A small pocket of sanity

We really like our accommodations at Jim’s Jungle Retreat. It’s a small quiet place tucked in next to the forest and clearly the nicest place in the village. They upgraded us to a suite although I’m sure a cottage would have been equally as nice and sufficient for our three days here. The suite is so nice with so many different seating areas that I feel like I should host a little soirée. In addition to the nice room, this seems to be a place that takes protecting the environment seriously. There is no use of plastic at all and the way our breakfast was packaged up for our morning birding was impressive with cardboard, paper, leaves for wrapping sandwiches and cloth sacks. Of course, we stood around the car amid utter filth to eat and shared some uneaten bread with wild dogs, so it still feels like India. I am honestly having a hard time wrapping my head around how dirty and decrepit it is most everywhere we go whether it be a birding hotspot outdoors or a drive through villages and towns to get there. The river birding was nice and if you look one direction seemed clear, cool and inviting for even taking a dip, but just turn your head and see a literal slum with who knows what kind of water flowing into the river. We have yet to get a photo of the devotees of Lord Shiva carrying holy water from the Ganges River but we have seen many and hope to capture that.