As I write this there is a gecko staring at me from the ceiling corner in our room.  Matt and I have named it “Croc” as it looks like a pale, stumpy version of its much more intimidating namesake.  The Croc is the least of our worries.  Apparently Central India, or at least the last two towns we’ve been to, is prime bug territory.  In Khajuraho the main problem were these little crunchy bugs, about the size of a flea.  When I say problem, I don’t just mean 10 or 12.  The light in hotel lobby had a swarm of them mingling on the wall, and there were dozens of casualties in our room.  In addition to the crunchy bugs, a walk in the street at night revealed hundreds of black, ladybug-sized beetles on the sidewalk, and looking up at the street light you could see a cloud (i.e. much bigger than the normal swarm) of various sized flying insects. 

Last night on our way back from dinner in an old palace, we were accosted by mutant grasshoppers.  Unfortunately because of where the restaurant was located, we were a short way off the main street and had to go through a couple courtyards to get back to the road.  We navigated our way through the grasshopper gauntlet, not sure what was worse: the lit parts where there were more hoppers flying through the air, or the dark sections where we couldn’t see the stray hopper until it was on us, and where the stairs and other obstacles, such as poo and frogs, were also difficult to see.  They are about 3-4 inches long and big enough that it’s too gross to squish one because it would crunch too much, etc.  Luckily for me, Matt received the brunt of the attack as we quickly made our way back to the hotel.  (I had planned ahead for bugs and was safely wrapped up inside my scarf at the time.)  When they hit you, it’s not just a little tickle sensation like with a fly, but there’s actually a little “thwack.”  Somehow one of them got into our room.  Matt discovered it when it hopped up on his leg while he was resting on the bed.  He was able to trap it with the waste basket and take it outside.  Phew! 

Sleep is a lose-lose situation.  It’s so hot that you don’t want to wear much to bed, but if you got that route you face a greater possibility of getting bitten.  I go the safe route and wear pajama pants and a shirt, sometimes long-sleeved, and even socks (those bites on your feet are the worst!).  It can get a little sweaty, but my comfort comes from knowing I am shielded from future bites and not itching from ones from the night before.  Matt is still learning, but he is slowly realizing that maybe wearing sandals out at night or sleeping uncovered is not such a good idea when we’re in buggy areas. 

The whole bug situation has gotten us both paranoid, swatting at things that aren’t there, taking a second glace at shadows.  Just now I had to move a backpack that was lying on the bed to get something.  I didn’t realize it, but one of the straps was under Matt’s tummy and as I slid the bag towards me it spooked him.  With a look of terror on his face, Matt kicked up his legs and flipped over so fast that I wasn’t sure what was wrong.  A second later I found out.  “I thought it was a least a small snake or a centipede,” Matt said.  A small snake?!  Obviously we’re becoming delusional and definitely need to go to a less buggy area!  In the mean time, I’m still debating on which is worse: Godzilla Spider or Mutant Grasshoppers.  Even though there was only one of them, I’m leaning towards the spider.  What do you think?