06-Mar-2008 -- This is the 9th point in a journey by motorbike in India to visit 16 confluence points. The story starts at 22N 86E and this visit follows on from 22N 79E. The next point in the series is 21N 80E.

From Nagpur the point lies not far from the main road south towards Wardha and eventually Hyderabad. Nagpur is spreading fast and even near the point many building plots have been marked out – although whether much of the potential building is imminent I doubt. We first had to find a side road that crossed the busy railway line that runs near the road. Then we had a further 1.5 km to go. We did not realize that there was also a small river to cross and this led us to take a couple of blind alleys towards the point. Eventually we found a road fording the river and after passing through a small village we found farm tracks leading to within 200 metres of the point. We left the bikes and walked across a field to the point which lay in the far corner of the forage legume field that had already been cut at least once.

Degree of Challenge:
2 – Having crossed the railway line and found and crossed the river the point was quite simple. (1= very easy - drive to the point; to 5= a death march – glad it is over)

Scenery:
2 –Pleasant farmland but with the promise of building development all around (Scale: 1= not interesting at all; 5= take your breath away)

Culture-social factors:
2 – Village life near the city. (Scale: 1=dull; 5= most stimulating)

This point marked the first in our journey back eastwards and brings up David's 100th point. It was interesting to note that sunrise and sunset was 40 minutes later in Nagpur than in Kolkata. It was also the first day that we had managed to visit 2 points in a single day.

From the point we rode back to Nagpur to meet up with Vilas Shende and [his family]. Vilas is director of the Mure Memorial Hospital and we were told all about the work of the hospital and the life and work of its founder – a redoubtable lady from Scotland called Dr. Agnes Elizabeth Henderson who set up the hospital (initially for women) in 1889. We promised that on our return we would do what more we could to investigate the early life of this lady. We had not met Vilas before but knew him through mutual friends – his father worked in the 40s and early 50s with a Scottish Episcopal missionary called Canon Copland. Canon Copeland is now almost 98 years old and lives in the same town of Kirriemuir in Scotland. We are close friends of his family who suggested that we make this contact.

The next morning before we set off the two boys had a chance to try out our bikes for size on their way to school.

The story continues at 21N 80E.