Maya is in heaven. Back here in Blighty, the world is awash with the golds and greens of early autumn and she is gorging on blackberries she's picked and helping Daddy make sloe gin (!); picking apples straight from the tree in the garden; enjoying the attention from grandparents, uncles and aunts and cousins; she is wearing tights and jumpers with hoods; has easy access to the tv (ugh); is eating sausages, fish fingers, mashed potatoes and baked beans and is snuggling down under a warm duvet at night for the first time in six months.

Maya, I'm sure, feels a long way from India - the land of sun-parched earth and spices, cows, rickshaws and sarees. I know that she is really, really happy to be back here, but that's not to say that she won't be equally happy to go back to Bangalore and be re-united with Aanya, her school and beloved teacher Paula, mayhem on the roads and afternoons filled with ice-cream (every day feels like summer there and it's hardly surprising that Maya's Mama has put on several pounds since being there!) and playing on swings under the shade of a gulmohar tree.

Night times have been difficult, with Maya awake a few times each night in a half-asleep frightened and angry state. We're not sure what's going on there. But whilst we can be as open and honest with Maya as possible, let's face it - maybe there is a degree of confusion about where 'home' is right now. On the whole though, she's doing brilliantly and has also been rising later than her customary 6am, probably because she doesn't need to endure the early morning ritual of the security guard violently hocking outside her bedroom window for about 10 minutes (oh, how I wish I could attach a sound byte so you could hear how truly revolting this is!!).

We're about to leave Maya's grandparents and go a-wandering for several days to visit people. We also have recently received some big news about where we're probably going after India but, like Eastenders cheap cliffhanger tricks, I'll let you know in the next post where adventuring Maya may end up next......