Tuesday, November 29, 2011

In search of the Royals

I have always loved traveling... Thanks to an Uncle who was more or less a wanderlust, and who was kind enough to take us children along in his jungle sojourn, I soon acquired a love for the jungle and its inhabitants early in my childhood. If I had been a bit more adventurous than I care to admit, I might have even ended up as a wild life photographer or a wild life activities. But alas, I was more interested in Human Relations by the time I grew up and the wilderness was put into the back burner of my mind... But, the love was always there!

So, I was always ready to tag along if people offered me a chance to visit the jungle - which unfortunately was rare. My dream was sighting a Royal Bengal in its natural habitat... With that aim in mind, I had undertaken few jungle safaris, when opportunities arrived. But, there was no luck so far! When I was still a child, I went to the Gudalloor forest range with uncle and few other relatives. Being a sound sleeper who had trouble waking up early in the morning, I was left behind at the guest house when others went in search of Tiger. When I eventually woke up, I was sad that I didn't wake up in time for the rendezvous... The search party returned in high spirits... I was preparing to hear the worst when I discovered that all the excitement was on spotting a pug mark and not the animal itself. I was relieved!