Periyar

Wildernest Resort in Periyar East Kerala, India. It was a wonderful 2 night stay. The centre court yard has 2 jack fruit trees.
A day tour of the Tiger Reserve was very calm compared to the wild elephant chase, but it was beautiful. It is at the edge of spice plantations......black pepper, cardamon, tea, and coffee etc.
Horn bill
The resort in the middle of the Tiger park would have been a great place to stay one night. It is on the list of things to do next trip.
At the resort, it overlooks the lake where the animals come to drink and is at its best at dusk. Wished we had stayed over to see it.

Giant Squirrel.

Another Elephant Encounter of the Best Kind

She is as friendly as can be.
Everyone takes part.

What a great trill ! Better than being chased!

The trip to Periyar

Driving to Periyar was so beautiful as we climbed mountains toward the jungle.

The tea plantations are gorgeous as the plants look perfectly formed and planted on terraces.

The Pattumata Matha is a pilgrim shrine that is visited by many tourists.

Road trips always have tea stops and of course a snack.

They all make masala tea differently , but the same.
You always make new friends at the stops.

Wild Elephant chase

You are probably wondering why such a blurry picture? We are at the end of of the 2mile walk in the bird sanctuary when two people come running and yelling," We've seen a wild elephant! Go back!" Being the obedient person I am; I stay to try and get a picture. As I snap the picture of the elephants approach the guide grabs my arm and yells, " It is going to charge!" The elephant raises its trunk, flips up its ears, bugles and begins to charge. I turn and start to run as fast as my 275lb overweight, out of shape and bad feet will go !! (That is the reason for the blurry picture). I was not turning back for another picture because by the time I reached safety ( about 300metres) I was so exhausted and frightened, I could not wait to start the 2mile trek back. When it was safe we started back and I was constantly looking over my shoulder for the elephant. Thank goodness it was gone.
Moral of the story is " How many people can say they have been chased by a wild elephant?"

Bird Sanctuary

7am - 2mile walk in the bird sanctuary. The leisurely walk was so pleasant and peaceful.

There were lots of birds and beautiful sounds as we walked along. The Heron sat and watched us!

The forest tower is also a place to observe the birds from.


A tree hut was constructed and wondered how anyone got to the top of it. As I was walking I noticed a lot of elephant dung the guide said that a group of wild elephants had been in the area a few days earlier and that my red t-shirt would be a red flag for them.

Goa - South India

The resort is very lovely and a 15 minute walk to the beach. Our room is on the 5Th floor and no elevator so whipped us into shape quickly. We made no mistake in leaving anything behind when going out.
Carnival time in Goa was Feb 23rd-26th. This was a celebration of costume and colour as parades of floats and dancing crowds filled the streets. This marked the beginning of Lent.

Goa has some of the most beautiful beaches that we have ever seen. The water was so incredibly warm.

We loved biking up and down the sandy beach, stopping to rest on lounges and enjoy great food.

There were many colorful people selling "Indian Junk", and we met these two most delightful vendors. Sila and Ansi are from the village of Gadat in the state east of Goa. They showed us some of the extreme contrasts of India.


Fishing is very important in this area. One can sit on the beach and have the fresh catch served in many delicious dishes.

Rock Garden - Chandigarh

About a year ago Ralph and I watched a documentary on an artist in India who used only recycled material to create a garden. This exhibit is in Chandigarh and what a thrill to meet the artist, Nek Chand. He was so gracious and presented us with his hard covered book about his life and work. Nek is standing just in front of Ralph.

Popular plastic Indian bangles are broken and glued together to form the colourful animals.

Villages of people are formed with concrete and pieces of white plates.

Mosaics create an amphitheatre for productions and public rest areas.

My favourite display is also make from broken pottery.


Nek has designed the most beautiful maze of rock, concrete, plastic, ceramic and water. It was wonderful to experience something so beautiful in a country that often shows so little to keep our planet GREEN!