Our guide is an energetic 19-year-old. He tells us the schedule for the day: three and a half hours drive with tea break in two hours. Once we arrive at our destination in Sundarbans Tiger Reserve we will get straight onto the boat and stay on the boat most of the day. We will then catch a ferry to the village where we will take a rickshaw to the watchtower. From there visitors often catch a glimpse of a Bengal tiger in its habitat. Then he says we will leave at around 7:30 PM to get back to Kolkata at 11 PM. It is going to be a long day but Mom and I have high expectations for what we will see on our journey.
Mom and I enjoy the sights as we get further away from the noise and crowds of the city. We see so much green everywhere and the sun shines a bright orange in the sky. We drive for some time with this beautiful scenery, every once in a while being interrupted by a small village or town. It's fun to see the various inhabitants carrying loads of hay or cauliflower on their bicycles or rickshaws.
Our driver on this journey is even more reckless and aggressive than the drivers we have had in Kolkata thus far. Even I have anxiety. He comes so close to hitting bicyclists and dogs that mom and I stop looking ahead and try to look out the sides of our windows instead. We stop a few times so that the guys can get out and relieve themselves on the side of the road. Mom and I just sit and wait patiently for our turn at a real toilet. When we finally reach the "Chai stop", Mom and I go to the toilet, which is a genuine Indian toilet in the ground. The tour guide orders me a chai. I love chai and this one does not disappoint. It is sweet and thick and delicious. I decide to have this as often as possible while I'm here in India.
When it's finally time for us to move on to the road again, we drive an hour more to our final destination. We see water ahead and get excited to finally get on the boat and see some animals. Mom and I only have to walk a few yards to the end of the dock. However, when we arrive there we look down to four flights of very precarious steps. There are no railings and their are sheer drops on either side of the stair flights. The anxiety Mom feels is palpable and she says, "I can't do this." Considering the fact that we had driven 3 1/2 hours to get here I don't think it very likely that we should leave right then. The tour guide comes and grabs Mom's arm. He calls for another guy from the boat who grabs her other arm. She leans on them heavily for each step and they walk her very safely and securely down every flight and onto the boat. We are seated comfortably on a bench under an overhang on the boat and are introduced to our crew. There is a boat driver, the tour guide, our own cook, and an assistant to the driver. All this for only two of us. Mom and I feel like what we had paid isn't nearly what they deserve. We are really impressed with the care that they take with us all day long. Shortly after leaving the dock, it is teatime and we are served Puri. This includes round puffed tortillas (almost like sopapillas) with a side of vegetables soaked in spices. I like it but my mouth is on fire by the end. We barely finish the food on our plates and they pile on more. Meanwhile, we are floating on the river and admiring the dense mangrove forests along the banks. Our tour guide lay down on the bench and goes to sleep. Mom and I enjoy relaxing and conversing and taking in the beauty of the jungle. We get to the reserve about an hour later. We stop at a dock and the tour guide gets out with our passports to ask permission of the Bangladesh government to let us through to the reserve. After they do, a special Sundarbans tour guide boards the boat and we keep driving until we finally arrive at Sundarbans. It is incredibly quiet here. There is not a boat nor animal nor person anywhere for miles. It is such a stark contrast to the noise of the city that has kept us awake at night. We almost feel that we could sleep now. I ask when we can go into the forest and we are told that this is "in the forest". I realize that I completely misunderstood the tour description. I feel incredibly disappointed but want to make the most of our time. Mom does her best to stay positive and reminds me that even if we see nothing else it is worth it. We drive for miles and hours before we see a single animal besides a bird. All of a sudden our Sundarbans tour guide tells us that he sees a water monitor lizard up ahead. This is exciting as I have never seen one up close before. It is very large for a lizard and I certainly wouldn't want to get too close to it. Seeing it on the shore from the boat is just fine with me. Mom is so excited and takes lots of pictures. We feel a little bit hopeful that maybe we'll see a couple of animals after all. It's probably another thirty minutes before we see another water monitor lizard but it is just as exciting.
Our regular tour guide who drove here with us has woken up by now and we have fun getting to know each other. He is funny and reminds us of my cousin Austin so we get along really well. Munu calls sorely after to check in and make sure everything is going okay.
Soon enough we see our most thrilling sight yet- a crocodile only a few yards away. I have never been that close to one. We can see his face and his tail. His body is camouflaged by a tree. In the binoculars we can see every scale and discoloration. It is a rare sight to behold. The boat driver turns around a couple of times so we can pass it and take pictures again. It's exciting to see but I also feel nervous about being so close to it and am quite happy when we decide to move on.
We are served lunch at about 3 o'clock. Is consists of more vegetables like peppers, cauliflower and potatoes. There is eggplant and fried fish. It's a delicious meal.
After about five hours on the boat we are ready to go. I can tell Mom is fading and my cough is starting up again. I ask the tour guide if we can skip the rickshaw. He says yes and tells us we can just do the watch tower. After hearing how many steps there are, Mom says that she does not want to go. I tell the tour guide we'll skip the watchtower as well. We know by the time the boat gets back to the dock and we get in the car will still have three and a half hours to drive back. It will be nice to get back earlier. We don't regret it, even though our tour guide gets a phone call saying that there was a tiger sighting from the watchtower later. Mom and I laugh at the irony but know we made the right decision. We'll just go to the zoo to see one.
Our drive home feels a lot longer than the ride that morning but God protects us and we are grateful. We stop at the "chai stop" again for one more bathroom break. Luckily, it's still a little light outside so we can use the outdoor toilet. Mom uses it first and squeals as she accidentally puts her hand on a spiderweb. Now it's my turn. I walk in and see a giant spider hanging above the toilet. It has a bulbous body like a black widow and definitely looks dangerous, not to mention just plain creepy. My fear of spiders grips me and my chest feels tight. I feel I am between a rock and a hard place. I have to use the bathroom because we won't stop again for two and a half hours but the terror of knowing that giant spider is above me and may fall on me any minute terrifies me. I am gripped with fear and am about to have my first panic attack in India. Mom takes over and looks around for options. There is a curtained stall next to this one and Mom peaks in. There are two bricks in the middle of the concrete floor and a bucket. She tells me just to go in there. I walk in and decide to just do what I have to do. Thankfully, I realize that there is a drain and this is a second toilet. Relief!
We piled back into the car and ride the remaining few hours back to Kolkata. We hit a bicyclist and the car in front of us hits a puppy and we pray more and more that God will just get us home in one piece. He does and, by the look on Munu's face when we arrive, she's just as grateful as we are.
I think that's enough adventure for one day.
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Location:Brahmo Samaj Road,Kolkata,India
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