I wondered the purpose of my life until I saw the purpose of Sun, Sand, Sea, Bacteria, Sky, Stars and every other creation of the the supreme.
Like I have mentioned in my earlier posts that I made a bucket list and have been taking it a bit too seriously I guess.
So I decided to pack my backpack and head to the mangroves of the Royal Bengal tigers with little hope to spot a tiger but everything else as royal.
Day - 1
I reached Kolkata and spent a lovely day with my friends and family. The Famous Kolkata clubs are ever inviting and the day is short to shop. Kolkata by night is a different place all together considering the Blue and White Lights which are overpowering the city. If not anything else it would definitely let down the Oxford Street by Christmas only at all times, wonder how the electricity flows through the year, only we could say - Thanx to Didi.
Day - 2
The next morning my friends from Hyderabad arrived and our trip organizer Sunny received us and we hit the road. 3-4 hours of a drive, with good music and great company passed by without a visit to the loo as enroute there were no girl friendly washrooms - Every Indian girl traveler's story. This was the easier part, Once we parked our car at a point we got our backpacks on our backs and started our journey. Thankfully there was a paid decent loo at near the car parks. A few minutes walk got us to the first junction where we got on a small boat which cost us Rs.2/- per head and in about 20-25mins we got off on our first port and after another 5mins walk we got onto a big boarded rikshaw. Now, the roads are no less than a rough terrain of a kind, and we had a worst 30 mins ride, doing all kinds of acrobats on the rare end to save our rear ends.
Reached yet another junction and got onto another boat and voila we reached the Eco Village Resort - our abode for the next 3 days. So we started from Kolkata by 10ish and got our sumptuous lunch at the Eco Village at about 5pm. We decided to take it easy as it was already dark.
There is a folk music performance by the local musicians from the Village organized for the guests every evening which reminded us of a Coke studio. Under the dark skies with the stars popping out slowly and with a few lanterns and music on the background and hot tea and snacks served, one cant really want anything more. The Eco Village served us wonderful freshly cooked meals which were delicious in a simple way. The rice and the vegetables are all home grown and fish and chicken are also bred on the property. We called it an early night considering we had a long day and were scheduled to start at 5:15am the next morning. Our cottages were comfortable with all required amenities. The fear of being bitten by mosquitoes was quite deep rooted hence we were prepared with all kinds of mosquito repellents, if not mosquitoes the smell certainly wud drive away humans..
Day - 3
We were ready and on the boats set to sail by 5:30am. The twilight bloomed to dawn and soon it was a nice sunny morning. We fetched our on-board chefs from one of the islands who made us lip smacking hot breakfast, lunch and snacks during the day. It seemed quite a luxury to have on board services of this level in the middle of one of the most densely populated mangrove forests. UNESCO acknowledged the Sundarban Forests as one of their World Heritage Sites. We sailed with the currents and sometimes against however the islands and forests on either side were intriguing with the trees redefining gravity and laws of nature. The sea and the tributaries were over powering for us to see but the forests were dense enough to take over. the mangroves grew out of the land and are the only trees surviving the salt water. The Forests houses innumerable species of mangroves, birds, animals, aquatic world and everything above, below and beyond. The name Sundarban comes from the Sundari trees which are in great number in the forest. The Forests are thick and animals are clever. We spotted wild deer, boars, monkeys, indescribable coloured birds, rare sea turtles, mudskippers, snakes, crocodiles casually crossed our boat as we cross roads. Its said that dolphins and sharks are common to plot too but guess we were there on a rather uncommon day. We stopped by at 2 points from where we could spot some deer and a few more animals. Must say the Tiger reserve has very reserved tigers. That was a long beautiful day as it made us touch the vastness of the sea. We enjoyed the evening playing cards listening good music and having good conversation and ofcourse what's a night in Sundarban without a few shooting stars. By the end of day I also did manage to drop my phone and hence leaving me with no distractions. Surprisingly the signals there arn't that bad.
Day - 4
We thought we had done it all and its gonna be a dry day, little did we know. We woke up late and stuffed ourselves and my friend made us do some yoga and then it was time for lunch and again stuffed ourselves and snoozed like the best do's on a sunday of a holiday. We were woken up to go for the village walk at around 3:30pm and we walked around looking at the paddy fields and huts and homes with their pets which soon might be eaten with their bread (Rice). Its amazing how simple life is there. One fishes, another sows, and so goes on the circle of life.
We hopped onto the boat and went for a little evening safari in the interiors of one of the island bays. The canopies created by the mangroves were pristine and the wonders of nature never stops fascinating me. The sail was smooth, we plotted some snakes and various colours of crabs. The Boat man brought us to on of the mushy lands and asked us to get off the boat and it was that creepy feeling that hit my stomach with the knowledge of crabs and snakes and insects in those mushy lands and not to forget it housed crocodiles and mudskippers, it was like putting me through the fear factor tests. We got into the mushy lands of the untouched Sundarban and felt the pure mud onto our legs and it was another terrain. We walked around and someone picked a big crab to show us and another shrieked as they slipped. It was a whole different level of over coming my fear. We got back onto the boat and dangled our feet happily to wash off the mud also not to forget crocodiles could smell us yummy meet.
We got back to the resort all excited and had a wholesome meal waiting for us. Star gazing is becoming my favorite hobby especially in places where shooting stars are seen. We gazed at stars for awhile and it was time to go for the night Safari. This was the mother of all safaris I thought. Pitch dark, moon not yet out, Stars flirted with the sky with little twinkling beams and we on the boat in the dark cold night. The black waters were creepy so I decided just to lay down on the boat and have the star-studded sky as my view. What a view, must say!! And just then my friend and I spotted a shooting star!!! My Moment!!! Soon we were asked to put our hand in the water, which was so scarry - almost like being a bait calling out for the crocodiles but it was amazing what was in store for us - there were little glowing Planktons- bacterias which on disturbance and friction glow.. There were little glowing moving dots in the water when I moved my hands and they glowed for 2 seconds when u hold them in the water and this my dear friends is called the Shaking Hands with the Planktons in the Sundarbans. It was unbelievable to see shooting stars above and below with me floating in between. I felt one with the nature and made me realise how tiny we are. The little bacterias were shining below and the mighty meteors were shooting and twinkling above in the vastness and we the mortals were lucky to witness the phenomena - like Fritjof Capra said the Dance of Shiva - might I add my twist!!
Day 5
Last morning, last breakfast in the Eco Village of the grand Sundarbans and we took it easy. We headed back and we were all excited for our Boat, rikshaw and boat ride and the 3 hours of drive back to the city life- this time it was the victorian Kolkata.....and then back to base to Hyderabad. If its not the wild its just about any city!!!
