Really good 3-day trip to the Sunderbans. Not surprisingly we didn't see any tigers but the trip was interesting. There were a total of 8 of us on the trip, mostly doing a 2-bight opt Started with a 3-hour car journey soth of Kolkata to Godkhali from where we took a local ferry, a kind of motorised tuk-tuk and another boat to the 'eco' lodge where we were staying. Quite an adventure in itself and good to see how the locals get around the Sunderbans. The Indian part is made up of 102 islands of which 50-odd are inhabited. The only way to get between them are the local ferries which cost 1 rupee per person for a crossing. In the afternoon we walked into the local village to see the way the people live. A lot of men and boys were off somewhere carrying their c*** (couldn't resist!). Turned out Friday night is cock-fighting night down by the river. Quite a crowd had gathered and there was refreshment on offer, including rice wine. It was the typical cloudy-white concoction often to be found in the sticks in Asia. Rather foolishly we agreed to try it and although it won't be winning any wine awards it was actually quite drinkable, and drinking it out of metal bowls added to the glamour!

The cock-fighting consisted of testing 2 birds against each other until it was decided a good match was on. Warning: the next bit is not for the squeamish. The birds then had a blade strapped to one leg and the fight was on until a fatal blow was delivered or one bird backed down. We never did discover what was at stake, probably kudos as well as the life of your bird. Maybe not something to everyone's taste but an insight nto village life.

The followiing day we had the main reason for the trip which was a boat ride into the National Park and around a number of the islands. We started early, at low tide which apparently is the best time to see widlife as it comes down onto the exposed mudflats. Almost immediately we saw a monitor lizard slowly making its way back up towards the mangroves. Although we didn't see a lot of animals during the day we did see 4 or 5 crocodiles, including one of about 2 metres and a number of spotted deer browsing near the high tide mark. There was also a significant amount of birdlife including a number of species of kingfisher.

And so back to the lodge just before sunset for a relaxed evening with some music performed by the villagers. The final day was a relaxed start just enjoying the lodge, swimming in the bathing pool and lying in a hammock reading. And then the return journey to Kolkata which was much the same as the one down but in reverse.

Now having a couple of days r 'n' r in a posh hotel in Kolkata before moving on to Bangladesh, hopefully. I was hoping to do a boat trip on the Bangladesh side of the delta but that may not happen as the company don't have enough bookings. Could mean I go to Sylhet and then Dhaka.