SURVIVING A BUFFALO ATTACK
Orchha blends historical with current better than any city I’ve travelled to - it’s a Bellinzona of India - palaces and forts dominate the view above but below is a vibrant local community. Current day markets seem to have existed dating back 400 years to the time when the attractions were originally constructed.
The blending of local with historical means there’s relatively few hotel option - which is a positive because it led me to stumbling upon the Friends of Orchha homestay program. The home was managed by an older couple with three sons, one of whom was married and had a daughter Rajbati. The family repays a loan from Friends of Orchha by offering a room in their house to guests. It was a nice two bed room with a flush toilet and plumbing (which doubles the cost of the home). I spent most of the time in the paved “courtyard” common area watching the family go about their daily chores. For dinner I had a freshly killed chicken.
Early the next morning I set out for the first of two palaces and save for a film crew had the complex to myself. There’s no signage or general information as to what you are looking at - the palace seems to have been abandoned and left for tourists to stumble upon. What’s great is that you can have a complete run through the palace - the palace is four stories tall and there are no gates or doors preventing access to the higher stories. There’s also no railings or guardrails to prevent you from dropping straight off the 100 foot sides. I survived and after breakfast headed to the second palace complex.
The second palace is larger but the walkways and ramparts do not seem to be as intricate. I had free reign of this palace as well and walk all over before heading back into the town area. In the town is a temple but to reach the top I needed to pay a “guide” for access. It’s one of those situations where the guide finds you.
I walked to another courtyard style temple complex. The courtyard was well manicured and the group of temples created a picturesque atmosphere but otherwise not as much to walk around and see as the earlier palaces. I was a far way from the town center but from a previous walk I knew the path nearby led back to the homestay location. I decided to take the shortcut.
The blending of local with historical means there’s relatively few hotel option - which is a positive because it led me to stumbling upon the Friends of Orchha homestay program. The home was managed by an older couple with three sons, one of whom was married and had a daughter Rajbati. The family repays a loan from Friends of Orchha by offering a room in their house to guests. It was a nice two bed room with a flush toilet and plumbing (which doubles the cost of the home). I spent most of the time in the paved “courtyard” common area watching the family go about their daily chores. For dinner I had a freshly killed chicken.
Early the next morning I set out for the first of two palaces and save for a film crew had the complex to myself. There’s no signage or general information as to what you are looking at - the palace seems to have been abandoned and left for tourists to stumble upon. What’s great is that you can have a complete run through the palace - the palace is four stories tall and there are no gates or doors preventing access to the higher stories. There’s also no railings or guardrails to prevent you from dropping straight off the 100 foot sides. I survived and after breakfast headed to the second palace complex.
The second palace is larger but the walkways and ramparts do not seem to be as intricate. I had free reign of this palace as well and walk all over before heading back into the town area. In the town is a temple but to reach the top I needed to pay a “guide” for access. It’s one of those situations where the guide finds you.
I walked to another courtyard style temple complex. The courtyard was well manicured and the group of temples created a picturesque atmosphere but otherwise not as much to walk around and see as the earlier palaces. I was a far way from the town center but from a previous walk I knew the path nearby led back to the homestay location. I decided to take the shortcut.
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About a half mile into the walk I came across four wild/domesticated buffalo. It was starting to drizzle and they were blocking the path. One of the buffaloes crossed to the other side to join the other two but a fourth remained alone and was staring me down. One of the buffaloes was a child and I thought it’d be really bad luck to walk between the child and the remaining buffalo if that was the buffalo's mother..I decided that it was a one in three chance and started to cautiously walk ahead. The buffalo's head continued turned and continued to gave at me as I got closer…but no movement, no sign of threat. It wasn’t until I was even from the buffalo, about ten feet away, that it decided to spring into action. The buffalo suddenly lowered it’s head and came charging at me at a full gallop. I started a spring of my own but the road was muddy and rocky - if the buffalo was looking for target practice it was going to be successful.
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The wild beast slightly before her attack
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Fortunately the buffalo stopped almost as quickly as it started. I turned around to confirm that the buffalo stopped, we locked states, and then head down and the buffalo came charging again. This time I ran along the side of the road which had better traction and was able to separate myself from the buffalo which again stopped after the initial burst. This time, not taking any more chances, I ran for an additional thirty seconds to be sure I was in the clear. I made it back to the homestay safely.
While traveling through Burma, I read Orwell's Burmese Days which includes a similar story to my experience. Orwell jokes that there was no real threat of being gorged because the bull's horns are tapered back and down, not protruding outward. Eh...still a heart shaking moment to see a bull charging at you.
While traveling through Burma, I read Orwell's Burmese Days which includes a similar story to my experience. Orwell jokes that there was no real threat of being gorged because the bull's horns are tapered back and down, not protruding outward. Eh...still a heart shaking moment to see a bull charging at you.