Last weekend, Thomas and I did a short trip to Kutch, about two and a half hour away by car from Ahmedabad. Instead of going for the rather lame expat-friendly private car alternative, we went by public bus. It is interesting, because in the previously mentioned course "Digital Inclusion for Development" there has been a lot of ranting about how good it is with local Internet kiosks, where villagers can access government services, instead of having to go by bus to the city and some physical office.Although this was to me understandable on some theoretical level, the whole concept now became very hands-on.
Travelling by public bus is very cheap, for which there are reasons. There is a seat supply deficit. There is very little suspension. There are very many sounds. And there are sometimes cheating bus conductors, all of whom should take careful note of the fact that you will probably earn more money if you only try to cheat the clueless foreigners, instead of simultaneously trying the same trick on the not so amused locals, because then the foreigners get sympathy points and protection and you end up with nothing but the standard fare. Poor you.
Kutch is home to a wild-life reserve, with some of India's last remaining wild donkeys as its main attraction. As you can see from the pictures, the landscape is quite special. The top photo contains a barely recognisable donkey, if you can make it out. By the way, I have absolutely no idea why Blogger keeps messing with the format.
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