DAY OF REST IN CHITWAN

WEATHER: Hot and 31C

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: Not having to walk back…

BUMMER OF THE DAY: Can’t think of a single thing

WORD OF THE DAY: Tickcha-good

ANIMALS SEEN TODAY: Marabou stalk, serpentine eagle, deer, peacock, hawk and an elephant

Good morning!  What a great night’s sleep, even though the bed was hard as a piece of wood.  I must have been tired is all I can say and it is surprising how all the beds in Nepal have had no bounce, no inner spring and I have still been sleeping okay.  I do get a sore side sometimes and you can’t really sleep longer than 8 hours as it just gets too uncomfortable, but it goes to show you don’t have to spend a lot of money on mattresses, well I don’t anyway, to have a great night’s sleep.  I am lucky like that though.  I can sleep on plane and just about anywhere, anyhow. 

After a delicious banana pancake breakfast and some amazing photos of the flowers they had in the hotels gardens we boarded the open air-truck for our 2 hour journey back to the hotel and civilization.  It was nice to have the wind flap our hair as we drove past small villages, with children playing, running behind the truck waving and seeing the everyday business of the local people in the area.  There were a lot of rice fields and there were women and men in the fields cutting the rice and groups whacking the grains out of the stalks.  We were also trying to still spot animals on our drive and we did see some deer, a hawk, more marabou storks and a peacock.  We didn’t see any Asian elephants, sloth bears or tigers.  How disappointing- but it is the nature of safari-ing, but I would have loved to have seen a sloth bear.    

We got back to the hotel at 10.15am and we were all coated in a fine film of dust.  It really is dry out there and with the passing of other cars on the dusty national park roads it is really hard to avoid.  You could even see the fine dust on my IPod and also on my camera, and I was trying to keep it covered when I could.  It was nice to have a welcome arrival tea, our new rooms were ready and after collecting out big bags we had free time until 6pm when we were to meet up again with Satiya to hear about the details for our last day tomorrow as we head back to Kathmandu.  I popped in some laundry when we left the other day and it felt great to know that was going to be the last wash before I head home.  It was expensive (for Nepal) at $7.50 but there is not a better thing in the world (well the clothes world) of wearing fresh, clean clothes, especially after wearing the same ones for the last 4 months.  That is one of the downsides of travelling for extended periods, the clothing situation, especially when you are on the larger size, as it is quite difficult to find clothes that fit if you were to buy them as you travel, I unfortunately don’t have that luxury and have to catty my whole trips worth from the start.  If that is one of the only pit falls then I don’t really have much to complain about do I? 

We went down to the river at 11am as you can have the experience washing the elephants.  Intrepid don’t promote this optional excursion for a few reasons two being the promotion of the animals and also the danger involved getting hit by the trunk or getting rolled on by these massive animals.  It would be a great experience, but the thought of me in bathers, sitting on an elephant outweighed the actual experience and when we got to the river I am SO glad that I didn’t do it.  There washing of the elephantS, was actually only ONE elephant and there would have been over 150 people all watching from the river bank with the elephant only 5m away.  It was a great photo opportunity and there was small line of people waiting for their turn to hop on the animal.  They all got around 10 minutes each, climbing on the elephant as he sat in the river, he then got up and then started to spray water from the river with his trunk over his shoulder onto the rider.  The water would have been freezing but at least we got to see an elephant, not in the wild, but we could add it to our list.  I had seen enough and was back to the hotel after 25 minutes.  Totally not what I expected and not sure if it is a worthwhile thing really as it looked awkward and embarrassing for the rider being the only one up there.  Totally not my cup of tea……

It was then back to the hotel to freshen up and then off to have some lunch.  We have finally accepted that it can take over an hour to get meals, so we are happy to go a little early and then by the time we actually get the food we are hungry and ready to eat.  We had been recommended a restaurant across from the hotel and it lived up to its expectations and it also had Wi-Fi and with this particular group is a big MUST-so I am not the only internet junkie on this trip which makes a nice change.  I may be the first person to always check if there is a connection, but everyone is always waiting for the outcome.  It is hard to believe that this time next week I will be in Singapore and on my way home.  Weird but LOVING the thought.  I need to recharge, restock and relax with people I know around me-just for a small amount of time before I embark on my next chapter of my life.  It is all so daunting and uncertain and totally not like me, but I have put my faith back into my travel god’s hands and hope that they keep working in my favor like they have been for the last 2 years.  I guess the positive spin to it all is that I am living a dream, I am in control of me and I have the flexibility of being able to do whatever I want-whatever that may be…..  

After lunch I had a look around at the shops, nothing new of note, the same ol same ol in regards to Buddha heads, statues and jewelry.  Nothing like the shops in Kathmandu, I am looking forward to buying some things to take home with me when I get back there.  I then made the most of the internet and power at the hotel, while we had it.  It comes and goes here a lot and when it is on you need to make sure that you have all your gadgets plugged in as you never know when it is going to go off and you don’t want to be left with a flat phone or camera.  It generally doesn’t stay off for long, an hour or two, but this afternoon it was off for a lot more, so I finished 2 blogs, read for a while and just enjoyed my down time.  Before I knew it, it was 6pm, and we all met back up again to hear the details about tomorrow and then we headed to dinner.  Lunch was so good we decided to go back there as a group for dinner. 

So this is our second last night on tour and I am on a jet plane in 5 days.  I do need to note that the beds here have been the comfiest of the trip and probably of the last 4 months.  It was pure heaven and there is nothing better than a great night’s sleep.