Spring is here!

My dear, does time pass as quickly for you as it does for me? Since my last report, five or six weeks have already passed. And to be honest, this one has been waiting to be finished for more than two weeks now. During my last visit to Kolkata in mid-February, I diligently picked out and uploaded a few pictures. But when I tried to start writing, the right words just wouldn't flow. And so the pictures have been waiting for a suitable text ever since. Today, I took a day off and will try again with renewed motivation.

After five days in Kolkata, I am happy to be back in nature.

I have of course thought about why writing is so difficult for me this time. On the one hand, I was sick for almost two weeks after my birthday in January. Cold, headaches, and a good dose of melancholy. So not much has happened during that time that I could have told you about. On the other hand, I feel so at home here and have a regular daily routine that has become completely 'normal' for me. And somehow it feels strange to write about it. I wouldn't do that in Germany either. On the other hand, I want to continue to let you share a little bit of my life here and it will be a beautiful memory for me later.

For example, sharing moments with good friends. In Kolkata, we had Biryani at a restaurant. A few days later, Arif showed off his cooking skills in the Eco Village kitchen.

On the day these photos were taken, all the staff members received new clothes. For the women, there were beautiful new saris and kurtas, although not everyone was completely happy with the selection. For example, Bimala (left) didn't like her sari at all and preferred to wear the kurta of one of the girls. But only secretly in the staff room.

Shortly after that, Bimala unfortunately left the Eco Village. Not because she didn't like the sari, but for personal reasons. That's something I've learned after more than four months here in the Sundarbans. A village is a village and people are just people, no matter which country. There is gossip and scandal, sometimes fights and secret affairs. Yes, sometimes it's like a soap opera.

It made me quite sad when Bimala told me on her last day here that she won't be coming back. I like her and had become good friends with her daughter Depanita as well. And saying goodbye to loved ones is still difficult for me.

At the end of January, it was very quiet here. The groups of visitors became smaller and on two days, no one came at all. Since there were no guests to be taken care of, there was plenty of time for other things like making music...

...or taking care of hair.

...or taking photos.

I noticed that spring had begun at the end of January not only because of the rising temperatures or the returning mosquitoes and other insects.

There was also a new addition to the Eco Village. In early January, it was already quite clear that my favorite dog Lucky couldn't have her big belly from eating too much. And indeed, a few weeks later, she gave birth to little puppies.

After three hours, it can stand on its own.

But it still needs some help when it comes to drinking.

Since spring has just begun, there will certainly be more animal additions.

In addition, I try to go for a walk through the village alone on a regular basis. But often, I don't get far as I'm stopped by someone, engaged in a conversation, or invited for tea, like here by Tumpa's family, one of the employees of the Eco Village.

After the rice harvest ended at the end of December, the fields are planted again a month later.

One afternoon, after walking for 100 meters, I ended up at the rehearsals for a dance event.

It took about ten minutes for the dance teacher (left) to position all the children the way he wanted. Just in time, shortly before sunset, this beautiful picture was taken.

So the days pass here, usually way too quickly. Today is already March 5th. In the past two weeks, I once again had nice company from Germany. But I will tell you about that next time.