R&R in Madikeri

4th June.
Madakeri is only 130kms from Mysore though it took us some 31/2 hrs to get there. The road was good at times but the last 60 kms were pretty rough. The town is high in the Western Ghats with the countryside growing coffee, cardoman and pepper. It's a heavily forested area with plentiful birdlife. The temperature is beautifully cool, we may even need a blanket tonight.
5th June.
Such a beautiful peaceful setting. No horns tooting, mobile phones serenading. Just the birds and wildlife. We are staying at Capitol Village Resort, some 7kms out of Madikeri. The back balcony overlooks dry paddy fields with a forest of coffee, planted timber trees and various spice plants surrounding them. It's nice to have a day off. The last 10 days have been pretty full on with the hassle of the van, the heat, then getting used to driving on these roads, so completely different to what we are used to. To get here and to find a place so idyllic first up is one of the pleasures of travel. We will spend 2 nights here before heading to the Malabar Coast and north to Goa.
The owner of the place, Mr B. Ganesh Aiyanna, visited us this morning and told us of the changes he has seen in the area. Tigers were plentful with one of his labourers being awarded a medal for shooting 30 of them and the wildlife was so prevalent that it was a case of “Heat up the Marsala Mother, I will bag something to go in it!”
Joan has gone to an ayurevedic masseur to help her with her back, we will see the results in the next day or so though she may need more than just the one lot of treatment.
At the essential oil bloke in Mysore the other day we were made aware of one of the dangers travelling in this area. An English bloke, John, came in to buy some oils, in the process of the conversation he showed us where he had been bitten by a dog. Rabies is prevalent here in India with 30,000 dying each year. He had to go to a pharmacy immediately to start the series of injections in the off chance the dog was infected. The incubation period is 30 days. So don't go petting the local dogs.
We are thinking of changing our route a little to bypass Mumbai. After Goa we will head inland to Hampi where there are some famous ruins then keep on the inland route to the Ellora Caves then up to Udaipur in Rajasthan. There as been trouble in Rajasthan the last 2 weeks, it may not have reached the international news but over 20 people have been killed and major roads sealed off. Luckily it seems to have quietened down with the parties having reached some interim agreement.