DAY TWO… 9.51 miles (15.3 km)
We are sitting on the balcony of our homestay, looking out over the town of Bharatpur. It is about 7pm. It is Diwali here, and we selected this place as it seemed a long way from the town, hence, the cacophony of fireworks would, of course be muted. NOT SO! We feel like we are on the front line of a war zone again, with constant “bombs” as they are rightly called, going off all around us. There is a certain serenity, however in being a bit elevated above the racket, with the fan gently rustling the air above us and tiny fairy lights decorating all the houses around us.
Bharatpur is a bird sanctuary. I’m not sure how the birds will be coping with these dreadful noises. There are many birds around. They don’t seem confined to the sanctuary, obviously as they can fly! We’ve been cycling around enjoying spotting them. Suzy feels that if we do nothing else for the whole time, this will be enough to satisfy her, so that’s good!
Tonight, there are other guests here. A family from Delhi, trying to escape the dreadful air pollution for a few days. The husband tells us that he has to put on two masks when he goes to work, as the air quality is now more than 25 to 30 times over the recommended limits.
