15 India

Day 15 p.m. – Amritsar and Pakistan Border

After a long lunch, we got on a bus and headed to the border with Pakistan.  It did not take that long to get there and we parked in a busy car park.

Indian Border Soldiers

Flag Races

We were not allowed to take bags, so I left my rucksack on the bus, taking just my camera and handbag.  It was a long walk from the car park to the border, but we got there eventually.  Just before the border, we had to go through a security check.  There were long queues, but we jumped the queue again.  Luckily, my handbag was small enough to pass.

Stands next to Ours

Stand Facing the Border

Having got through, we passed a very tall soldier.  His exceptional height was enhanced by high soles to his boots and a red fan made from the band which went round his hat.  He directed us to the stand for foreigners, which was nearest to the border.  The stand was filling from the back and another soldier made sure that no one left any gaps as they sat down.  Occasionally Indians tried to cross into the stand, but the soldier blew his whistle and told them to keep out.

Flags at End of Races

Dancing

Once we were settled, we were able to watch the proceedings.  People were having races, two by two, carrying the Indian flag.  People walked down and queued for the chance to join in.  Some of the soldiers were responsible for giving the flags to the runners.  As more people came down, they began to race with four flags at a time.  Meanwhile, the stands continued to fill up and we could see the stand diagonally opposite on the Pakistani side of the border slowly beginning to fill up with women.  Some privileged people sat at the ground level, opposite us, where they could get a really good view.

Fast Walk to the Border

Soldiers and Privileged Audience

Eventually the races stopped and some flag bearers ran up the steps beside our stand and stopped.  Next they played some music and many young people went down and started dancing.  I recognised some of the steps as being typical Bollywood moves.  More and more people joined the dancing and it was a real party atmosphere.

Ladies in Pakistan

Unfortunately, when the music stopped any the border closing ceremony began, the dancers had to dash to the stands and the careful seating plan was destroyed in an instant.  Worse, some people stood up, which meant that the views were restricted.  A chant was started up, with the response from the crowd being “Hindustan”.

Guards on Both Sides

A soldier shouted, kicked his leg up high and then did a fast walk to the border gate.  Others joined him and there was a lot of strutting and posturing, shouting and gesturing and it was replicated on the Pakistani side.  Their soldiers were not as flamboyant as the Indian ones and wore black with belts and hats trimmed with red.  Their hats were crowned by narrower plumes rising from a single point at the back of their hats.  There seemed to be lots of empty seats over there.

Then there was exaggerated swishing of flag ropes and more posturing.  The soldiers shouted at each other across the border with their arms held out wide, as if to say “You Shall Not Pass”.

Sorting out Flag Ropes

People now started to shuffle forwards and, after being kicked a few times, I stood up too.  The view was still intermittent.

The Pakistanis played their national anthem.  Then the Indian anthem was played, but it was hard to hear with all the noise going on.  The flags were lowered, folded and marched back to the gate house and the gates separating the two countries were shut.  Although, I was not able to see much of this, the atmosphere was amazing.

You Shall Not Pass!!

Then it was all over and we had to make our way out and walk back to the car park.  We waited for the bus in front of a café and some people bought a drink.  Then Rafeeq led us to the car park behind, but we could not find the bus there.  Eventually we tracked it down – exactly where we had left it!

Back at the hotel, we had time to brush up and do a bit of packing before going down for dinner.  I left Jude and went to the bar, where I sat with Ken and Sue.  I had a screwdriver, but it had salt on the rim so was not particularly nice.   So I reverted back to lime and soda for my next drink.  At least I got enough change to be able to finally repay Bob the money I had borrowed from him.

I had another vegetable jalfrezi, but this time with rice instead of naan bread.  It was a huge portion of rice, so Sue had some.  It was a good meal, but not as nice as at lunch.  I got everyone’s email addresses and promised to pass them round as soon as I got home.

At the end of the meal, Ken and Sue left to visit the Golden Temple in the moonlight.  Next morning, they said that it was very pretty and lit up all over.  The others went to the bar.  I did not feel too well and went straight to bed.

Day 16 – Home again

Not that exciting a day, so I have summarised the highlights (and lowlights) as:

·        seeing a rat in the dining room at breakfast :-(

·        first plane late on take off :-(

·        no time to buy duty free at Delhi airport :-(

·        plane taking off late from Delhi :-(

·        my rucksack being almost last one off conveyor belt – big panic!

·        not being able to say goodbye to anyone except Bob :-(

·        making it to Kings Cross in time for my train :-)

The end

Coming soon(ish):

North Africa: A tale of wonderful ruins and nasty bugs

14 India

Day 15 a.m. – Amritsar

I got up at 0700, which was late for me.  It was early enough to make breakfast at 0800.  That was very disappointing and I had to make do with tomato sandwiches.

A Traffic Jam

Typical Tractor

We set off for the Golden Temple at 1000 in cycle rickshaws.  I was sitting with Chris again.  Soon we found ourselves in the best traffic jam of the holiday.  There were no lorries, but the road was packed with horse and carts, tractors with trailers, bikes, motorbikes and cars.  The jam was so dense that the motorbikes and bicycles created extra lanes by going onto the pavement, so the pedestrians were forced to weave their way between all the traffic in the road, adding to the confusion.

Jude out of Traffic Jam

At long last we turned left and broke free.  We were told to get out of the rickshaws so that the driver could cycle it up the steep slope of a bridge over a railway line.  Once he reached the top of the bridge, we climbed back in and had a mad drive through the shopping area, followed by another walk when the road sloped upward again.

The Golden Temple

Eventually we reached the Golden Temple.  People were selling head coverings, but I had brought the scarf which Rafeeq had given us for Shimla.  Then we had to take our shoes and socks off, wash our hands and then walk through a trough to wash our feet.  Properly cleansed and attired, we were now able to walk through the gate into the temple complex.  There were lots and lots of people there.

Girls Wanting my Photo

Why?  Guards look Good Though

We could see the Golden Temple itself in the centre of the “tank” (lake) in the middle of the complex.  It seemed a lot smaller than I had imagined.  I took a lot of photos though and nearly lost the group because I was waylaid by five girls, wearing all-white outfits, who wanted photos with me in them.  I must have looked a sight with my scarf, patterned skirt and ethnic bangles round my wrist.

Mike with Fully Fledged Sikh

Our guide took us round the temple and explained some of the history and what it meant to be a Sikh.  There was a holiday atmosphere because we were coming up to an important date in the Sikh calendar in two days time – the anniversary of the birth of Guru Nanak Sahib, the first guru.

Long Queues on the Causeway

The queues for the temple were very long, but we were led through by the exit.  Apparently it is not queue jumping for Europeans, but intended to protect us from pick-pockets.  Chris and I fought our way against the crush.  The people who were leaving all seemed to be eating something – and dropping it too.  This was special food given to the worshippers as they left the temple.

There was some confusion as to where we should go.  One lady said that we had to go the way we had come in and did not understand that we had come in through the exit.  An official pointed out a route up some stairs and, to our big relief, we spotted Jill and Lucy.  Now we could relax and look around us.

Girls in Holiday Mood

The decoration on the inside of the temple was very intricate with red and gold patterns.  From our vantage point, we could look down at the main part of the temple, which had an awning and a lot of people listening to someone speaking.

Boys Posing in Holiday Mood

We climbed up another staircase and reached the roof.  A man was reading aloud from a very large book.  People were sitting all around.  Some were reading; some were meditating; and some were just watching and listening.  I walked round and reached another staircase.  I made my way down and out of the temple.

Procession Outside Temple

Once we were all together, we continued our tour of the temple complex.  As we passed one of the gates, we saw a procession going past and went outside to watch for a while.

Washing Up

We had to wash our feet again to get back inside and then headed for the kitchen – the biggest in the world.  We went in through the washing up area.  It was all being done by hand by an army of people, all volunteers.  Used food trays were thrown into tubs of water, which meant that the floor was very wet in places.  The trays made their way through the “production line” until the clean and dry trays were stacked at the end.

Clean Trays

Huge Curry Pot

We moved on to the kitchens proper where huge cauldrons were cooking the curries.  My favourite part was where they made the chapatis.  There was a machine for this.  A man kneaded the dough and placed it on the machine, where it was flattened and then cut into circles.  A second man separated out the unused dough around the circles and the machine took it back round to be reused.  The chapatis moved on to the hot section of the machine which moved at just the right speed to ensure that they were nicely cooked when they fell off the conveyor belt.  People then scooped them up and put them into baskets.  It would have been nice to try one, but we were just observers.

Chapati Production Line

Kneading the Dough

The Cut Chapatis

Collecting the Cooked Chapatis

After allowing us time to explore the site, our guide led us out of the temple complex  and, after a short walk, through a narrow passageway to the Jallianwala Bagh.  This was an enclosed park which was the scene of a terrible massacre in 1919, when Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered his men to fire on a gathering, killing lots of unarmed men, women and children who were unable to escape.

Eternal Flame

Museum

The site included the eternal flame to commemorate the fallen and a museum.  I stood near Mike when we were in the museum and he sounded appalled at what the British had done.  I think we all were.  Richard Attenborough did not hold back on the incident when he included it in his film “Gandhi” and it is a dark moment in the film.  The park included a wall which contained 28 bullet holes and the “Martyr’s Well”, which many people had jumped into to avoid the bullets, but then got crushed.  More people were crushed in the rush to the few, narrow exits.

Wall with Bullet Holes Marked

Memorial and Boys

Despite this being the site of an atrocity committed on the order of a British General, there were no ill feelings towards us.  In fact, it was here that I experienced more friendliness than anywhere else.  As I walked round, a couple approached me and I was asked if I would be in a photo with the wife.  She was very shy and had a mask over her mouth, but she removed it for the photos.  Perhaps she had a cold or something.  I was very happy to pose with her and then took a photo of the couple with their camera.  I passed them again later and we greeted each other as friends.  I wish I had taken their photo with my camera too.

There were lots of young people in the park and we kept on being approached by groups of boys and teenagers who wanted us to take their photos.  I asked if they had email addresses, so that I could send them on, but they did not seem to understand.  My photos from earlier holidays have been criticised for not having many people in them, but I made up for it here with lots of smiling faces.

Procession through Amritsar

Colourful Crowd Watching Procession

Eventually it was time to leave and we headed back through the narrow passage.  By this time, the procession was in full swing and we walked alongside it while we made our way to the rickshaws.  People were playing musical instruments as they marched and a brightly coloured crowd had gathered to watch.

Once we were all aboard our cycle rickshaws, Rafeeq took us to a very nice restaurant for lunch.  I had vegetable jalfrezi and naan and it was possibly the best meal of the whole trip.

13 India

Day 14 – To Amritsar

The brandy at dinner must have helped because I slept until 0500 and then managed to get back to sleep for a bit.  I managed to work the shower without any cold shocks this time and then read on the chair in the window until 0800, when I went for a very disappointing breakfast, with very little choice.  I packed, went for a short walk and then sat in the foyer until we were ready to go.

This was the only leg of our journey done by bus instead of train.  But we did have a train to catch in Ambala.  The luggage was loaded on to the roof and securely wrapped in canvas and we were ready to go.

We followed the long and winding road down from Shimla.  Thirty-five minutes later we could still see the town, but it was getting smaller.  There were lots of monkeys beside the road.  Cacti began to appear in the vegetation and we passed a couple of level crossings which we recognised from the journey up.

We stopped at a nice little café for a rest break.  I had a Rs15 coffee in a glass, which tasted like a warm version of a café frappe I had drunk in Shimla.  It was very nice.  When we got back on the bus, Sue sat next to me at the front because she said she was feeling a bit sick.

Fixing the Line - No Hi Viz Jackets?

We joined a small traffic jam, caused by repairs to the rail track and road.  Cars stopped on the level crossing and seemed completely unconcerned about the trains.  Perhaps they knew the timetable.

Not long before we reached another traffic jam, I suddenly realised that the mountains had disappeared.  Rafeeq and the driver had put their seat belts on as we had reached Pinjore.

We stopped at a temple complex for lunch.  Lunch was on Rafeeq as he had done a good job in negotiating tips and fares for rickshaws and tuk-tuks, so there was some money left in the pot.  We were very impressed by the elderly waiter who served us.  He did not make any notes and took our order from memory – and did not make a single mistake.  I enjoyed a very spicy dahl and an ice-cream soda, which was a special treat.

Dressed Up for Lunch

As I left the restaurant, I met a group of five Indian girls, looking very smart as they had dressed up for lunch.  They asked if they could take a photo of me with them.  I said of course and posed while, one by one, they took our photo with their mobiles.  I took a photo of them too.

Steam Engine

I also took photos of the steam engine and the camel which was offering rides just outside of the complex.  Then I spotted an unusual bird and managed to get a photo, but the parrots moved too fast.  Two little children were hanging around, so I gave them some pens.

Back on the bus, we were told that it would not take long to get to Ambala to catch our train.   However, a new motorway was under construction, so there were more traffic jams.  We were briefly allowed completed section, but we had to go slowly there as well because cows were crossing the motorway!

We passed a Sikh parade which included an ornate float, with music and people spinning wheels in the air.  I looked for birds on the telegraph wires and spotted two kingfishers.

Eventually we reached Ambala station after negotiating a very tricky junction.  I bought some water from a stall outside and then followed the others into the station.

The noise on the platforms was deafening.  The station canopies must be a major roost for mynah birds.  They were gathering at the station and the chirping, though not unpleasant, was very very loud.  Mynahs seemed to be on every surface: the metal work on the bridge, every telegraph cable and the tops of the trains.  Every so often something would spook them and they took off en masse in a flurry of wings, only to land eventually.  There were several trains standing in the station and with their twenty plus carriages, made useful large landing areas.  A goods train pulled into the station and the mynahs landed on that.  A passenger train came in and that was soon covered in mynah birds too.  They seemed to play a game of “chicken” by staying on for as long possible when the train pulled off.

While I was looking at the spectacle of the mynah roost, a beggar with twisted legs was sitting near us, hoping for some money.  I noticed his friend come up to him and put the beggar on his back and take his off somewhere.   I had not realised that the beggar was so deformed and hoped no one had inflicted the injury on him deliberately, which we had been told happens sometimes.

Gradually the mynahs came in to roost on the metal struts under the canopies over the platforms.  The chirping grew even louder as it echoed in the relatively enclosed space.  I tried to stand in an area which was not beneath any of the roosting sites.  Luckily, most of us managed to keep free of any droppings.

Hold on Tight!

Jude disappeared and the train came in while she was gone.  I was so pleased when she got into the carriage – it would have been terrible to have left her behind.  She sat next to me and took quite a while to regain her breath as she had run up the platform.

This was probably the least pleasant train ride of the whole tour and it was for the best that it was our last train.  Ken helped me put my rucksack on the rack and Jude and I got settled.  I read for a long while and finished my book.

On my way to the loo, I spoke to some of the others who were sitting at the back of the carriage.  They said that they had been feeding crisps to the mice.  As we chatted, I could see some mice dodging under the seats and dashing across the aisle.  I spotted four, but no doubt there were more.  They were cute little things and moved as if powered by clockwork, but not the best things to have travelling with you.  Worse were the cockroaches, which also seemed to be all about the train.

Eventually we reached Amritsar and had to push our way out of the train.  We got on the bus and made our way to the hotel, which was not far away.  Dinner was not too bad, but there was a wedding party on the hotel and we were the poor cousins.  The party finished at 0200, but it did not keep me awake for long.

Animal Corner

Camel for Hire

Another Mystery Bird

Mynahs in Ambala Station

Mynahs on a Goods Train

12 India

Day 13 – Shimla

I woke up at 0430, but could not do anything because it was too dark to read and the hot water did not come on until 0700. So I tossed and turned for ages and tried to get back to sleep. Eventually I gave up and dashed between the curtains to sit in the bay of the window. It was brilliant daylight, so I could read, but I did feel a bit exposed, sitting on the floor in my nightie – and a bit chilly.

I was soon spotted by one of the hotel dogs, who decided to bark furiously. It was the first decorative dog I had seen in the whole of India. All the other dogs we had seen had been very similar, with short sandy-coloured hair and, as often as not, bad mange. They were far too busy with scraping a living even to think of yapping at strange apparitions in windows.

I hoped none of the waiters spotted me, especially when I stood up – never a gainly activity when I have been sitting on the floor.

At last it was late enough to use the bathroom. The shower unit was like nothing I have ever seen before. I think you needed at least two A-levels, if not a degree to be able to work it! It was a silver mass of knobs, a wheel, sundry indentations and two shower heads. I managed to turn the water on and was hit by several horizontal jets of very cold water. It seemed like ages before I worked out that turning the wheel caused the water to flow from one of the shower heads. Eventually the warm water started to come through and I ended up having quite a nice shower.

I got dressed and applied all my lotions and potions – including insect repellent and sun-tan cream – and finally left the bathroom at 0730. Jill was still asleep, so I grabbed my book and dashed out the room to leave her in peace.

I saw Rafeeq downstairs and asked for a chair to be put in the window so I was more comfortable the next morning.

Developed Hillside Around Shimla

After breakfast, I went for a walk to try to spot some birds and met up with Bob. I saw a parrot near to the bus stop at the bottom of the road and then we walked past the shops and round the corner, hoping for views of green mountainsides. We were disappointed, because everywhere was covered in new build, showing how fast the city was expanding.

At 10 a.m. we got into taxis and headed towards the Monkey Temple. We were given all sorts of warnings: keep a tight hold of all possessions; don’t wear glasses; carry a stick; it’s a steep climb with lots of stairs. This put off some of our group, including Rafeeq, so they stayed down by the taxis. The rest of us set off on the climb – and reached the top in no time as it was not very far at all.


Monkey Temple

Monkey Temple and Monkey

There were a few monkeys beside the stairs and I broke one of the rules and stared at it. It hissed and bared its teeth, but that was the only time any of them paid us any attention. Instead they were interested in digging for ants to eat, grooming and a bit of sex. There was a very small monkey who was still trying to master the art of digging and would rather have spent time playing with the other monkeys. One couple looked very cute, grooming each other on a wall. We watched them for a while but it did get a bit x-rated as he proceeded to mount her at least four times. Each time, apart from the last, it was all over in seconds. Just as well, since he stood on her calves, which must have been very uncomfortable if not painful. We were very impressed by another monkey, which climbed onto the sink by the temple, turned the tap on and had a drink.

From the very top of the hill, we managed to catch a glimpse of snow-capped mountains far in the distance, but this was the only time we saw them. We were so busy watching and photographing the monkeys, that we did not have time to go in the temple. We strolled back down to the cars and told the others what they had missed.

Governor's House

Governor's House

Some of the bends were difficult for the cars to negotiate. Some required a three-point turn at the corners to get the correct alignment to continue down. We drove on to another ridge in order to visit the Governor’s house.

Part of the Garden

Friendly Boy Scouts - and Me

This historic building did not open until noon, so we strolled round the gardens, waiting for it to open. The flowers were past their best, but still very pretty. A group of Sikh boy scouts approached and chatted to us. They were attending a jamboree nearby. We took their photo and they used my camera to take a picture of me with them. One of the scouts assured me that they were “very responsible” people, so it was safe to let them use my camera. He gave me an email address and asked me to send the photo, which I did when I got home.

Chandelier in the Library

Wood-Panelled Interior

We were only allowed into a few rooms of the Governor’s House as it is now a study institute. The library was in the former ballroom, so was graced with some impressive chandeliers. All the rooms were wood panelled, with decorative wooden ceilings and floors, giving them the air of a gentleman’s club (not that I’ve ever been in one).

Historic Table

We went into the conference room where they had the meeting to agree the partition of India. Another room had the very table which they had sat around and, on the walls, photos of the main protagonists – Gandhi, Nehru and Jinnah. The final room had a photo display, showing scenes from the historic meetings. Lord and Lady Mountbatten were prominent in the photo display but there were other photos around the walls of earlier viceroys of India and their wives. It was almost incredible that such a small, very British building had such a prominent place in the history of India and Pakistan. But this building had been the seat of government for the whole sub-continent during the summer months in the time of the British Raj.

Ambassador

As we left, I took my hoped-for photo of an Ambassador car and then we had a look in the gift shop and restaurant, which was in the old fire-station. The gift shop was disappointing and concentrated on books which were aimed more at the students in the Institute rather than tourists.

Lift to the Mall

Then we were taken into town, where Rafeeq took us up in the lift to the traffic free “Mall” area, where we were left for the rest of the day. The lift was a wonderful contraption. We went up several levels from the car park and then had to walk to the second stage, which took us up to Mall level.

We were all a bit stunned when Rafeeq left us, and not sure what we should do with the rest of the day. So we decided that the first move should be to eat. By coincidence, we were standing in front of the roof café of the Hotel Combemere, so we decided to go in there. We took up two tables. Sue, Ken, Bob and I sat on one and the rest were on the other. It was quite novel to be in a roof top restaurant at street level, but the views from the far window were wonderful. I went out and took some photos of the hillside. It was quite an adventure to find the facilities. It required taking the lift down to level 4. In the lift, I chatted to a lady who worked in the hotel beauty salon and her daughter. She was very friendly and it was nice to speak to an Indian lady for a change. Then I had to walk across another roof and enter the hotel and then go down a flight of stairs and eventually found the public toilet. Quite a trek! Then back up in the lift where I enjoyed the views once again. The food was very nice and our table was served much more quickly than the others. So we left them to their meal and headed off to explore the Mall.

Shimla - the Mall and the Ridge

Sue and Ken went off together along the Upper Mall so Bob and I decided to start with the Lower Mall. The shops here sold things which the people living in Shimla would want to buy rather than souvenirs. They were quite busy and sold a wide range of goods. At the end of the street, we decided to climb up some side steps leading to the Upper Mall. I was glad that we were going up and not down. There were lots and lots of stairs, some quite narrow and not all well maintained. Still, we made it and eventually came out by a large map on the Upper Mall.

The Post Office

The map pointed to somewhere called Scandal Point, which Bob remembered seeing on the itinerary. So we decided to head there. This involved climbing even more stairs to the Ridge, where we met up with Ken and Sue. We looked at the first church and then the Post Office with its famous red roof. Then we leaned on the wall and watched some monkeys on the other side of the Ridge.

There were two different types of monkeys here. In addition to the rhesus monkeys, which we had seen throughout our trip, there were black-faced langurs with very long tails and thinner, longer bodies. The monkeys’ actions and body language indicated that they were very aware of each other, but they seemed to ignore people completely. I took a photo of one and missed the best shot of the holiday because the others said that a monkey got very close to me and I had not noticed. One small monkey was eating a chapatti on a corrugated roof just over the Ridge.

The Tudor Town Hall

Upper Mall from The Ridge

Sue and Ken vanished and Bob and I kept strolling around. Although the Mall and Ridge area was a traffic free zone, I nearly got knocked over at least twice by the ambulance which passed along the ridge several times. We met up with our scouting friends from the morning and promised to send the photo on. We chatted to four other scouts who said that they were camping together with scouts from four different states a few miles away from town. We said goodbye and walked towards the white church, which was shut and then got back on to the Upper Mall.

Jewellery Maker and Seller

Bob was looking for a present for his girlfriend, so a stall selling ethnic jewellery caught our eye. The lady said that she made most of the items, so I looked at the bangles. I decided to buy two sets: one red and authentic; the other pink and turquoise and not authentic, but a better match to most of my clothes. I put a set on each wrist and took a photo of the lady. Bob bought two chunky necklaces.

We walked on and decided to look for a bank as the hotel did not change money and I was getting low on Rupees. I was also building up a small debt to Bob as I was unable to change a large denomination note and he kept on providing the change. We saw some good exchange rates in the Icici bank near the Post Office. We put our money together and changed £40. It was quite a long process, requiring photocopies of my passport and visa and producing two computer print outs and a requisition slip. I had to sign my life away several times. Eventually we were given Rs3015, which was better than the usual £1=Rs70 given in the hotels. But it was such a performance, that I could see why Rafeeq recommended using the hotels to exchange money.

Love those Hats!

We took some more photos of the soldiers who where wearing fancy yellow hats and then started to make our way down to the main road. As we walked down the hill, we saw a third church and passed some military buildings. Some of the descent was down stairs, but we mostly took the winding roads. There was not much traffic during the descent, but that changed when we finally hit the main road. We were glad of a protected walkway beside the road. Just after we passed the chaotic bus station, we noticed a taxi place. We were quoted a fare of Rs150 back to the hotel, less than Rafeeq had said, so we climbed in and were soon home. Not long after, the other six in our group came back. They said that they had seen us on the Ridge, but we had not seen them since lunch.

Bob and I had coffee and some of the wonderful looking cakes in the entrance to the hotel. The cakes proved to be a disappointment as they were slightly stale. Later on we went to the hotel restaurant as did everyone else except Ken and Sue, who went back into town for dinner. I had a very high carb meal – potato curry, naan and rice. But it was tasty. Back in funds, I tried a local brandy, which was my first alcohol on the holiday and surprisingly pleasant.

Animal Corner

My Best Parrot Photo of the Trip

Little Monkey Searching for Ants

Can You Show Me Again?

I Think I Love You......

A Wise Monkey

Intrepid Butterfly

Fancy Some Chapatti?

Langur Monkeys

My Tail is Longer than Yours!

Crow keeping an Eye on the Primates