During my last trip to Rajasthan I also became guardian of a wee tortoise, Sufi. Sufi fits in the palm of my hand but she is already 7 years old and too too cute with the most amazing designer star patterned shell.
Tortoises roam wild in the jungle around Ajmer and Sufi’s parents decided to become squatters in the grounds of the guesthouse I stayed at. They have been there for several years now and of course the guesthouse owners take care of them. Thing is Sufi’s mum has been rather busy laying eggs over the years so Sanjay (the guest house owner) asked if I’d like one of the children. I don’t stay in Delhi all year round so my friends had to consider if they could keep one – a split second decision really.
I can’t believe Sufi is older than my niece. Apparently tortoises live until they are 150 years old how amazing is that? She will outlive all of us. Her secret to longevity seems to be to hide in her shell and in dark corners, sleep a lot and munch on watermelon and dirt, occasionally grass. She does circuit runs around the house and garden too.
Anyhow, I had a mud face mask on yesterday and once it dried and cracked I really could have passed as Sufi’s 80 year old mum.
Bubbly
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