Well I got back from Chitwan National Park yesterday and it was everything I expected it to be. I woke up in the morning and we started the day riding down the river in a dug out canoe. On either side of the bank were crocodiles which was neat, but because it is monsoon season, we only saw a few as they mostly stay in the water.

Once we got to the end of the river, we walked through the jungle for about an hour to the elephant sanctuary. The walk was fun and because there’s so much rain, the grass was over 2m high. We saw tiger footprints which the guide said were from the day before, so I had my fingers crossed we’d see one on the elephant ride. The elephant sanctuary was good - basically a lot of elephants standing around.

That afternoon it was time for the elephant ride through the jungle. I had 3 Japanese tourists on my one and they spoke very little english. It was great being with them though because Japanese get very excited at the sight of anything - they were deadset snapping pictures of dragonflies.

One of my lifelong ambitions has been to do a safari in Africa, so the thought of seeing rhinos and tigers got me very pumped! The guide told us it was very rare to see either because tigers come out at night, and there are only 406 rhinos left in the park (2 had been killed for their horns in the past 3 months). After about 15 minutes of going through thick jungle, we came out into a clearing and standing out in the open were two rhinos - a mother and her baby!! The mother was huge and the baby was the cutest little thing in the world.

We rode close on the elephant and they just stood there while we watched them for about 5 minutes. The baby was running around like an uncordinated child taking it’s first steps. It was running in circles and waving its head around. I was stoked and the excitment was heightened by the Japanese laughing and smiling. Over the next 2 hours we saw deer, barking deer, spotted deer, monkeys, boar, lots of birds, and another rhino. What a day! That night a group of us went to the local restaurant for some beers though most of them were gimps so I didn’t hang around long.

The bus back was much safer but it was insanely hot - over 30 degrees and really humid. the trip took 6.5 hours and it’s impossible to read because it’s so bumpy. When I got back, my face was black with dirt from the exhaust of the trucks and all the dust blowing in the window. My shirt was covered in dirt and I was feeling pretty seedy. I bumped into Nicola and felt like a ratbag, so I went and had a shower and then met her and her friend for dinner.

We went to a middle eastern restaurant because Nicola is sick of eating Nepali food. She has been doing volunteer physio work for the past month just outside of Kathmandu working with 30 children who are seriously disabled. The stories she told me were full on, like children being strapped to chairs because they go crazy when they run around (severely autistic). Other kids have mangled arms and backs which are so deformed they just roll around on the floor. I have a lot of respect for her doing the month there because I don’t think I could handle it.

Dinner was fun and it was good to have a free flowing english conversation. However after sitting on the couches for a few hours, I had hundreds of little bites all over my neck and left arm. So we went and got a coffee and have arranged to meet on Wednesday. Thursday we’re going to go do the 160m bungee jump - well I am, Nicola will film it

I think tomorrow I’m going to do a mission in the hills for 3 days. I’m meeting a friend today who is going to show me how to meditate which I’m keen for. Then tonight I’m going to his place for dinner and to meet his family. And that’s it really! I’m uploading photos now though it has taken an hour to do 6 so I’ll probably give up soon.

Check the photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/25947232@N02/

Away

Late last night I decided to go to Chitwan National Park, so I booked the bus for this morning, and jumped on it at 7am. I’m here for 3 days and I’m pumped!

From wiki:

“The Chitwan National Park is home to at least 43 species of mammals, 450 species of birds, and 45 species of amphibians and reptiles. Elephants and Indian rhinos are the largest species found in the park, but a lot of other large herbivores are found in the park, gaur, sambar deer, Indian muntjac, chital, hog deer, mainland serow, chousingha and wild boar. Three large predator species, tigers, leopards, dholes prey on them and carrion eaters like striped hyenas are also found. Sloth bears are among the main attractions of the Park. Smaller carivore species are golden jackal, yellow-throated marten, ratel, smooth coated otter, small Indian civet, large Indian civet, spotted linsang, common palm civet, binturong, small Indian mongoose, Indian grey mongoose, crab-eating mongose, leopard cat, marbled cat and fishing cat. Further mammal species found in the park are rhesus monkeys, hanuman langurs, Indian pangolin, northern palm squirrel, red giant flying squirrel, particoloured flying squirrel, Indian porcupine, hispid hare, Indian hare and ganges doplhin.

Among the reptiles marsh crocoiles, gharials and Indian python are the largest”

I don’t know where to start with the bus ride here. It takes 6 hours and the road winds precariously through lush green mountains. The scenery is breath taking and I had a huge smile most of the way. Because it’s the monsoon season here, the landscape is vivid green and mist covers the tips of the mountains. We stopped at a few little villages on the way for lunch and I met an American guy and a few British girls so we traded some war stories. Hopefully I’ll see them tomorrow.

After lunch we hit the road again and it was raining hard. The road is just wide enough to fit two trucks/buses, and everytime you pass one, the gap between vehicles is literally half a metre. Cars overtake buses/trucks by veering onto the wrong side of the road and trying to beat the oncoming traffic. It would be impossible to count the near misses because the whole trip is one big near death experience. The road is deadly, and ridiculous amounts of people die on it as buses tumble off the side of the mountain and plunge into the water below.

The first accident I saw was a truck where the front windshield had been pushed outwards in the shape of a circle - the truck had hit something and the driver’s head had smashed into it. Next was a truck which had tipped onto its side and had been abandoned.

But the greatest shock was a bus which had plowed off the road and down into the river. It was a bizarre scene and looked like it was the set of a movie. The girl in front of me said the bus had crashed on Friday night after the driver fell asleep - 14 people were killed and it had been on the Nepali news. Holy shit! It’s weird looking at that and knowing how easily it could happen to you.

The rain was coming down really hard now and the road was flooding. On our left, torrents of water were flowing down the mountain and onto the road. On our right there was a sheer drop which went down a few hundred metres into a river. We came to a crossing which narrowed, and the barrier had collapsed off the side of the mountain from the rain. The water on the road was completely covering the wheels of the bus, and there were huge potholes in the ground.

We started to crawl slowly across this secion and everyone was immediately alarmed. We were two metres from the edge and the water was pushing us towards it. Everytime we went over a pothole, the bus would lean towards the edge and it felt like any second, the left side of the bus would come off the ground. I was looking straight down, and as the bus was leaning, it felt like being on the mouse rollercoaster - that one always at the Easter show where you think you’re going to go over the edge.

The whole bus was tense and everyone was looking over the edge in fear. After seeing the bus where 16 people had died (5 days before) only 10 minutes earlier, it’s fair to say I was packing shit because there was a real possibility we were going to tumble over. I’ve never felt such a genuine feeling that I could die. The weird thing is I wasn’t scared, kind of anti climatic, though thinking about it now it was heavy.

The girl in front looked back at me and her eyes were wide - I knew this was serious. We crawled for about 30 seconds swaying frightfully, before making it across. With 10-15 minutes more rain, I don’t know how any cars could make it.

We finally got here and I’m the only person in my hotel because it’s monsoon season. Like, the only one! I sat in the food hall all alone and it was a bit creepy. But the resort is awesome - hanging trees and shrubs, long driveway, big fancy room etc. I read in the garden for a bit and the sun is very hot - about 30 degrees and high humidity.

Tonight I’m going out on a safari to see the animals of the night. Then tomorrow I’m going to ride on an elephant and go searching for the endangered one horned rhino and tigers. Stupid me forgot my camera charger so I’ll be very annoyed if I can’t find someone who has one. Hopefully I’ll get some good pics!

I have to say, I love Nepal. There is an adventure around every corner, and despite the crazy things I keep experiencing, I feel really safe here. There’s so many amazing things I can do and it’s awesome to be able to make a decision spur of the moment and go for it. I might do a 3 day trek over the weekend, or check the bungee jump.

Away!