Von Ost- nach Westindien

The road led me to Kochi and from there into the Western Ghats. This mountain range separates the high plateau of India with a narrow land strip along the Arabian Sea. It is a natural barrier for the clouds which leave all their rain on the west side. That is why the west side is characterized by a tropical climate while the east part is very dry.  I stayed in the area around Munnar for one week. When I arrived I found a terrific camping place in the middle of tea plantations besides a small river. But after it got dark somebody knocked on my window. I asked myself if I should open the door. I was quite far away from any village. But I decided to give the disrupter a chance. “Sorry sir. You can’t stay here. It is very dangerous. Wild elephant come in the morning to drink. Very dangerous. Please go!” I asked myself if I should take the risk. It would be very interesting to see wild elephant though. But I decided to follow the advice and left this beautiful place and had to find a new camping spot which isn’t easy at night.

I spend the following days in a small hostel 30 kilometers from Munnar where I could stay for small rupees in the car. I met some very nice travelers there and spend much time in the nature. The place was surrounded by mountains which should be discovered. They said that we need a permit because it is part of a national park. We ignored this information and went up to the mountain. Eventually we were caught be the park guards who then escorted us out of the park. I asked the guard why it isn’t allowed to walk here on clearly marked treks. It is a communist state (Nowhere outside Cuba I saw so many Che Guevara faces on the wall like in Kerala) and there shouldn’t be private property. “It is a different communism here in India” was his reply. We left our wrong names and address in the penalty book and were free again. Some days later we went again in the forbidden area to find a path to a secret waterfall. This time without being caught when even we had to hide ourselves two times after we spotted “potential” guards.

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