Periyar-2

Should Have Looked Here

Tiger Hunters

Jan. 11, 2013- And Tigers?

I forgot to tell you about the monkeys. We're living with them here in our treetop aerie.

We were wakened at 6AM by a phone call, not a monkey, in preparation for our trek. Thirteen of us left at 7AM & didn't return until 9:45. We walked to the national forest with Charles then were met by a guide. We had to fill out information forms listing name, address, & age. This wasn't auspicious. At least I learned we weren't the oldest. The age range was 56-78. We joked about them wanting to notify next of kin if we actually found a tiger and that was in fact the case. There's a lake in the forest & tourists can take a boat ride. Last year a boat capsized & fifty-five people were lost. They had a hard time contacting family. We joked that if a tiger got us they wouldn't have to ship a body home.

The tribes that used to live in what is now the preserve have been relocated to the outskirts but are still permitted to hunt there. Hope they have better luck than we did. Due to the increased population during pilgrimage season the animals have pulled farther into the interior & are harder to find.

Our first sighting was a giant squirrel. Really? It was very, big but it was a squirrel. They'd have to do better than that. The next was a barking deer. We live with deer all the time & even have barking deer at the Akron zoo. Then we were led to a killer ficus. Now that was impressive since I could never keep a ficus alive long enough for it to grow larger than a short shrub.

Ah! Elephant dung was spotted! It was fresh! It was ripe! We were hopeful. I didn't know that elephants being the humongous beasts they are were capable of moving up a mountainside hardly disturbing the foliage. We were hot on their trail & I'm sure we were doing more damage than they as we climbed the literally slippery slope to their feeding area.  We were cautioned to be quiet even though we lumbered upward crunching leaves & twigs. And then a cell phone rang.

At last. There they were. The guide was very pleased with himself as he pointed yet upward where the herd grazed. We didn't see them. It took a while with lots of pointing & gesticulating for us to realize that the large grayish brown boulders at the hilltop were indeed elephants. It was easier when they started moving about & someone would excitedly point out a trunk or tail. That was it. No tiger. We headed down lots faster than we went up. We were eager for breakfast & our massage.

Sublime Torture

So the massage wasn't what we were expecting. We were asked to take all our clothing off. No fooling around with modesty here. And no male on female or vice versa massages. I was given what amounted to a diaper-like loin cloth to wear. Fortunately it was made of paper like doctors use & was disposable. Shades of Depends to come? It was held in front of me whereupon she tied it around my waist. A long strip of the paper fabric was hanging almost to the floor. She went behind me, reached between my legs, & pulled the hanging paper up the back & tucked it into the waist tie. David opted out of his. I was seated on a stool where the first part of the oiling & boiling took place. She kneaded & mushed away & then it was time for the table. The first thing I noticed was there was no well in which to rest my head when on my stomach. It was uncomfortable & she was determined to de-stress my shoulder. As she worked along my spine she kept asking if it hurt. At one point it did. She just said, "Very boney." At last she cracked my back & turned me over. A shower & shampooing was included. Fortunately I  got to do that myself. Of course she was right there in her ivory & gold silk sari handing me shampoo & bath gel. All this for $20 plus a $2 tip.

We skipped the afternoon cooking class & elephant ride & walked into town to shop. Didn't buy much but it was fun watching the activity.

The late afternoon was a planned visit to a spice plantation. We took an educational stroll with the owner as he explained the medicinal & food value of each spice. We got to smell & taste some leaves & spices. The cinnamon leaf was remarkably tasty. Just like chewing gum.

The best part of the trip was watching twenty people line up & pile into a jeep. They're day workers from Tamil Nadu & travel fifteen miles daily each way like sardines, Believe me a fifteen mlle drive here takes an hour or more.

Sabbath Rest

It was Shabbat tonight so we invited anyone who wanted to join us to meet at 6:30PM. Tom, the Lutheran minister, agreed to participate. We had my battery run Shabbat candles, wine in the plastic bottle we'd bought along the way, & a stale croissant from yesterday's breakfast. It was very lovely & Tom gave a short speech about our commonalities. Charles was quite moved as he'd never participated in a Jewish Sabbath & Kayo, the Japanese woman, reminded us that she'd spent years with a Jewish family as a nanny.

We head out early tomorrow for Cochin. It's a long drive & we won't arrive until 6PM. Cochin was a haven for Jews after the destruction of the Second Temple. It has the oldest synagogue, mosque, & Christian church in India. Vasco de Gama arrived in 1495 having figured out a shorter route to India than Columbus did. At least de Gama found it & the rich spices. People are still thriving in Cochin where the average life span for women is 88 & 85 for men.

Toby