2 girls, 2 backpacks, 1 friendship built upon adventure, & our whirlwind journey to a far off land

The story begins with the fortunate meeting of my partner in crime, otherwise known as my kindred spirit travel cohort. We first met while riding camels beneath the blistering sun at the Great Pyramids. My friend Breezy and I have an alikeness that is uncanny at times. We share a birthday as well as the identical insatiable thirst for more adventure. Unsurprisingly, we instantly became travel comrades. Following our travels in the tombs and temples of ancient Pharohs, we bounded over to Morocco. Seated atop a pair of foul smelling camels, we torpidly rode across the whispering sands of the Sahara Desert. For several days, we experienced daily life among a nomadic tribe. Our shared sense of adventure was deeply rooted and I knew it was destined to lead us to distant shores again.
So, of course when I received a casual text message from Breezy suggesting the idea of a trip to India I didn’t hesitate for a moment to start plotting. I came across an article about swimming elephants living on remote Indian Islands in the Bay of Bengal. We both savored the idea of visiting this remote region inhabited by cannibal tribes and elephants roaming freely along the boundary line, where the edge of the calm rolling ocean tide meets the sandy coastline. The trek getting to the islands took longer than flying from the States to Delhi but we would have traveled even further to reach the breathtaking piece of paradise we discovered in the Andaman Islands. After an exhausting 33 hours of traveling, the crowded little tut-tut taxi screeched to a halt in front of our hotel. The smiling faces and the traditional lime water was a refreshing welcome. The drinks were so amazingly cold that the glasses that they were poured into, seemingly perspired more than we did. That evening, for dinner, we had the most mouth-watering Tandoori chicken, cooked to perfection and served with steaming rice and savory Naan bread. The flavors were incredibly rich and could only be described as sublime.
The next day we had the most extraordinary encounter with Rajan, a 64 year old Indian Elephant who resides on Havelock Island. He wanders along the breathtaking ‘Beach No. 7’ from time to time, occasionally giving joy rides to visitors and frolicking in the ocean. Looking back, I treasure every single second of that afternoon that we spent enjoying the company of our new pachyderm pal. He sauntered slowly along the beach, leaving enormous footprints trailing behind him in the pure white sand.
Breezy and I shared an unimaginable afternoon, which is forever ingrained in both of our memories as one of the most mind-blowing experiences with our majestic new friend. Our larger than life experience with Rajan made that one sunny August afternoon, the grandest adventure I have ever experience in my entire life. While I know my travels will continue to lead me to many more adventures throughout my life, I’m confident that our day at the beach with Rajan will remain one of the most unforgettable throughout my life. I eagerly await my next big adventure in travels and can’t wait to see what is in store for the future!