“I can hear those church bells ringing ringing…!”  That’s Carrie Underwood.  Well, I didn’t hear church bells this morning at 7:30 when I woke up.  In fact I heard absolutely nothing.  It was so quiet!  I finished packing my bags before walking downstairs to eat another great breakfast.  The relationships I am making with new friends as awesome.  The group from Raleigh (near Raleigh) are great.  I have also expanded my relationships with Wally Fridy, Jay Hill and Rev. Jerry Hill.  Jay’s girlfriend Kelsey and fellow BSUMC members Rosie Jordan and Kimberly Carter are all amazing and so much fun.  Our whole group has definitely bonded.  Lots of laughter and sharing of past stories and future aspirations have been exchanged.We packed up the van and left the hotel at 10:00. We made our way into the heart of Kigali and suddenly we saw 100’s of people in their best dressed threads.  Congregates were marching spiritually and proudly into the mega church house.  Being the only white people we were welcomed with hugs and handshakes.  The church choir revved up their voice boxes and in a matter of seconds I was mesmerized by the traditional African spiritual hymns and ballads that were backed up with organs, steel drums and guitars.  Totally awesome!  The lead vocalist, a man in his 30’s, had amazing energy and kept the gospel like choir on point with leadership and zeal.  I had chill bumps through the first 30 minutes of the service.  I actually recorded some of the spectacle on my phone….discreetly.  The recording will never do this show justice.  Alleluia!!!!!  The sermon was a little tough to follow, although I did understand the scripture lesson in Acts. We left the church and returned to the former Hotel Rwanda for a fabulous brunch buffet by the pool. A four piece band entertained us while we relaxed and I ate a primarily vegetarian meal.  We left Kigali at 2:30pm.  We traveled south for 3 hours to Butare.  The roads are awesome.  So much better than our SC roads. Gov. Haley should come visit and learn something.  Rwanda is also amazingly clean.  There is no trash anywhere.  The rolling hills and landscape are absolutely gorgeous.  We gained a lot of elevation and traveled through many small villages.  Every passerby along the roadway smiled and waved at us as we passed.  I have never felt safer and welcomed everywhere we go!  We made it to Butare at 5:30.  Shantel (our ZOE guide) took us directly to a retail shop owned and operated by 4 ZOE graduates.  They are now in their early 20’s and are running a very successful shop.  I bought lots!  The quality of the hand woven baskets are amazing.  The handbags, aprons, earrings, puzzles are pieces of artwork.  But it’s not just about the merchandise. Each of these young adults were left as orphans 22 years ago.  If you have been reading this blog out may have figured out the significance of 22 years ago.  In 1994, the genocide massacre took place throughout Rwanda and over one million civilians were killed (mostly Tutsi.). These 4 kids are survivors of the genocide.  It’s because of ZOE and the support of the international community that these kids are now prospering.  I am proud of Buncombe Street United Methodist Church for their commitment to support ZOE.  I have seen first hand the benefits of our financial and Christian support.  We left our ZOE friends with a heavy load of gifts and drove down the street to our hotel.  We were spoiled in Kigali by the hotel and the 4 Star status. The hotel is a bit more of what I had expected on this trip.  Spotty electricity and Internet service, hot water is warm at best, plumbing smells…go figure and a large mosquito net surrounding my hard bedded mattress.  But no matter the differences in luxury status I am so happy.  I am proud to experience ALL of Rwanda… The good, the bad, the sad but especially the hope, the love and the beauty of a culture of people so proud.  I will never know what day to day life is all about in Rwanda. No running water, no electricity, mud huts, twine soccer balls, no shoes, one change of clothes, one meal per day, no hygiene products, etc. The list goes on and on.  I have no idea.  One thing I have learned from the Rwandans and ZOE orphans they have which dominates what I have is faith.  

The most striking and profound thing I have heard yet is from Odette, the 18 year old orphan who is raising her 3 younger siblings. Writing this brings tears to my eyes…..We asked her to speak about her life today and where she and her brothers used to be.  They used to live in a roadside ditch and had to steal for food.  Her parents died when she was 11. Odette said after telling her story: “Look how beautiful I am today!”   

I sprung out of bed at 5:30am.  Apparently I have not adjusted to the 7 hour difference.  The dining room was open at 6:00 and for the second day I had the regular buffet menu which consisted of an omelet, cereal and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  Lots of coffee.  At 9:00 we met in the board room of the hotel for a group meeting. All 15 of us had the opportunity to share some things about ourselves and what encouraged us to participate in Zoe.  Several of us gave intimate accounts of where we are in our personal lives, our motivators and our ambitions.  We also shared our thoughts about yesterday’s visits.  

Jeremiah 29:10-13:

This is what the Lord says:  “You will be in Babylon for seventy years.  But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.  In those days when you pray, I will listen.  If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.

This is the signature verse for ZOE.  Hope is thriving throughout Rwanda.  It’s often heard that it takes an entire village to raise a child.  This proverb rings loud and clear wherever ZOE Ministries is.  Empowering orphans by supporting their God gifted skills is the key to the mission.  

This afternoon we visited the Genocide Museum.  In 1994, in a period of 3 months, over one million Rwandans were a specified target of the genocidaires for murder, rape and mutilation, so as to ensure that a new generation of Tutsis would not emerge. Hutu militia and the Hutu leaders’ primary objective was to exterminate all Tutsis.  The museum is a place of mourning and a place of education.  It’s very quiet with the exception of visitors’ audio devices depicting the history and origin of the Tutsis and the Hutus.  I could hear personal accounts of survivors stories on the audio devices throughout the museum. There were lots of tears.  The outside of the museum was surrounded by beautiful memorial gardens dedicated to families, relatives and friends of the 250,000 victims buried on the site. I bought a few times from the museum gift shop before meeting my fellows back on the bus.  

Our driver and guide, Jeremaih, gave us a wonderful site seeing tour of the Kigali.  We saw the US Embassy, the Presidents house, government buildings, the futbol stadium and a lot more.  We then went to the Hotel Des Milles Collines (formerly Hotel Rwanda) for a fantastic dinner.  We sat outside and the weather was perfect.  And no mosquitos.

Tomorrow we will experience a church service filled with love, dance and song.  That’s my kind of church!

I woke up at my normal USA time of 6:20 this morning. Quick delightful shower before walking downstairs to breakfast.i was pleasantly surprised to see a huge buffet style breakfast and an omelet cook. I definitely needed a hardy breakfast! Fifteen of us met our Rwandian guide Epiphanie. She oversees all of ZOE Ministries in Rwanda. She is beyond fascinating! She explained that our schedule had slightly changed for today. She explained that the last Saturday of the month is a national clean up day and businesses are closed. So therefore today is going to be our first village day so we can see the ZOE kids working their prospective trades. We gathered on the van and traveled to our first stop about an hour away. We passed fields of sugar cane, coffee, soy bean, potato crops, rice fields and banana orchards. School kids on bikes and foot were everywhere. The village was Rwamiko-Gicumbi. The sponsored group was Umucyo. We met two girls who have been working in the ZOE program for two years. They had a roadside market selling avocados, potato and bananas. They were 17 and 16 years of age and each had two younger siblings they were supporting. We next visited a retail shop and met three girls ages 18, 17 and 16. Each of them were also head of the households caring for their younger siblibings and also ailing parents. One of the girl’s mom was blind, the other mother suffered from severe mental illness. Their seamstress business is flourishing! I bought a beautiful table cloth for 6000 Rwandan Francs ($7.69 US.) We packed up at drove about 2000ft in elevation to visit with the second sponsored group called Twizere. There were 69 kids that represented the Potato Group Project. We interacted with them and watched as they harvested and planted their crops. We were invited to a home visit. Odell is a 17 year girl who is over the household of her three siblings (17, 13 and 9.) their mother died 14 years ago and their father passed away 2 years ago. He is buried behind their small stable. They live without electricity or running water. The water well is 2 miles away. The only furniture they possess is a single sized bed that is shared by Odell and her youngest brother. Banana leaves and oil heat water. Through ZOE they have been able to sell vegetables and earn enough profit to buy a cow. They now eat three meals a day (porridge.) I used their outhouse which was nothing more than a drafty Adobe like structure with a small hole in the dirt floor. The inside was infested with mosquitos and flies. We then gathered at the nearby community center and all 69 ZOE kids presented us with songs and dance. We were honored with gifts ranging from aprons and hand bags to computer bags and stoles. These kids honored us with gifts they made! I cried tears of joy as I thanked and hugged each child. I am inspired by them because they are living examples of how God works and fulfills HIS promise. They are believers. I learned a huge lesson about hope and love today! We parted ways with tears of joy and cultural Rwandan songs. I had three kids hold on to me. Perhaps they didn’t want me to go and they were sad. But I am choosing to believe they were giving me a gift of hope and everlasting spirit! God bless them all!

Me and Josie before leaving for Rwanda.

Wednesday June 22nd, 2016 finally arrived.  I never would have guessed my interest was in Rwanda, Africa.  I had 6 months to plan for this trip through ZOE Ministries.  In December 2015, the Rev. Jerry Hill approached me in the parlor at BSUMC interested in my recent travels to India.  Through a short dialogue he asked me if I would have an interest in traveling to Rwanda for 10 days in June.  I inquired and probed until I learned this ZOE trip would be to interact with orphans in nine orphanages in nine villages throughout Rwanda, a country about the size of Maryland.  Rwanda has a population of around 11 million people.  It’s reported that more than half the population at 18 years or younger.  The more Jerry and I talked the more excited I became.  Without further ado I spoke the Jerry the following week and told Jerry “I am all in!” And so, I began the extensive paperwork administrative details for my first mission trip.

I spent two weeks making preparations.  There is always more to do than you think.  My first order was to set an appointment with Passport Health.  My assigned nurses updated my Yellow Card after she stuck me several times with an abundance of vaccines.  Yellow Fever vaccine was the big one.  Your Yellow Card must document this upon entry to Rwanda.  My tetanus, Hepatitis, Typhoid Fever and Influenza were given too.  No problem.

While planning for the 9 day mission trip it occurred to me that a popular main attraction in Rwanda are the gorillas.  The mountain Silve Back gorillas live in the dense mountainous regions of Northern Rwanda around the Volcano National Park.  This regions borders The Republic of Congo and Uganda.  I made a vast decision.  Through the ZOE network I was making arrangements with the travel guide to stay in Rwanda an extra five days to go Gorilla Treking.  My place of refuge is the Mountain Gorilla View Lodge.  I will have an assigned driver for my 5 days and several days to go on safari excursions on the days not assigned to my Gorilla Trek.

The trip so far has been smooth.  I am currently over Western Europe with Brussells, Belgium as the first layover.  The second leg takes us to Uganda, then finally to Kigali, Rwanda.  The estimated total flight time is approximately 16 hours.  This is another trip of a lifetime!  I feel spiritually fit and I am ready to make wonderful memories. 

December 4, 2015 – It was the last day to be a tourist on this leg of our trip. Tomorrow, I will move to Kerala for my Aspen Global Leadership Network seminar and Hubert will go home. Therefore, the day was very bittersweet.

We met Govind and Artie around 9:30 and went first to Galta, the Hindu Temple to the Monkey God, Hanuman. It was about 30 minuntes outside of Jaipur and I was very excited about it. Hubert and I had loved the monkeys so much in Ranthambore and Artie had said we would love this. The drive in was very pretty – in the mountains and clean. It felt like it would be a place just like us! We arrived to the temple gates and I noticied it was a different type of monkey than Ranthambore and the city. Instead of the black faced monkey, it was a monkey that looked more like baboons. When we arrived there was a  poor person outside of the gate selling  monkey food. It sounded like  a great idea –  the Greenville zoo sold animal food. I asked Govind if we should get and he said no and then said, “don’t look them in the eyes.” Hubert turned to me and said, “the monkeys or the people?” Truthfully, I didn’t know! We had been told to be careful of beggars so it made sense that he might tell us not to look the monkey food vendor in the eyes! So, I went to Govind and asked, “Do you mean not to look the monkeys in the eyes?” He answered, “Yes, the black face monkeys are calm but these monkeys are usually aggresive. However, at this temple, they are used to people, but if you look them in the eyes, they may feel threatened and attack.” Oh Lord, things changed for me!

I stayed right next to Govind. Meanwhile, I looked back at Hubert and he was trying to take selfies with the monkeys. He even was clicking his tongue at them like he was calling a dog. He wanted them to sit on his shoulder. When I saw him do this, I told him what Govind said!!! I am not sure he believed me! 

We walked through building areas towards the temple. It was at the same time peaceful and creepy to think about the monkeys. They were everywhere and freaked me out. Hubert loved it though so I just stayed next to Govind. I realized quickly that if a monkey attacked me, Govind would help me and Hubert would take a picture!!

The area is a mountain that has an unknown water source which is holy. People come to bath in the water pools. We went to that area and saw two women bathing. Outside of that area were 2 women and 2 children who were snake charmers. A girl about 3 years old took a snake out of a basket and wrapped it around her. Another girl about 7 did the same. At that moment, I almost lost it. I did not want to see beggar children with snakes. Govind told the grandmother not to let the children have the snakes since he realized it bothered me. She took the snakes and then Hubert went over and held the snake. Hubert was fascinated by the whole thing, but I was upset. As a mother, I couldn’t imagine ever asking my children to do such things for money. However, like Govind said, a little money helps them. But, that was my “Western” moment. The time when I couldn’t make the jump from my Western world and ideals to understand that. The grandmother looked at me and her grandchildren and conveyed to me that it was okay, but I struggled to understand. I was so very excited to go to the “monkey temple,” yet I was even more excited to leave. It was upsetting to me and uncomfortable. There was beauty there too, but I struggled with it. 

We then drove back to Jaipur and went by the rug place. We officially bought the rugs along with some more gifts! It was loads of fun and exciting to think we have a rug being made for our kitchen!

Then we went to Jantar Mantar which is an observatory built in 1726 by king Sawai Jai Singh II. It was so cool and felt like a modern art garden as well as an observatory. It is still precise in the measurement of time and was cool not only to see the time but also the astrology measurements as well. Hubert and I really both enjoyed it. 

We then walked across the street to the City Palace, which is still the home to the Rajasthan royal family (even though there is no longer an official royal family anymore). It is now a private residence but parts are open to the public. We went through the main courtyards and to a gallery with artifacts and information about the history of the royal family. Then we walked into another courtyard which is for the public and there was a wedding being set up. It is like some of our public buildings, it can be rented for private events as well. They were setting up for what appeared to be a huge and magnificent wedding. I was blown away by the setup!!

Amber Tours has done so many special things, and today was no exception. Instead of staying in the public area, Govind took us to a side area so we could enter the private areas of City Palace. We went to 7 floors and each floor we were by ourselves with the security guard. We went into rooms that were mini jewel boxes and the walls and ceilings were inlaid in actual jewels. We went to painted “monsoon” rooms which were painted blue and white to help the king forget the rain and to the top room which was a room with all the walls and ceilings as mirrors. The helper with the guard lit candles to demonstrate the effect. It was magical. We could not take pictures of the rooms, but we could of the views. We were 8 stories above the rest of Jaipur and we privately saw 8 rooms on each floor of the City Palace that the kings of Rajasthan had enjoyed. It was special and was concluded with some Marsala Tea on the ground floor. It would have been very good to have been king/Maharaja!

After the City Palace, Govind took us to a nice Tandoori lunch. Then we went to see some jewelry  as Jaipur is known for jewel cutting. We were done with buying so it was a quick trip. We went back to the hotel early to pack and rest. We both were tired so it was perfect to have some rest before our travels.

That night, Amber Tours made a reservation for us at Suvarna Mahal at the Rambaugh Palace. The Rambaugh Palace is property owned by the royal family and leased to the Taj group so it is run as a hotel. It is a gorgeous heritage hotel and not to be missed. We arrived early so we could have drinks in the Polo club (the polo grounds are nearby and one of the old maharajas was a very famous polo player (on elephant, not horse!). A person from Amber met us at the drop off from Artie and showed us the bar. He did not stay, but just made sure our reservation was good! 

The restaurant is gorgeous and the food is from the royal kitchens of 4 different areas of India. When we began to order, the waiter basically took over and told us what to order. We listened thankfully and it was outstanding!  Laal Maas, Dal, green pea naan and a special rice! And as an appetizer, tiger prawns from the south. The food was outstanding,  the ambiance amazing and my date was so handsome! Sometimes in life, you just have to pinch yourself to believe that you are really lucky enough to be in that moment – tonight, and many times on this trip, was one of those moments!

It was a wonderful day, wonderful evening and outstanding trip! Blessings have been bountiful. We have learned so much and have grown on this trip!

December 2, 2015 – We both had our best night of sleep since we have arrived in India. We have been waking up at 5 am each morning since we have been here, but this morning, we actually slept until 6! Then our coffee arrived at 6:15 and we enjoyed the time on the porch of our cottage. The morning was beautiful after the rain and we listened to the sounds of birds and Hindi music in the background from the farmers. We had a huge breakfast. Truthfully, the food at Khem Villas has been amazing. It is all vegetarian and even Hubert has not missed the meat. It is so flavorful and fresh and we have learned so much about India food. And we drink their Marsala tea every chance we can! We are sad to leave this wonderful spot. 

Artie arrived  at 9:30 and we hit the road for Jaipur. Artie is from Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan, and he was very proud to show us his hometown. He drove the slower, country route and it was wonderful. It was about a 4 hour drive but we couldn’t stop absorbing all the sights outside. Artie’s English is pretty good but a little broken so sometimes we do a lot of back and forth repeating the same sentences until we understand each other. He is very kind and very proud of India. He is a great representative! 

The road took us through many villages and farmlands. It was gorgeous. So much cleaner than the big cities and the people were so colorful. The farms we passed were beautiful and being worked mainly by women. And the women were in their traditional dresses of lehangas (colorful skirts) with the colorful shawls. It was like being in a painting everywhere we turned. The colors are inspiring and the fact that the women work in these long dresses blows me away. Plus, as Artie kept saying, the women in India work so very hard. We saw women at the wells, women drying laundry, women working the fields, women carrying huge loads on their heads, women washing the cattle, women herding the sheep and of course, women minding their  children. And all the while, they look beautiful. The women in this country are beautiful. Regardless of age, the women shine here. 

Along the way, we saw tons of camels working hard too. They are used to pull heavy loads and as work animals in this area. It was so fun and exciting to see them. Artie was so kind and would stop along the way for us to take some pictures. He would point things out to us and ask if we wanted him to stop. We took photos of people and places along the way. Many of them smiled at us and waved to us. It is a very warm country. 

We drove into Jaipur and went to our hotel, the Trident. It is across the street from city lake which has a summer palace in the center of it. It is very beautiful. The city is known as the “pink city” as all the buildings and city walls are painted a salmon color. We had a quick lunch in the hotel restaurant and then met Govind, our guide in Jaipur. He took us around the city and we went to the old city. He walked us around and it was a busy, exciting city. It was a nice way to get an overview of the city. 

We decided to stay in tonight and just have a relaxing night. We both have a little bit of a cold and the dust bothered us. Taking it easy with room service and an early night is exactly what we need. Travel is fabulous, but can be exhausting. Every minute is new and our senses are overloaded. Tomorrow we have a big day which will include an elephant ride, a camel ride and lunch in a beautiful palace. We have reservations tomorrow night at the Rambagh Palace hotel which is supposedly fantastic. 

Sweet dreams – enjoy these pictures of the gorgeous people of Rajasthan. 

December 1, 2015 – We started at 7:00 again and RK, our guide, took us back into zone 4. Our fellow jeep passengers were a nice family from Boston. They had a 10 year old boy who was very excited and anxious to see a tiger. We had a good driver who was calm and the ride was not so bumpy and dusty. But, we were prepared with extra blankets, bandannas and windbreakers. The day was hazy and there was actually thunder in the distance. The park was very quiet as I imagine the animals were preparing for potential rain. We went past several jeeps and the guides talked to each other. All trying to determine where a tiger might be seen. Some people get upset if they don’t see a tiger, but truhfully the beauty is all around. We drove up to the top of a ridge and drove along some roads that were very overgrown. The ride was an adventure and tons of fun. The animals were not as plentiful except many deer. We finally did see a tiger but he was sleeping in a ravine. Many jeeps were there and many pictures were taken by the jeeps of a sleeping tiger! He was sleeping like a baby, I guess when you are the top guy in the park, you cna sleep through anything!

After the safari, we returned to the hotel for a delicious lunch. Then we went on a nature hike aroundthe  property with Mittal, the naturalist. She showed us tracks, taught us about the birds and the butterflies, and was a delightful guide!

In the afternoon, RK and Artie showed up to take us to the Ranthambore Fort. We were expecting RK to come in a jeep and were prepared for the dust ride, so we were thrilled to see Artie and his car! Plus, it was all fixed and his door and bumper looked like new!

The fort is perched on top of a mountain and was made in the 6th century. It is full of beautiful old ruins and is home to a temple as well as hundreds of monkeys. RK showed us all around and even had us climb into some areas of the ruins that were off the path. There were no tourists there  – just Hindus going to the temple (all newly married couples go there to ask for the marriage to last) and monkeys were everywhere. It was so fun! The views were great and the ruins were majestic. Caroline would love to spend time taking pictures here and I tried to channel her artistic spirit! RK was great fun and he took lots of pictures of us too! Some local people asked us if we would take a picture with them so we also took pictures together. They were so cute and had children. It was me, Hubert and their whole family! I gave the little girls some candy and the mothers asked if they could take pictures of me giving the candy to them! I taught the 3 year old how to blow kisses! The teenage boys wanted pictures with Hubert. It was a lot of fun and just shows that differences do not matter! We are all the same everywhere. The fort was so fun and one of our favorite things about the trip!

We got back to Khem Villas and got ready to go to the campfire. We met a woman from DC who was traveling with her 13 year old son. She was an anthropologist and had been working in Delhi. They joined us for dinner and then we had drinks afterwards with her and another lady from Australia when the rain finally came. It had the feeling of camp – campfires, rain, nature and new friends. It was a special place that we hope to return to someday with the girls. 

November 30, 2015 – We woke early to meet our safari group at 7:00. Our guide was RK and we had one  other guy in our jeep. He was an American who currently lives in Singapore but was Indian. He was very nice and a great person to share our first safari. It was chilly when the day started and the hotel provided blankets and a snack. We took off in the jeep down the dusty village road towards the park. Along the way, we saw the farmers working and the ladies filling up their water jugs at the water pumps. 

Ranthambore is a park that was once the hunting grounds of the Indian royal family. Today it is a national park and animal reserve that has worked hard for the protection of the animals, in particular the tiger. Tigers   have been overhunted and are still subject to poaching, so there are only about 55 tigers in the whole park. We were told that most people do not see tigers, so not to get our hopes up and to enjoy the other wonderful parts of the park. The park is divided into 7 zones and the safari jeeps are regulated by the government. Only a certain number of jeeps can go into each zone and it is only open twice a day for about 3 hours at a time. All jeeps have to be out by the close time or the guides and drivers will be fined. The zones are distributed at random by a computer. Some zones have a greater chance for a tiger sighting, but it is lottery style for the zone you are assigned. 

Our jeep was assigned into zone 4 and we were told that was lucky because the previous day there had been tiger sightings and even sightings of tigers eating from a carcass. As soon as we entered the park, our driver drove like a bat out of hell to get to the area of yesterday’s sightings. We were flying down the dusty jeep trails, holding on tight and passing other animals in a flash. I didn’t even have time to take a picture. I was worried that this is what the Indians mean by safari and my romantic ideals of a leisurely ride with tons of photo moments was being replaced. We finally arrived at an area and other jeeps were already there. Two tigers were sitting in a wooded ravine. They were so regal and amazing. It was a mother and son. The son was almost full grown. We began to take tons of pictures as RK told us all about the park and the tigers. He was so knowledgeable and had a true passion for the tigers and the park. He was raised in Ranthambore and he loves the park and the beautiful surroundings. He was also taking pictures of the tigers. We then drove over to the carcass which had been dragged and we saw another tiger sleeping near it. Then back to the 2 tigers when they began to walk. There were about 10 other jeeps there full of people all taking tons of pictures when the tiger leisurely walks in front of the jeeps and moves towards a waterng hole. She was not fazed by the people and everyone was respectful of her. We were probably about 10 feet away. It was amazing!! The son followed his mother until they both disappeared. We were all so excited and RK said that we  were so lucky.  He then drove us to a high  spot where we  could see out over the park and we had chai. After that the ride was leisurely and we took pictures of the other animals like the Sambar deer, the crocodiles, the monkeys, the many birds, the blue bull antelopes, wild boar and peacocks. 

It was a great ride and we returned to the hotel around 11. We were covered in dust from the ride but had a nice late breakfast and rested until 2:15 for our second safari of the day. For that safari, we were still with RK and the other passengers were a fun couple from Wales and a young man from Seattle who is Indian and traveling around the country. We took off for zone 5. The area was my favorite and full of animals. The driver was much calmer too and RK really took time to tell us more about the animals and the reserve. We learned so much. Along the way, we spotted a Sloth bear. RK got so excited as they are very rare to see. We began to follow it and even went off road to track it down. It climbed up a tree and we got as close as we could. She was hissing at us and it was all very exciting! RK was so excited and his face was lit up! After we lost the bear, we drove around it was truly a magical place! I learned so much and it was so restorative to be in the woods. 

We arrived back to the hotel around 6 and had a nice long shower. The amount of dirt that came off our bodies was crazy. We were covered head to toe in clay dust. We both were coughing and felt as if we had breathed in so much of it. 

The hotel had a campfire for the guests and we went to mingle and show off some of our pictures. There are only about 30 guests in the hotel so we got to know them. We met nice people from all over. The hotel has a naturalist on site too who was great and she told us so much about the area and the wildlife. The hotel was started by the son of a famous naturalist in the area who worked hard to save the tiger. Khem Villas serves as a model in the conservation area. All the food is farmed on their land and the water is recycled and solar energy is used. They have worked hard to plant native plants back in the area and teach  local farmers techniques that are friendly to the environment. It serves only vegetarian food and it was the best food we have had in India. Everything was so fresh. Yogurt is made fresh and even the bread is homemade with wheat that they grow. 

Khem Villas is a magical place and one that we would love to return to. My favorite part – teh turn down service includes a hot water bottle but into your bed. It is wrapped in a beautiful handmade fabric pouch and the bottle warms the whole bed!! It felt luxurious in a down to earth manner!