Tea, tea … and more tea

In the afternoon we arrived at T & U Leisure Hotel, Munnar. We were all extremely tired after a long drive, so it was agreed to relax for the rest of that day and to do more stuff the next day. Even so, in the late afternoon we went out on a little walk and had a look around. We discovered a small path that led into the tea plantations. It was agreed that we would have a look at the tea tomorrow. So the next day after our tour, which included Matupetty dam, Echo point, a few markets and the tea museum, we walked down to the gap in the fence and stepped into the tea plantations.

The tea plantations

As we walked leisurely along, we spotted many side paths that were for the tea pickers to pick their way through as they harvested the tea bushes every fourteen days. It took us quite a while before we reached a small, fresh water stream which gurgled through the tea quietly. Having crossed it, we walked on only to find another stream. This one was much muddier than the last one. It also had nothing solid apart from rubbish so we had to jump over it. Phew! We had all safely crossed and had started wandering into the green again. We passed much more tea before the path sadly ended. As we walked back through the greenness, we again passed the everlasting tea bushes and then we came to the muddy stream and then to the fresh water one, so before we knew it we were stepping out through the gap in the fence and that is where the tea plantation adventure ended and a whole new one began. But I mustn’t tell you that one… 😉

 

On Board the Moonlight

Although we only stayed on this wonderful boat for one night, it was enough to fascinate me for a lifetime and is an unforgettable memory. The whole adventure started when we arrived at the river where there was a whole city of houseboats. We were led down to the end of the flock where a particular houseboat named Moonlight was waiting. The crew, which was made up of three people – Bhijo the captain, James the engine operator (also sub captain) and Surish the cook, helped us carry our bags into the boat. As soon as we were all safely on board, the houseboat set off.

A houseboat passing

We were sitting on the deck as it rocked gently along, after a while, we stopped somewhere in the shade. I soon realised that it was time to have lunch. This meal consisted of deliciously cooked fish (which I suspect was freshly caught), beans, double boiled rice, coconut fried cabbage, mini pappads, sambar and fried okra. After another long time of watching the horizon, we spotted a duck farm. It was basically made up of a whole lot of ducks and one or two men in a canoe who had the job of herding the ducks.

A man herding the duck farm

Duck farm

We drove on till we stopped by a market to stretch our legs. After looking in a shop, we walked along the river for 15 minutes before turning back to go back to our houseboat. As we watched the rippling river, Surish brought over some delicious banana fritters which were very filling. At about five’o clock we arrived at a park which was the place where we were going to dock for the night. After a walk, a delicious dinner was brought over. This meal included dhal, potatoes and lots of other nice Indian dishes. Later in the evening we watched a sea of green float past and then went to bed because there was nothing else to do.

The sea of green

In the morning we woke early and had breakfast. Then we drove till we were back at the bridge where we had started. Bhijo even let me steer a bit on the way there!

Me – the captain

This is where the story of the houseboat ends and another begins. But I mustn’t tell you that one…

 

Sighting the Leopard

On the 12th May at 12:30 pm we arrived at Kabini Lake View Resort. I was exhausted after a 5 hour drive from Bangalore and wanted to get as much rest as possible before our first safari. Soon after that, we were out and about again, driving towards Nagarhole Tiger Reserve. As we approached the reserve, I spotted a safari bus. We then stepped out of our mini bus and into the safari bus. Although we were lucky enough to see lots of animals, as described in “The Two Kabini Safaris”, we didn’t actually see a leopard. Many people claim to have seen one but it must have been at least 100 metres away, so nobody could see properly without binoculars and also partly because everybody was shoving and pushing you neatly away so they could get a better view. Anyway, it was too far away to tell if it was actually a leopard or if it was just a pile of leaves or a stuffed cuddly leopard toy. When we had finished that safari, we drove back to the resort  to get a good night’s sleep because the next day was the morning safari.

On the 13th May we drove down to the Nagarhole Tiger Reserve again for our morning safari. We stepped into the safari bus and it shot off into the reserve. As we rattled along noisily, someone spotted a few Jeeps ahead. Our driver called down to one of the Jeep drivers and asked,”Why are you all standing around here?”
“There’s a leopard in that tree there, the tree that’s closest to us,” whispered the Jeep driver back excitedly. And then we saw it, just a patch of golden fur and some spots but that didn’t matter to us because it was just so close. The Jeeps had long since driven off but the leopard was still eyeing us suspiciously. Eventually, the leopard got up, excited whispers rose in the bus. And then the moment came which we were all waiting for, the moment when the leopard slid lazily but gracefully along the branch towards the trunk of the tree. The branch quivered with the sheer beauty of the creature as it moved.

Slowly, it stepped cautiously onto the branch just below the one it had been lying on. It did so till it was on the lowest branch. The leopard gave one last glance at us. It seemed to last forever, but in reality it was only a matter of seconds before the leopard jumped. Now on the ground, the leopard moved easily and quickly. It trotted away at a sensible speed and we watched it till it disappeared . But I am sure that everyone who was on that safari will never forget the jump. Ever.

 

Coconut Poem

Coconuts

The gods’ favourite offerings

People marching along

Coconuts on their heads

Once they have finished this march

It is the gods’ turn to do something for them

Coconuts

The gods’ favourite offerings

🙂

 

Temple Poem

Temples

The holiest place to pray

Gods covered in garlands

Offerings smothered with smiles

Different smells rise up to the skies

Different sounds

Different tastes

Temples

The holiest place to pray

 

Monkeys and More!

In my opinion, monkeys are practically the most interesting animals in the world. I am amazed by every step they take in life. Watching them eating, drinking, playing and sleeping fascinates me, that is why when we visited the Big Banyan Tree I was absolutely overjoyed to find a family of monkeys behind the tree. They were everywhere, even on a car! 😉

Beloved towel

Thoughtful

 

The Smell…

The smell in India is different to the smell in Australia, there is no real way to describe it but I have my side of the argument.

When you walk past one of those foul smelling fish shops where a massive black hoard of a million flies are all gathered around some already chopped up five day old fish, do you feel like wretching? When you enter the city markets where the dirty smells of garbage come hauling themselves down towards your nose from the mountains of rotting food where the cows lie happily feasting on whatever they can find, do you feel like wretching? When you peer down at that dark gloomy river where the unpleasant smell of the sewers come creeping up towards your nose, do you feel like wretching?

So I recommend to get a nose peg…

 

Indian Palm Squirrels

If you are interested in the Indian palm squirrel, read this:

               Diet

Palm squirrel eating left-overs

• Grain
• Nuts
• Insects
• Fruit
• Berries
• Small mammals
• Birds
• Crops

                 Size

• Length – 20cm
• Weight – 100g(adult)

              Appearance

• Pale brown fur
• Bushy tail
• Three white stripes

Breeding

Palm squirrel lying on a branch

• 2-3 young
• Young are weaned after 10 weeks
• Gestation period is 34 days
• Young are born during autumn in grass nests

                 Importance in Hinduism

• Considered sacred
• Helped Lord Rama build a bridge
• Lord Rama rewarded them by stroking their back leaving three white marks

I have seen many and there are still more to come!

 

The Bull Temple

In Bangalore there is a place called the Bull Temple. In this temple there is a massive bull and a smaller Ganesha. Ganesha is a Hindu god and is very well known. He has an elephant face.

Picture of Ganesha

The bull has a trident sticking out of its head. It has this from the legend which goes something like this:

The area around a temple known as Sunkenahalli was used for growing groundnut. A bull started grazing in the well-grown groundnut crop. When one of the farmers noticed that the bull wasn’t on task, he got angry and hit the bull. The bull then sat down and turned to stone. The farmers felt guilty and had the idea to build a temple for the bull but at the same time they realised, the bull was growing rapidly in height. They then decided to pray to Lord Shiva. He advised them to dig out a trident buried a few feet away from the bull. He said to place it on the forehead of the bull to stop it from growing. The farmers followed the Lord’s advice and the bull stopped growing. You can still see the trident on the bull’s forehead. This is how the was temple was made!

 

Bangalore Bats

On the 21st of April we visited a park called: Shamanna Park. It was big, green and shady. It was also very quiet. As we entered the park we noticed some stairs going up some rocks to a platform. When we reached the top we noticed an Indian palm squirrel scurrying around. Then my brother shouted “Oh look, what are those big lumps in the trees?” It was then we realised that the lumps were bats! Later I found out that they were Indian Flying Foxes.