"See, it says right here....Elephant Breeding/Birthing Center...Chitwan National Park. We can play with baby elephants and bathe them! Now that sounds like fun and where else would we be able to do that? Definitely want to bathe a baby elephant." I said it. I admit it. I was on a mission...The only thing to be decided was how to get to Chitwan. Fly or drive.
"Lets drive - this way we can see more of the country." I said it. I admit that too. I made a few bad judgment calls this trip and this was at the top of the list. Note to all: given the choice between flying or driving in Nepal? Opt for flying.
"You need shock absorbers," we try to explain to our driver after enduring a 6-hour ride from Kathmandu to Chitwan. Imagine us acting out the need for shock absorbers. "And what happened to the air conditioning which is now blowing air that feels hotter than the 100 degree temperatures outside?" Opening the windows leads to a respiratory nightmare of epic proportions....ugh!
Our driver says, "It's okay. It's okay" whilst eliciting the help of a few guys to push the car to get it started. I think, "Oh, this is many things but it's far from okay".
....And we are far from any known form of civilization, be it a town or car rental agency but at least we have finally arrived, after at least two-hundred twists and turns on a road littered with overturned vehicles, a bus tittering on the edge of a cliff, no guard rails between us and the 10,000 ft. straight drop down to death and people who use the road as a rest stop wherever it suits them, urinating en masse (i.e. the busloads full of passengers en route to or leaving India). The Parkside Hotel is our overnight home-away-from-home near Chitwan National Park. And although it has been a challenging day; it's okay because soon we will be bathing baby elephants!!! :)
"I can't wait to wash the road dirt off me", I say. Mom and I are coated in road dirt - my hair, my clothes, my skin are all shades of dirt grey. Mom isn't saying much which pretty much tells me she is done...and I can't blame her. It has not been an easy journey but the bathing with the baby elephants will make up for it. Of this I am sure.
"Here's your room", the young man who I think works at the hotel tells us. I think he works at the hotel because no one was there to meet us upon arrival so we just did a lot of "Hello? Anyone here? Would anyone like to check us in?" Finally, someone answered and at that point, I would have followed anyone, anywhere.
Ah, our accommodations. Mom and I have a code word. When something is "interesting", know that trouble is close at hand. This room was..."interesting". We are out in rural Nepal so we are not expecting much. Our needs are minimal. Two single beds. Fine. A nightstand. Fine....and two sets of mosquito netting hanging over each bed that are so encrusted with dirt that the thought of having to sleep under those bundles of dirt? Not so fine.
"Ugh. That's disgusting. If I have to rely on that netting to protect me from the mosquitoes, then the mosquitoes will have a feast because I'm not using that", I say as I am trying the remote for the air conditioner. I'm thinking, "Look, a shower and some cool air....we'll be fine".
You already know the air conditioner doesn't work, don't you? That's okay. We'll just open some windows....except the windows have no screens and Chitwan has mosquitoes and mosquitoes have malaria and...Never mind. Ceiling fan. We'll just use the ceiling fan...and take a shower....a hot shower strong enough to get the road dirt off...
Why do I not hear the whirr of the ceiling fan anymore? And the one light...one light bulb that actually works? Why has everything stopped working? Oh, did someone forget to tell us that there will be no electricty for the next 4 hours? You see? There is always a silver lining. No need to worry about air conditioning that doesn't work and broken light bulbs and when there is no electricity! And the possibility of a hot shower? That just went to ice cold....but it's okay because we are going to bathe with baby elephants tomorrow morning. Yea!!!
No yea...
"Sorry, ma'am but about one month ago a drunk tourist was in the river with the elephants. He fell and drowned so the program has been stopped", our local guide tells us after dinner.
"Noooooooooo...we have endured a road of torture, in a car with no breathable air and no shocks for 6 hours...a room with no electricity, filthy towels with holes in them and mosquito netting (don't get me started on the bathroom!) a dinner of rice and only rice because everything else was too spicy to eat...no hot showers and now you tell me, no bathing with the baby elephants?" I think all of this as I also think, "Why are we here?" but what comes out of my mouth is...
"Really? I am so sad and so disappointed to hear this. It was our reason for visiting Chitwan". See. I can be polite even when every profane word known to mankind is running through my head.
"Is there no way to see the babies? Spend some time with them?," I ask.
"Well, you can still see the babies but you can not touch them or go near them", the guide states.
"Oh, that's no different than a zoo", I say as I pout a little for effect.
"No, I do not want to do that. It's okay. I guess we'll just continue on our journey in the morning," more pouting for effect.
"There is a place where there is a baby elephant who lives with its mother and their trainer. If you would like to go there, it should be okay to visit and play with the baby elephant", our guide states. I stop pouting. Mom says, "That sounds good to me". I agree...
We drive a little. We walk a little. Our guide points out toucans and other birds, flora, fauna and all sorts of forest wonders along the way. And then...there he is. Padra, the 5-month old baby elephant. Playing near his Mom.
Padra with his tuff of elephant hair on the top of his trunk. We pet him and his trunk comes up and Padra discovers my Mom. Mom becomes a big, fun toy for Padra to play with. He wraps his trunk around Mom and it's just love at first sight. Padra is a baby but Padra is a strong baby. A swing of Padra's trunk could knock either of us down. But Padra just wants to play. Padra discovers the hem of my blouse and figures out if he wraps his trunk around some fabric and twists some...well, I become like one of those string pull toys but for a baby elephant!! We stay with Padra for about 30 minutes giving him water to drink, wishing we had a bunch of bananas to feed him but we didn't realize that we truly were off the usual tourist path now and there would be no "banana outlets". It's genuinely hard to leave Padra. I even get a little teary-eyed because it's such a sweet, fun, simple, joyous moment. As we leave, Padra makes his way back to his Mom. I like that he and his Mom have each other. They are safe in this beautiful forest which Mom and I explored the day before courtesy of an elephant ride through the lands and the rivers of Chitwan. We see wild rhinos, monkeys swinging through the tree canopy and deer; some said they saw crocodiles...it's all fascinating. It was terrific but the highlight of this trip? Padra.
Padra was worth every moment of this "interesting" journey.
I know the adage says that "Elephants never forget". I hope that's true. May Padra remember the fun and love we shared that day...because we will never forget. Love comes in all shapes and sizes. This time love came in the form of a baby elephant named Padra. I know Padra took an immediate liking to my Mom because well, Padra recognizes a loving Mom....
Mom loves Padra. Padra loves Mom. We love Padra....always.
"Lets drive - this way we can see more of the country." I said it. I admit that too. I made a few bad judgment calls this trip and this was at the top of the list. Note to all: given the choice between flying or driving in Nepal? Opt for flying.
"You need shock absorbers," we try to explain to our driver after enduring a 6-hour ride from Kathmandu to Chitwan. Imagine us acting out the need for shock absorbers. "And what happened to the air conditioning which is now blowing air that feels hotter than the 100 degree temperatures outside?" Opening the windows leads to a respiratory nightmare of epic proportions....ugh!
Our driver says, "It's okay. It's okay" whilst eliciting the help of a few guys to push the car to get it started. I think, "Oh, this is many things but it's far from okay".
....And we are far from any known form of civilization, be it a town or car rental agency but at least we have finally arrived, after at least two-hundred twists and turns on a road littered with overturned vehicles, a bus tittering on the edge of a cliff, no guard rails between us and the 10,000 ft. straight drop down to death and people who use the road as a rest stop wherever it suits them, urinating en masse (i.e. the busloads full of passengers en route to or leaving India). The Parkside Hotel is our overnight home-away-from-home near Chitwan National Park. And although it has been a challenging day; it's okay because soon we will be bathing baby elephants!!! :)
"I can't wait to wash the road dirt off me", I say. Mom and I are coated in road dirt - my hair, my clothes, my skin are all shades of dirt grey. Mom isn't saying much which pretty much tells me she is done...and I can't blame her. It has not been an easy journey but the bathing with the baby elephants will make up for it. Of this I am sure.
"Here's your room", the young man who I think works at the hotel tells us. I think he works at the hotel because no one was there to meet us upon arrival so we just did a lot of "Hello? Anyone here? Would anyone like to check us in?" Finally, someone answered and at that point, I would have followed anyone, anywhere.
Ah, our accommodations. Mom and I have a code word. When something is "interesting", know that trouble is close at hand. This room was..."interesting". We are out in rural Nepal so we are not expecting much. Our needs are minimal. Two single beds. Fine. A nightstand. Fine....and two sets of mosquito netting hanging over each bed that are so encrusted with dirt that the thought of having to sleep under those bundles of dirt? Not so fine.
"Ugh. That's disgusting. If I have to rely on that netting to protect me from the mosquitoes, then the mosquitoes will have a feast because I'm not using that", I say as I am trying the remote for the air conditioner. I'm thinking, "Look, a shower and some cool air....we'll be fine".
You already know the air conditioner doesn't work, don't you? That's okay. We'll just open some windows....except the windows have no screens and Chitwan has mosquitoes and mosquitoes have malaria and...Never mind. Ceiling fan. We'll just use the ceiling fan...and take a shower....a hot shower strong enough to get the road dirt off...
Why do I not hear the whirr of the ceiling fan anymore? And the one light...one light bulb that actually works? Why has everything stopped working? Oh, did someone forget to tell us that there will be no electricty for the next 4 hours? You see? There is always a silver lining. No need to worry about air conditioning that doesn't work and broken light bulbs and when there is no electricity! And the possibility of a hot shower? That just went to ice cold....but it's okay because we are going to bathe with baby elephants tomorrow morning. Yea!!!
No yea...
"Sorry, ma'am but about one month ago a drunk tourist was in the river with the elephants. He fell and drowned so the program has been stopped", our local guide tells us after dinner.
"Noooooooooo...we have endured a road of torture, in a car with no breathable air and no shocks for 6 hours...a room with no electricity, filthy towels with holes in them and mosquito netting (don't get me started on the bathroom!) a dinner of rice and only rice because everything else was too spicy to eat...no hot showers and now you tell me, no bathing with the baby elephants?" I think all of this as I also think, "Why are we here?" but what comes out of my mouth is...
"Really? I am so sad and so disappointed to hear this. It was our reason for visiting Chitwan". See. I can be polite even when every profane word known to mankind is running through my head.
"Is there no way to see the babies? Spend some time with them?," I ask.
"Well, you can still see the babies but you can not touch them or go near them", the guide states.
"Oh, that's no different than a zoo", I say as I pout a little for effect.
"No, I do not want to do that. It's okay. I guess we'll just continue on our journey in the morning," more pouting for effect.
"There is a place where there is a baby elephant who lives with its mother and their trainer. If you would like to go there, it should be okay to visit and play with the baby elephant", our guide states. I stop pouting. Mom says, "That sounds good to me". I agree...
We drive a little. We walk a little. Our guide points out toucans and other birds, flora, fauna and all sorts of forest wonders along the way. And then...there he is. Padra, the 5-month old baby elephant. Playing near his Mom.
Padra with his tuff of elephant hair on the top of his trunk. We pet him and his trunk comes up and Padra discovers my Mom. Mom becomes a big, fun toy for Padra to play with. He wraps his trunk around Mom and it's just love at first sight. Padra is a baby but Padra is a strong baby. A swing of Padra's trunk could knock either of us down. But Padra just wants to play. Padra discovers the hem of my blouse and figures out if he wraps his trunk around some fabric and twists some...well, I become like one of those string pull toys but for a baby elephant!! We stay with Padra for about 30 minutes giving him water to drink, wishing we had a bunch of bananas to feed him but we didn't realize that we truly were off the usual tourist path now and there would be no "banana outlets". It's genuinely hard to leave Padra. I even get a little teary-eyed because it's such a sweet, fun, simple, joyous moment. As we leave, Padra makes his way back to his Mom. I like that he and his Mom have each other. They are safe in this beautiful forest which Mom and I explored the day before courtesy of an elephant ride through the lands and the rivers of Chitwan. We see wild rhinos, monkeys swinging through the tree canopy and deer; some said they saw crocodiles...it's all fascinating. It was terrific but the highlight of this trip? Padra.
Padra was worth every moment of this "interesting" journey.
I know the adage says that "Elephants never forget". I hope that's true. May Padra remember the fun and love we shared that day...because we will never forget. Love comes in all shapes and sizes. This time love came in the form of a baby elephant named Padra. I know Padra took an immediate liking to my Mom because well, Padra recognizes a loving Mom....
Mom loves Padra. Padra loves Mom. We love Padra....always.
You have told it so well....and yet you can not tell it all.....all the sounds, all the smells...all the dirt....all the heat...all the pollution and all the gentleness of the people who live with this all daily.
ReplyDeleteMom
I have come to the conclusion, Mom, that there is no way to get the complete sensory experience across via the written word. But we know...we know. Thanks for hanging in there during what I know was a challenging trip for you (and me too...who am I kidding? :) Love...ETC
ReplyDeleteI Love your stories and all the photos... especially the photo of you and Pandra
ReplyDelete