Don Curry and the Lazy Bears

Don Curry appears very content. Some days don't go as originally planned, but these unexpected changes can have positive effects. Don Curry loves his plans and considers them simply magnificent. However, when reality unfolds differently, he usually happily embraces the changes. Traveling is concentrated living, and living always means change. So one can describe traveling as concentrated change, as a constant sequence of the unforeseen, as a daily lottery of life with a guarantee of winning.

He had already won a grand prize yesterday: the wonderful Star Cottage, which hadn't lost any of its grandeur even in daylight. Don Curry immediately prescribed himself a generous sleep-in in his secluded haven. But shortly after 9:00 a.m., the world became worried about Don Curry: a resort employee knocked energetically and asked if he wanted to come for breakfast. Don Curry certainly did, although he found the buffet quite depleted, but managed well with muesli and fruit pieces. Toast and a fresh orange juice were served afterwards.

When he returned to the Star Cottage, he was no longer alone there. From the opposite river bank, a large family of langur monkeys curiously watched Don Curry, including many young ones frolicking around. The animals communicated with high, almost chirping sounds. After Don Curry had briefly retreated to the cottage, the elegant monkeys began to cross over to his side of the river.

With powerful jumps, they first reached a small rock almost in the middle of the river and then the local shore. These two jumps were no problem for the adult langurs, but the half-grown ones dared to take only the first jump to the rock in the river, and didn't dare to take the longer jump. But they had no choice: the adults had all reached the other side long ago - now it was either jump or stay behind alone. So, even the last little monkeys gathered all their courage and bravely jumped.

Some of them didn't quite reach the shore, but they were able to quickly and dripping wet save themselves onto dry land from the shallow water near the shore. This completely unplanned encounter with the beautiful animals had occupied Don Curry for almost half an hour.

There was a knock on the door again, and another resort employee asked if his luggage was ready to be transported. Don Curry quickly finished packing, and the small Indian boy shouldered Don Curry's huge suitcase for the long trip to the reception, where Prince was already waiting to drive him. Originally, Don Curry had planned the following: Prince would take him to the pier towards Hampi and drive with the car in a wide circle to the Vitthala Temple; in the meantime, he would hike from Hampi to the Vitthala Temple and find Prince in the parking lot after visiting it. However, on the one hand, Prince seemed quite uncertain about driving alone in this unfamiliar area, and on the other hand, the hotel manager insisted that the transport of guests to the pier was part of the hotel's service. After lengthy discussions, a typical Indian compromise was finally found: a hotel employee drove Don Curry to the pier towards the Vitthala Temple, and Prince followed this car, to then independently drive the last short distance over the bridge towards the Vitthala Temple. Don Curry didn't find this result particularly sensible, but at least everyone got a little bit of what they wanted.

But first, Don Curry took some time to admire the ancient cave paintings on the hotel grounds, which reminded him a lot of similar artworks in southern Africa. He then set off with his new part-time driver. Small talk becomes very personal in India very quickly. So, Don Curry casually learned that his young companion has had a girlfriend for 9 years, whom he loves very much, but he cannot marry her because he lacks the necessary rupees. He also knew the best photo opportunities along the road and was eager for the guest to capture the beauty of his homeland.

Finally, he asked where in India Don Curry comes from? No one had ever mistaken him for a local, but apparently his complexion was gradually conforming to local standards. His temporary companion bid farewell warmly and was quite disappointed that Don Curry didn't have a WhatsApp account to stay in touch.

Don Curry crossed over with a small motorboat and shortly afterwards found the large parking lot at the Vitthala Temple; but still no sign of Prince. Using slow electric cars, one could be transported from here for the one kilometer distance to the temple. Don Curry chose to walk instead - a little exercise never hurts! This way, he could also leisurely explore the buildings on the way to the temple.

Although the Vitthala Temple is only the second largest temple in Hampi, it is considered the most beautiful and historically significant. Elaborately sculpted pillars form various open halls, and a stone temple chariot also displays the convincing artistry of the builders down to the smallest detail; in theory, the chariot could even be moved on its stone wheels. Don Curry took his time to stroll through the temple in the beginning heat of the afternoon. When he finally returned to the parking lot, Prince was already waving from a distance.

Both set off for the actual Hampi, passing countless ruins and large buildings of the old royal city Vijayanagar. Hampi itself consists essentially only of souvenir shops, restaurants, and simple accommodations, and attracts mainly young travelers. Especially in their circles, the restaurant "Mango Tree" has an almost legendary reputation. After Don Curry had explored all the alleys of Hampi, he finally stood in front of this destination. Just like at a place of worship or private residence, shoes had to be left outside. The walls of the establishment consist exclusively of rice straw, and the ceiling is covered with colorful cotton fabrics, creating a very airy impression. Numerous fans provide additional cooling.

In the main part of the restaurant, one simply sits on cushions at low tables, but there are also regular tables and benches available for slightly older gentlemen like Don Curry. From the extensive purely vegetarian Indian-Asian menu with light Western additions such as spaghetti or pizza, Don Curry chose a tomato salad and a cashew curry with parathas, along with 1 liter of water, Coke Zero, and a coconut lassi. Within minutes, everything was in front of him, and the tomato salad turned out to be a plate of unseasoned but very flavorful tomato slices. The curry was much more seasoned, although still in a tolerable level of spiciness. The lassi was so thick and rich that Don Curry had to dilute it with some water. The lavish meal with drinks cost him a mere 5 €. Prince had also strengthened himself in the meantime, but he wasn't as enthusiastic about his food.

Together, they drove to the Sloth Bear Resort, although they had to search for this accommodation for a long time because it had secretly changed its name and was now labeled as Jungle Lodge. Such surprises can occur at any time in India. But finally, this problem was also solved, and Don Curry was warmly welcomed - perhaps even emphasized because he would be the only guest of the resort. Normally, this accommodation can only be booked as a complete package with meals and excursions, with a fixed daily program. But as the only guest, Don Curry was allowed to individually put together his program from the available options. He definitely wanted to see the eponymous Sloth Bear Sanctuary nearby, one of the few areas in India where one can see the shy sloth bears with fairly certain probability. Prince was given the rest of the day off, and today Don Curry would entrust himself to a stranger driver for the second time.

Punctually at 3:30 p.m., the sturdy Venketesh, known as Venky, dressed in safari outfit, was ready to guide the guest through the wilderness in a yellow off-road vehicle. While Don Curry mainly saw a very dry vegetation with some newly planted saplings, Venketesh spotted even the smallest birds by the roadside while driving and named them without hesitation. Well, Don Curry doesn't consider himself a specialist in Indian ornithology, but Venketesh seemed quite trustworthy. The actual destination of the safari was the sloth bear reserve. There, both left the off-road vehicle to laboriously climb a few dozen steep rock steps to an observation tower: a magnificent view opened up into a wide basin. Venketesh explained that a honey-rice flour mixture is regularly hidden on a well-visible rock surface for the sloth bears. This is the only reason they are enticed out of their dens. Otherwise, they prefer to doze day and night until hunger eventually gets them moving. Indeed, Venketesh pointed to a distant black dot moving down from the upper cliffs, slowly approaching the aforementioned rock surface. A short time later, another spot followed the same path. For almost an hour, Don Curry observed the two shaggy spots in the cliffs, supposedly the sloth bears enjoying the honey. At least with the highest zoom level of the camera, the spots actually took on bear-like shapes. They were peacefully licking side by side and ignoring each other. Sloth bears are consistent loners who only reproduce every three years. Besides that, their life has only two goals: lots of dozing and occasionally licking honey. At some point, Don Curry even got bored watching. Some cartwheeling peacocks, a few monkeys, and a wild boar provided at least a small side program, but after an hour, Don Curry requested to return. From Venketesh's amazed expression, he could tell that he should have paid more tribute to this wonder of nature. But never mind: the sloth bears' laziness somehow seemed contagious - Don Curry longed for nothing more than to rest and take a little afternoon nap. Venketesh's disappointment quickly turned into genuine enthusiasm during the return trip when a pair of painted sandgrouse leisurely crossed the road right in front of them, the most beautiful birds of this area. You see, Don Curry thought, if I hadn't wanted to leave right now...

Back at the resort, Don Curry didn't have any free time yet. First, "Koffee/Tea/Snack" was on the schedule: he ordered a masala tea and some freshly fried bread pakoras. Delicious! Then he was finally allowed to rest until a film screening was scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. He could choose between a long film about sloth bears or a short film about the ruins of Hampi. Just the thought of being exposed to the monotonous life of the boring sloth bears filled him with horror. Hampi, he quickly called out. Maybe a little too quickly, as he could tell from the disappointed expression on Venketesh's face. Nevertheless, he enjoyed the brief introduction to the history of the ruined city and its main monuments. Technically, dinner was scheduled for another 44 minutes (after the long sloth bear drama on the big screen), but Don Curry asked boldly if he could have it now. The film presenter looked a bit confused, but wanted to organize it. 20 minutes later, the waiter came with a large empty plate, shortly followed by a well-shaped metal cup of cool water, then a small plate with cutlery. Then, two kitchen employees carried two trays covered with many bowls to the counter. The waiter now took one of the small bowls each time, placed it in front of Don Curry on the table, and softly whispered the name of the dish; this went on twelve times until Don Curry's table almost bent under the weight of the many different dishes. The kitchen team had put in a lot of effort for their only guest: a true miniature buffet: a bowl of white rice and fried rice each, cauliflower curry, egg curry, steamed vegetables, dal, another vegetable preparation, 2 chapatis, 2 pappadams, 2 baked chicken legs, and a plate of fries - as a special culinary homage to the Western guest.

Don Curry could only consume a small part of all the delicacies. In the end, an Indian dessert based on carrots was served to him, as well as an extremely tasty banana the size of his little finger. Barely had he bid farewell to the waiter, when another employee was already waiting for him outside, whose task it was to guide the guest through the darkness while engaging in small talk to his bungalow. Guest service down to the finest detail. One could almost become a sloth bear here, Don Curry thought, with this all-around care.

What a peculiar day! Except for the visit to the bears, everything today turned out differently than originally planned. Nevertheless - or because of it? - a very special day unfolded. Should Don Curry reduce his planning in the future and go with the flow more? Somehow, he can't imagine it, after all, he's really not a sloth bear...