed his own tour-guide duties as he led us around and explained the exhibits to us in far greater detail than provided by the standard tourist information at the site.
Finally, it was off to dinner with V's parents. V's parents took us to a terrific South Indian restaurant and treated us to a fabulous meal and a bottle of what was, V's father told us, one of the better Indian wines. I am pleased to say that it bore no resemblance to the ribena-flavoured vinegar I sampled in the north.
After spending time with V, his wonderful parents and exploring the sunny South, G and I were once again loving India.
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