a wild ride

Tonight I am in the middle of the jungle, in a room that is like a treehouse, with the sounds of the night around me, crickets, and those stars that are huge and close to the earth. We have made our way on a very easy flight from Hyderabad to Cochin. From there we were picked up by a new driver, and headed to Thekkady, which is home to the Peryier Wildlife Preserve.

Kerala is a green lush place. As we drove, we went through small bustling towns and pineapple groves to forests of rubber trees andpalm trees.  The houses are traditional Kerala architecture- clay roofs and bungalows. There are not as many tent houses, and it looks as though there is not amuch poverty. Everything is softer and greener. Kerala has a lot of churches- big beautiful structures that suddenly appear in the most incongruous of places. It is a place of deep contrasts. Hindu temples and Catholic churches, women in gorgeous saris and a sari suit with a top and pants, schoolgirls in uniforms to men wearing traditional fabric wrapped around their waists and tucked in . A few even had them accentuate their rather large bellies. It was very interesting! It is a blend of the old and new, with that same spirituality threading through their everyday lives. They are kind and friendly and genuine. I am glad I am here.After about 2 hours of driving we started to go up into the mountains. The view took your breath away. We must be closer to heaven here. It was a magical experience, but also became quite hair-raising! The drivers here constantly weave in and out on the narrow road, and passing is on the right (driving on the left side remember) lots of horn beeping and very close calls with very big buses! This is all done 2 feet away from a 700 feet deep ravine. Ocean sounding breath helps!

I saw my first tea plantation. Bushy chai tea plants on hill after hill, all arranged in perfect order. There are also spice plantations of cardamom. Coffee plants by the sides of the roads. There are sacred` cows everywhere, and it is said the drivers will do whatever they have to do to avoid hitting one, even if they have to take out a person instead! (Not a good place to be a pedestrian!) We saw a few festival parades. They were led by drummers and musicians, the lead carrying a fringed silk red umbrella. The women and children were following in their bright saris carrying flowers for offering . The towns appear all at once, with little markets and stores, and then it is very rural. I saw a tailor who was sitting in an open air shed with his ancient Singer sewing machine on a table in the front. I am pretty sure I saw a barber that was the same setup! Larry did not need a trim, so we pressed on. We did get a little lost, ( not totally unexpected as the driver kept asking people for directions from the get go) only to be rescued by a very handsome Indian man who happened to work at the hotel, saw our car and said, “follow me!“ We finally arrived at the Wild Corridor Hotel and were served masala tea with milk and sugar on the veranda overlooking several mountains.. It was delicious.

On a side note, I learned 2 interesting things today.

In the rest rooms I have seen a spigot, a pail a cup and a drain in the floor. I assumed they like to keep their feet clean! NO! In India, many people clean themselves with their left hand (toilet paper is not used) and then use the spigot to clean their hands. Because of that they only eat with their right hands! Needless to say, I am glad I brought toilet paper to use as that arrangement does not appeal to me at all, although I am fine with everyone else doing what works for them. The other thing I learned , and witnessed, is, there are no trash cans in India.When people are done with their trash they throw it on the ground or out the car window. It was all I could do not to scamper off after the trash my guide threw on the ground when the wind blew it away. Someone reminded me that 30 years ago that was acceptable in the US. Now, it is like a travesty when you see someone do it. (Not to mention illegal!)

It made me realize what a responsibility it is to try and reduce this trash footprint. A lot of the reason India’s trash is such a problem is the influx of western packaged goods that have appeared- juice boxes and plastic bags, and the dreaded plastic water bottle which every tourist needs to use through out their stay. Something to think about!

We are staying about 20 minutes from the preserve. We had hoped to go on a bamboo rafting tour, (Larry nixed the nighttime jungle patrol for 3 hours at 3 am), but there was a boating accident on the lake a few years back, over 80 people drowned, so they have fewer boats now, and there were no reservations. So we decided instead we will go on a Jeep safari- we must be picked up at 5:30 am, ( I assume I will not care about the road or the buses at that time of day) then trek (hiking- they call it trekking here) for 3 hours in the jungle, then have lunch in a bungalow, and then home to an Ayurvedic massage (a Kerala specialty) We will hopefully take lots of “snaps” (pics) of elephants and other fabulous wildlife that show their faces!

I am glad I am here. Off to bed now, for my early rising to greet the sun and a new adventure!