Afterwards

Also included in the prior post, this update added on 5/28/2023:  Three Years After a Fateful Day in Central Park, Birding Continues to Change My Life.  Excellent NYT op-ed on "this whole birding thing" from a very different personal experience. 

Writing this was the act of creating a record of the trip to understand it better.  I also wrote to remember.  Each entry was like writing in a journal.  It's the truth as near as I (definitely not an unbiased participant) can get to it.  I'm aware that if an independent observer interviewed the other nine participants, they would hear nine different stories. 

On April 8th, I published the first entry and then continued writing like a fiend.  I ended with nine narrative entries, including this conclusion.  I asked friends if they would read it and give their feedback and criticism.

Then on April 25th I received, in the mail, a typed letter from the ATO's wife dated April 18th.  It was a scathing critique of my behavior on the trip while I was infected with COVID.  She described each of my transgressions in fifteen numerical points.  Some I understood, others I disagreed with, and then there were others that either avoided or lacked knowledge of the full picture.  A couple were wrong.  Her point #13 was a weird and conspiratorial accusation for why I had brought Paxlovid on the trip (I had already addressed this in my opening narrative.)  In point #15 she described the WWE as a world renowned infectious disease doctor.  His on-line profile does not support this.  If he is who she claims I feel certain he would have spoken with my doctor.  His refusal to do so is atypical for how doctors communicate with doctors.  By contrast, Anthony Fauci would have spoken with my doctor.  I read the letter word for word.  When I finished I was not surprised.  I was not insulted.  I was not angry.  It was as important for her to write and send her letter to me as it was for me to write my blog entries.

After writing all of this and since receiving the letter, I have concluded that there was plenty of blame to go around.  The ATO and his wife and the WWE and his wife never considered that it could have been one of them who contracted COVID.  In fact, it's unclear that the WWE's wife was not also infected with COVID during our Mysore visit given her symptoms and the timing of her second negative test.  And no  consideration for asymptomatic COVID received any thought.  Both very plausible, but cannot be proven.  I did not want my trip of a lifetime ruined and the ATO's wife did not want to contract COVID.  In this we were both correct.  For me, it was the way things were done; the power imbalance and the manner in which I was denied advocacy and agency.  I can state unequivocally that I never risked exposing anyone to COVID.  Will this change their minds.  No.  But it needs to be said.  I was fully aware of the danger of my situation.  If someone else in the group had developed symptoms and tested positive for COVID, I would have been blamed.  I know this as surely as I live and breathe.  This, despite the fact, that we all visited Mysore Palace and most (not the ATO and his wife) also visited Mysore market.  We were all unmasked. 

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The ATO's wife was clearly concerned about COVID.  Her letter contained nothing about her participation in the coup d'etat.  

The coup d'etat was a completely different experience and egregious from the outset.  I wonder if something like this has ever happened before.  How likely is it to occur again?  Could someone else have such an experience?  I don't know the answers, but it seems possible.  There were many things peculiar to this trip that helped set up the coup.  A privately arranged trip where the ATO and the IFG had worked together before, and the ATO had become complacent.   The conflict of interest with the EMC who were not birders and were personal friends with the ATO and his wife.  A solo participant (me) whose agency had already been diminished by the COVID debacle.  Finally, the aggressive, single-minded  and unaccountable behavior by the EMC is not something one routinely encounters.  This was a toxic mix of unique factors.  The likelihood that it could happen again may be unlikely, but not impossible.  After my first hand experience I think it's helpful for others to know.

Except in completely different circumstances; for instance, traveling with friends, I won't be taking another privately arranged group trip.  That door opens for trouble of all sorts.  What I don't think others understand about birding trips, non-birders especially, but birders also, is that you are always doing and seeing much more than just birds,  You go to places where tourists do not travel and, in this way, you see much more of the real place you are visiting.  

My photos are not great, sometimes not even good.  I am not a famous birder.  I don't advertise.  I don't have that many readers.  Nevertheless, I was careful to conceal the identities of the other trip participants.   The identity of our excellent Indian field guide and his company have also been withheld.  I don't think the IFG would want his name or his company associated with this experience.  He's also trying to put it behind him.  For this reason, I also conceal the name of our Andaman Islands local guide (also excellent) who got caught up in the mess.  He never left our IFG hanging, but when he dropped us all off at the airport, it was clear he was ready to move on.  The first names of Shaji, Rajesh, Rajkumar (both), and Vinod, the bird photographer, have been shared in the most complimentary and admiring way that I can describe.  If by some unlikely happenstance some or all of the others find this blog, I hope they will be able to see the truth in it.  If not that, then at least understand that there was another side to the story of this trip.

After writing all of this do I understand the trip any better?  Perhaps.  The best and fairest explanation may be to recognize that with its mishmash of incompatible participants, lack of attention to detail and subsequent oversights, the trip was probably muddled and ill-fated from the outset - before any of us even stepped aboard our departure flights.  We are all home now, we are all fine and the world didn't come to an end.  I'm sure we all learned.

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Below are a few photos of the snorkeling beach.  This was a unique experience.

The colorful plastic floats were loaded up with riders and then pulled by power boats beyond the front of the beach.  There were several power boats all circling around at the same time.  Maybe there was a method to the madness (like driving in India), but there seemed to be no attention given to boating safety.  The photos were taken with my iPhone and don't really reveal the true scene of activity. 

Above and below:  My favorite memories of the day.  I don't think this island (I never knew the name of it and an on-line search was not helpful) had anyone living on it.  The dogs who live on the beach really need to scrape by.  I loved this dog and its calm pose.  It had settled down amidst some pretty heavy foot traffic.  The boat ride to and from the island was so refreshing.  I was sitting opposite the passenger in this photo.  With the wind on my face, it definitely was the best part of the day.

If you read each narrative entry totaling nearly 11,000 words, well done and thank you for taking the time.  I hope it was good reading as well as helpful and entertaining.  Finally, I definitely recommend India as a wonderful country to visit.  Whether you go birding or wherever you visit, there is a lifetime of people to meet and of things to do and see.