"Feeeeeeeeeeed me!"Apparently, Rajasthan is home to the most gregarious squirrels I have ever met, and I have met some pretty gregarious squirrels in my day. (Those surrounding the Capitol in Washington, DC come to mind; In fact, one bit one of my interns once. I immediately sent her to the Senate Nurse out of fear she would contract rabies, but it turns out that squirrels can't carry rabies--You learn something new every day.)
As we enjoyed a leisurely lunch at Maharani Bagh in Ranakpur, we were practically assaulted by about a dozen squirrels in search of a snack. Not only are they completely unafraid of humans, but if you make eve contact with them, they will come right up to you and beg for food. They are utterly shameless. Seriously, my dog doesn't even do that! One basically jumped into Bobo's purse and had to be shooed away; Another climbed on my back as I attempted to photograph its brethren. (Again, I'm really glad they don't transmit rabies. I hope they are also incapable of transmitting leptospirosis.)
A squirrel in Madison Square Park once jumped into my lap and started eating my sandwich. I tried to push it and it bit my finger. Then my Jewish mother went on death watch for the next month expecting to lose her eldest son to rabies. MSP must import its squirrels from Rajasthan.
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