Chitwanpark

Outside the cities the nature is marvelous. Besides enormous mountains, beautiful valleys you have the Chitwanpark. This is nature reserve almost as big as the Netherlands between a number of rivers, whose are inundate the whole area in the monsoon. It has some extraterrestrial beauty. Trees are standing in the landscape like a work of art. The main attraction are the rhinoceros. You can go to see them on the back of an elephant.

Nepal had three clearly different parts: The mountains above 5000 meters, where we weren't. The central valley on the height of 700 meters and the plains on 70 meters above see level a continuation of the north of India. On these rolling plains cut by tributaries of the Ganges river the most of the farming happens. There is this beautiful wildlife area in the monsoon floated with all kind of rhinoceros, tigers, etc.

We spent there three days and did all kind of demanding sports like canoeing, hiking, jeep safari and sitting on very high elephants. The canoeing was quiet daring with so many inexperienced people in a enormous canoe build from one tree and rowed by the locals. We and our cameras survived. That wasn't quiet trivial. Next we visited an elephant farm and walked through the woods along the river. It was rather hazy, when we sail, but later on it become better.

The hike started with another trespassing of the river with a canoe until the borders in the water. The walk were flavored with stories about what to do when you met a rhinoceros or a tiger. With the latter they advise praying. In the other case you have to turn as much as possible. The half blind rhinoceros can't follow then. But they can run with more then 40 kilometers an hour. Besides some monkeys we didn't see anything. Even no footprints. I didn't even try to take any pictures of them. The last time I did, I have to point out all the time the very small and almost invisible animals on the pictures. But I toke some of the nice landscape.

The drive on the back of the elephants was in one way horrible and in another way extraordinarily. Sitting on an enormous elephant you drive with a rider thought the woods. It is terrible uncomfortable. The basket is made of some beams. You are sitting for more then three hours. You can hardly move. You try to continue the blood circulation. Everybody had muscular pains for days. The driver did everything to get the best views on the Rhinoceros. At only some meters distance we saw a couple of times the enormous animals of three tons each from the back of a even bigger animal of five tons of more. Almost not aware of the attention of the tourists the Rhinoceros with young ones were pursued by the driver and his elephant. Wild animals only react on real enemies. Tourists aren't eatable either dangerous. So they were ignored. Some trees of thirty meters height weren't a real obstacle. Several times the elephant just bulldoze these trees down.

Every day we had some time for ourselves. Than we can rest, swim or watch the bath of the elephants. Besides there were some shops with souvenirs, internet, email and barbers. The first day a barber cut the hair of Wim. Everything will be done to make the bill as high as possible. Massage of the neck isn't much appreciated by us. They spent double as much time on us as on the locals. A treatment of an hour costs 5 dollar only. Ten times as much as the locales pay. The removal of some separate hairs happens with a brand new razor blat. They divided it in two peaces. So they can use it again for somebody else...

The second day they paint my hair. The others admire me very much. It was rather black afterwards. They had on paint only. With an old toothbrush they rub it in. They don't have any water supply. So they have to be inventive. At some moment the paint was all over my head. I was afraid to have continue the holyday in this state. But it turned out they have some good cleaning stuff. After more then two hours and a lot of massage everything was okay. I was in time for the lunch. I got a big applause for my . But I missed the elephant bath. Wim shoot some pictures. But with pleasure I should have give some assistance with the bathing...