Travelling through Madhya Pradesh is an immense pleasure. So it was with renewed interest and after a long road journey that we arrived in Shivpuri one evening.It was almost dusk and the Tourist Village hotel located on the fringes of the Madhav National Park was full up. “Sorry, it is the wedding season and all our 19 rooms are booked,” said the manager at the reception. “But you can try the forest guest house on the other side of the lake.”

Our team was travelling through the state on election reportage and the staff at the guest house let out a hotel booking room for Rs 600, making arrangements for journalists at quick notice. The state forest guest house had very basic rooms — a monkey with a baby wrapped around her belly strolled into the room as we entered — but its location took our collective breaths away!

Calm serenity by the lake

The old hunting lodge was right on the lake. Its large canopied terrace jutting into the water, handsome statues adorning its corners.The lodge was old, the statues yellowed over time, yet there was a quiet, aristocratic beauty about it. In front lay the still Sakhya Sagar lake bordered by the national park with the setting sun behind the trees.It was a lovely sight as we sat sipping tea, briefly joined by the forest ranger who told us about its history. We had travelled over 300 kilometres in soaring temperatures, one of us was unwell, and we had a tough schedule covering  campaign the next morning but the serenity on the waterfront brought a soothing calmness.

Bats that looked like birds

“What are these birds gliding near the rafters?” asked a colleague who has grown up the hills of the North-east.”Bats,” replied the colleague from Tamil Nadu calmly. The stillness quickly made way for a mad sprint to our rooms — Tamil Nadu followed us reluctantly, holding forth about how bats could not see, are harmless etc. Of course, we were not listening!The rest of the evening and night, we did not venture out. The cook prepared a wholesome vegetarian meal which turned out to be our best and most inexpensive meal of the trip.