South India is a festival of colours - blue seas and white sand beaches, lush green forests, silk saris and red chillies, it is hot and tropical and absolutely bursting with life. South India is surrounded by the warm waters of the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal and is divided by two mountain ranges forming the Western Ghats, the Eastern Ghats and the vast central plateau. This geography and the tropical climate make South India a biodiversity hotspot with some of India’s most famous wildlife reserves and bird sanctuaries. The history and culture of South India is as diverse as its flora and fauna, each of the ancient dynasties left their mark on the land as did the rise of Islam, the Christian missionaries and the struggle for power between the British and the French. Kerala is the most visited of South India’s states - and for good reason. It has a beautiful coconut-palm fringed coast, rolling hills of spice plantations, a maze of lagoons, lakes and rivers and a delicious spicy cuisine. Other highlights of South India include the lively city of Mumbai (Bombay) – the home of Bollywood, the delightful, former French colony of Pondicherry, the mango groves and tribal culture of Orissa and the little known diver’s paradise – the Lakshadweep islands.