The Langur monkeys jumping on the tin roof of our lodge wakes us up at 7 o’clock. It feels a little bit like sleeping in a bass drum. They sit on the mahua, banyan, acacia, neem and teak trees surrounding the lodge, which is laid out by the banks of Ken River in the heart of Madhya Pradesh. The Ken River Lodge lies 20 km. from the famous temples of Khajuraho and a kilometer from the Panna National Reserve. From the car park, it is a short walk over a wooden bridge spanning a tributary, from where you enter the 30-acre area where 10 huts and 10 cottages are spread out on a large forested area and connected by lantern-lit paths. In the evening, you walk in the dark expanse between each pinpoint of light with a guide who will help you find your way to dinner. The reception, dining-area and bar are literally situated at a stone’s throw from the river on pylons high enough to withstand even the great flooding of 2005, when the river flooded the area upto 10 km in one direction and 15 in the other. Except for the pylons everything is made of rough wood.