Crocodile Retreat
I thought I better get back into telling the story of our visit to India in 2005 so that we can encourage those of you who have booked your flights for India this year. So where was I ? Oh yes we were preparing to have some time doing a bit of sight seeing round Chennai. We knew our sight seeing days wouldn't last long but we were looking forward to a day of adventure and challenge. This perhaps was the day that Crocodile Bo'ness would emerge! It would certainly be a hot hot day!
On this occasion we were up on time Martha was determined Alfred wouldn't need to knock on the door again. After breakfast we waited for the hired car and driver to arrive. The man arrived it looked as though it was a Ford Escort he was driving. Anyway he arrived dressed with skip cap ready to be our guide and driver. We drove out of Madras through the busy streets and about an hour later were passing a crocodile park. The driver felt this was a place we should see so we were duly ushered into a reptile Zoo. We paid our money and the attendant gave us a guided tour. In 1976 three of the five types of crocodiles in india wee in danger of becoming extinct. Hunters were after their skins and the habits where they lived had also been changed because of the building of dams. Our guide was please to tell us that 14 out of the 23 world species of crocs were here in Chennai.
He showed us a huge area that had over 300 crocodiles in the swamp area. We also saw some fish and turtles on the way out We passed two crocs fighting. I was mightily impressed to see the attendant fetch a huge pole with a hook on the end. He then stood up and reached over the fence and began to deliver a number of serious blows to one of the crocs with the hook. At last the great jaws loosened their grip on its fellow creature and slithered off into the swamp. Have a look at a short clip of the Crocodile Bank. Crocodile Bank.
We had left the flat just after 8.00 am and it must have been around 10.00am in the morning. The day was beginning to heat up, there was a grey haze in the atmosphere the trees at the side of the Zoo looked brittle and dry and the roads we would travel would be full of pot holes, but we were going to be tourist in India for a few days, before we too would move into the areas of conflict and feel the challenge of facing people who in themselves were brittle and broken from the effects of the Tsunamia.
