Honk When You Pass an Elephant ...

Or a bicycle, a goat, a scooter, a bus, a pedestrian, a taxi, a tuktuk, a tractor, a cow, or anything else you might find in the street. In the tiny tourist town of Chitwan, it was kind of helpful to know who was passing. But in Kathmandu, that rule leads to non-stop honking beeps, honks, and screeches. 

We are back in Kathmandu after our quick trip to the jungle, and I have to say, the city is growing on me. For one thing, it is much cooler and drier than Chitwan.  Also, the chaos is starting to sort itself out in my brain, making it easier to see the individual parts. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me tell you about the jungle.

It was hot. And humid. At one point, my thermometer said that it was 94 degrees with 74% humidity, which means the dew point was 84 degrees. Which explained why I thought I was going to die. We had a fan in our room - when the power was running. And we had a bathtub. I spent a lot of quality time in a cold tub, watching tv on my iPad. According to the signs, we could have gotten a room with A/C, but ours was broken. And I don't think I could have turned it on, knowing it was running off a generator. Fans run on the generator too, but take a lot less power.

But the animals were amazing. The first morning we piled into a dugout canoe with another group, which was poled down the river. We saw all sorts of birds and water plants. Then we climbed out to briskly follow our guide through the grasses and along the river bank, looking for animals. We didn't see much at first. But after our guide stopped to talk to a group crossing the river on elephant, he motioned us ahead, stopping abruptly to look down the embankment. We peered down, and there was a rhino, sleeping in the river, not 20 feet away. That seemed safe enough, until our guide startled it awake. Meg got the best picture as we very quickly followed our guide away! Right to a pair of fresh water crocodiles. We ended the excursion at the elephant breeding center, where we got to see the 8 day old elephant. 

We got back from the walk just before elephant bathing time. Meg got to climb aboard an elephant and get sprayed with river water - over, and over, and over again. I got good pictures, and she got very wet, if not clean. 

Our last adventure of the day was the elephant ride. We didn't ride them for comfort, but for the wildlife viewing possibilities. Other animals don't get scared when elephants walk by. So they load foreigners up, four to an elephant, and meander through the jungle. The "saddle" is a square platform with a 2' height railing. Each person sat at a corner with legs hanging down. I did feel secure, even when going up hills when my body seemed to be suspended 10' above the ground. But I have bruises from that railing. 

It was charming to spot animals sleeping on the undergrowth, though mostly deer. A couple monkeys scampered by. A couple male peacocks strutted by, though I didn't get good pictures through the undergrowth. But the best thing was arriving in a clearing to see four rhinos. We got great views of them (including many rhino butt pictures) and also of the view of six elephants full of tourists next to four rhinos. 

I forgot to mention that we didn't have to share the elephant ride with total strangers. We pulledmupmthe the elephant area and spotted our new friends Ann and Mike, from California. We hadn't seen them since Lukla. Small world. It was great to see them, and to share the elephant adventure with them. 

The last adventure in Chitwan came overnight. Around 1 am, the sky opened up. I don't know how much rain fell in the next couple hours (it was far too dark to see) but I wouldn't be surprised if it was 4 or 5 inches. That whole town floods during the monsoon, and this was a pretty clear indicator that the monsoon season had indeed arrived a bit early this year. 

So now we are back in Kathmandu, packing, shopping, and enjoying our last few hours before starting the long journey home! We should arrive in Minnesota on Wednesday evening, local time. See you all soon.