Sunrise in the Wetlands

Once again we are up and about before the alarm goes off (set for 5.45 this morning).  We are just about ready when we are called for morning tea, very welcome as there is a chill in the air. Tea downed it is onto the auto for the ride down to the jetty in the early morning light.  Today we have a different boatman but the same guide. He proves himself to be a bird specialist by identifying a cat sized ginger rodent which runs across the track as a mouse. Research later suggests that it was a coypu. At the jetty there is a lot of activity as local fishermen are also heading out onto the water.

We are soon off the main channel and cruising the backwaters. The sun is just getting up but there is no real heat in it yet. Our guide spots various small birds where the mud meets the reeds, including crakes and painted snipe. D gets a great shot of a Common Kingfisher with its breakfast. The different light means that the colours on some of the birds such as the glossy ibis are much more striking than yesterday. We also get an excellent view of a reclusive yellow bittern. Floating around in the quiet of the wetlands watching the birds and the fish jumping in the water was very relaxing. Three hours flew by. The tally for the two expeditions was 42 positive IDs plus a mudskipper fish. 

We return to base and clean ourselves up before breakfast. It is slightly disappointing to learn that there is no omelet for breakfast today but the pooris and mild curry sauce are just fabulous. There is time to reflect before our car is due for the 75km ride back to Bhubaneswar. For once R is justified in complaining that the bed is like concrete. It is in fact a cast concrete slab with a rather thin mattress pad on top. Some of us didn't notice. There are a few items for sale in the office including an Odisha recipe book featuring Chenna Poda so we invest Rs200 and speculate as to where we might find elephant apples in West Lothian.  

The car arrives a few minutes early and we get on the road. After a short stretch of country backroads we are soon on the main highway, a well surfaced dual carriageway with relatively light traffic until we get to the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. The driver finds our hotel,  the Swosti Premium, with no difficulty and we are soon checked in. In the process we are presented a rose and a special glass of lassi each. The contrast between our previous room and this could hardly be greater. No concrete beds here. They have an atrium, complete with glass walled lifts, a doorman in gaiters and puggaree,  decent working wifi and most amazing of all, a kettle with three options - low, noodle and boil. Sounds like a firm of solicitors. Slightly disturbingly there is a swastika on our bedroom door but they all have them. We shower, make ourselves tea and generally laze around. We take a look at the hotel swimming pool but the water is a bit murky so we pass on that.

Once it starts to cool down a bit we go for a walk around the neighbourhood, looking for a bank with an ATM and finding one, as well as a coconut stall. The traffic police here seem to be a branch of the Texas Rangers with white cowboy hats.  As we stop to examine the packaged snacks hanging on a rack  outside a shop. A passer by breaks stride to say "That is not suited to your taste. Try these" and indicates the bags of utterly taste free dry noodle things that are sold everywhere. India - you are never short of advice.   We ride back to the hotel in a share auto for a massive Rs 5 each. 

The coconut has provided a certain amount of refreshment but a little more is in order so we head for the 'Rob Roy Bar'. The more expensive hotels in Bhubaneswar seem to have a thing about Scottish themes. This one is a bit more restrained than the other one we visited. We order a beer each which comes with papads and peanuts. These get topped up as we eat them and by the time that the beers are finished neither of us is up for dinner. As we leave the bar we see a sketch of Linlithgow Palace as it might have looked in the 15th century.  Small world. 

For once we can have a lie in tomorrow so we read and drink tea until we cannot keep our eyes open.