Freshwater Dolphin in Edgy, Amazing, Assam

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Assam is amazing, edgy, scary, beautiful all at the same time.

We saw a "Flying fox" bat outside the train station, while waiting for our share jeep to leave. Our driver almost got into a fist fight with other drivers, over parking space.

The train station, which serves as nightime shelter for many of the city's homeless people, had been the scene of political bombings in the past.

Guwahati is crowded & smelly. Holes in the sidewalk leading to the sewer below. Crossing the street takes nerves of steel.

We just have one afternoon in Guwahati, & want to go to the Bhramaputra River. We tell autorickshaw driver to take us to the gnat where the ferry for peacock Island docks. He drops us off, instead, by a judicial building. We make our way thru a crowd of lawyers and defendants to the scooter parking area, where we can get near to the river. Standing there for about 10 mins. I see something Big in the water. I point out the area to Patty & watching, we see it surface & then swim away. We see it clearly. It is a FRESHWATER DOLPHIN. Later, talking to others, they tell us this is a very lucky sighting. It sure feels that way to us. It really feels amazing.

We find our way to the ferry dock & ride to Peacock Island. People are frendly to us and curious about us. Peacock island had a Hindu temple, but we just take in the river scenery and watch the golden Langurs that live on the island. We buy a bottled water, & then notice that the seal has been broken and it is a "refill". We do not drink it.

We watch the sun go down on the river & then walk quickly back to our hotel. We leave in the morning. I wish we had more time in assam.

Since we left, Assam has been often in the news. Never good news. Ferry on the Bhramaputra capsizes & people die. Flooding of the rivers. Ethnic violence over land rights.

Assam is an edgy place. We could feel it as soon as we got off the train. It is also a beautiful and charming place. It's memory will haunt me & I will miss this place.

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