Birds, hills, scary bus rides and more elephants!

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Well, this marks the end of week 4, time is just flying by.

From Fort Kochi we took a 2.5 hour bus to a small town called Thattekkad where we stayed for two nights in a homestay in a bird sanctuary. The owner of the homestay, a lovely little lady named Sunjay, took us out on 3 different walks to three different locations to see the birds and other wildlife. Each place was different and she knew exactly which birds would be there and could tell us all about their habits. There are over 200 different species of birds in that sanctuary. I am not much of a bird watcher, but it was fascinating to see so many thriving in one place.

We are now in Munnar, having arrived here by yet another 2.5 hour bus ride. Now we are not talking about a luxury greyhound type of bus here, these buses are bare bones transportation for the working class, bench seats, no padding, no glass in windows, only slatted blinds to pull down in case of rain. What made this bus ride so hairy is the winding hairpin turn roads and the climb up into the hills. We are now in the Ghatts, the mountain range that runs the length of Kerala and separates Kerala and Tamil Nadu, much like the Rockies separate BC and Alberta. It is lovely here, so much cooler than in the lowlands. In fact it gets very cold at night and this morning I could see my breath.

Yesterday I took a bus tour to Top Station, the highest point in Kerala, only to be disappointed because it was all fogged in. I have seen pictures of the beautiful panoramic view from there, so wanted to see it for myself. Oh well! Today we will go walking in the hills through the tea plantations and explore a little.

Tomorrow we move on to Kodaikanal by hired car, to save ourselves a 10 hour mountain bus ride.

Time is winding down now, only two weeks left. Will keep posting till then. Thinking of you all.

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Photos

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Look closely, Bird in tree in bird sanctuary

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there were also lots of beautiful butterflys

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In the hills around Munnar

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Beautifully lanscaped tree plantations

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Elephant ride ( I did not go)

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Looks sad, but at least they are not chained

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more tea plantations