Elephant rain
An early breakfast (involving a far too nutty muesli and a tasty omelette and Chinese food combo) had us out of our lodge in the most, ready for an elephant safari. I wasn't too sure about the idea of riding an elephant as I've heard in some places they are not treated well, however, I was reassured that this was not the case here, so hopped onto its back. This was the easy bit - staying on proved to be a 1.5 hr core workout, when I'm not particularly fit too!
However, she gave us an excellent vantage point, and her motion was smooth if a little rolling. Our first sighting was of some spotted dear, ogling us curiously through the lifting most. Another pair of impressive antlers were soon seen, and these belonged to a family of samba deer, which were almost horse-like in size, but had an equal combination of timidness and curiosity to the spotted dear.
Nearby, a rustling of undergrowth proved to be an elusive wild boar! Further in to the sanctuary, more rustling turned out to be a couple of rhinos - a mother and child apparently. It was awesome to see these trampling through the woodland as I've never seen a rhino before, let alone two at such close range.
After depositing us back at the lodge (with a few snacks on the way), our elephant left us for a break, and we followed her along soon after to see her playing with the two other elephants owned by the lodge. I could have watched them for hours - wandering up and down the river bank, rolling in mud, throwing mud over themselves and indeed showering themselves and us in river water. There is something so graceful and fun about their movements, for such large animals.
We ourselves then had a break (to sort laundry, eurgh) before being taken to a wider river where a canoe was waiting. I was given a huge and horrid green life jacket (and more worryingly told to cover up my bright top as presumably it might attract animals?) which I put on before getting in. A mix of paddling and punting was used to propel us down the shallow and calm river. It was quite a serene experience, seeing many types of bird, plus the occasional sunbathing crocodile...
Four miles later and we disembarked, climbing the bank to find a table set up for us, with popcorn and tea to accompany the stunning sunset. Through the binoculars we could see some rhinos enjoying it from the other bank, which kept us very entertained.
Once the sun was down, we took a (bumpy - not good when you need the loo!) ride home in a jeep, passing through the local communities. These seemed to be formed of poor, yet content people - schoolchildren riding around on bicycles, adults tenting to mustard seed and buckwheat crops, and teenagers sting badminton. The road itself would have done well as a hazard-perception test, with the sheer number of bicycles, kids, potholes, goats, motorbikes, stray dogs and buses! However, a bit of breath and handle-holding later (seat belts don't seem to be a thing here) and we were back at our homely lodge for the evening.
An early breakfast (involving a far too nutty muesli and a tasty omelette and Chinese food combo) had us out of our lodge in the most, ready for an elephant safari. I wasn't too sure about the idea of riding an elephant as I've heard in some places they are not treated well, however, I was reassured that this was not the case here, so hopped onto its back. This was the easy bit - staying on proved to be a 1.5 hr core workout, when I'm not particularly fit too!
However, she gave us an excellent vantage point, and her motion was smooth if a little rolling. Our first sighting was of some spotted dear, ogling us curiously through the lifting most. Another pair of impressive antlers were soon seen, and these belonged to a family of samba deer, which were almost horse-like in size, but had an equal combination of timidness and curiosity to the spotted dear.
Nearby, a rustling of undergrowth proved to be an elusive wild boar! Further in to the sanctuary, more rustling turned out to be a couple of rhinos - a mother and child apparently. It was awesome to see these trampling through the woodland as I've never seen a rhino before, let alone two at such close range.
After depositing us back at the lodge (with a few snacks on the way), our elephant left us for a break, and we followed her along soon after to see her playing with the two other elephants owned by the lodge. I could have watched them for hours - wandering up and down the river bank, rolling in mud, throwing mud over themselves and indeed showering themselves and us in river water. There is something so graceful and fun about their movements, for such large animals.
We ourselves then had a break (to sort laundry, eurgh) before being taken to a wider river where a canoe was waiting. I was given a huge and horrid green life jacket (and more worryingly told to cover up my bright top as presumably it might attract animals?) which I put on before getting in. A mix of paddling and punting was used to propel us down the shallow and calm river. It was quite a serene experience, seeing many types of bird, plus the occasional sunbathing crocodile...
Four miles later and we disembarked, climbing the bank to find a table set up for us, with popcorn and tea to accompany the stunning sunset. Through the binoculars we could see some rhinos enjoying it from the other bank, which kept us very entertained.
Once the sun was down, we took a (bumpy - not good when you need the loo!) ride home in a jeep, passing through the local communities. These seemed to be formed of poor, yet content people - schoolchildren riding around on bicycles, adults tenting to mustard seed and buckwheat crops, and teenagers sting badminton. The road itself would have done well as a hazard-perception test, with the sheer number of bicycles, kids, potholes, goats, motorbikes, stray dogs and buses! However, a bit of breath and handle-holding later (seat belts don't seem to be a thing here) and we were back at our homely lodge for the evening.
No comments:
Post a Comment