The four girls on our trip -- our camels -- have been named Grey Beard, Reika, Humper-Jack (Hump for short), and Sam. We chose female camels because they are less likely to kill you than the male camel.

Grey Beard is the oldest of our camels at 9 (camels live to about 26 years old). She is the calmest camel in traffic. Buses cruise by honking and she doesn't even turn her head. Dan thinks she is the mother of the group. She also has a mind of her own. She has stubbornly dragged Dan through trees with thorns an inch long trying to unseat him. Dan has just as stubbornly held on. She is the biggest of our girls, weighing in at 1400 pounds.

Reika is the most spirited of the group. She has taken me down the road several times at a wild gallop with a bus honking from behind trying to pass. She is also the most willing to try new things. When we first arrived, we found that Indian camels would not take treats like apples, which American camels were more than willing to eat. Indian camel experts said that Indian camels would not eat anything but the normal dry feed they are accustomed to. It took a while, but Reika now eats bananas, carrots, melon, cucumbers, apples and other Indian fruits. We hope this variety will help the camels nutritionally.

Sam is the prettiest camel in the group--a real looker. She is also very social. Most camels do not like to be by themselves. At one point, Dan and I took Grey Beard and Reika for a walk. Sam was so upset she broke loose from her rope and followed us. It was a surprise to feel something at the back of my neck and to find our lonely camel following us.

All the camels have become more affectionate with time, and I often find Reika nuzzling the back of my neck as I sit and write or walk along.

Right now I'm writing from a rest stop near the road while a giant rain cloud passes overhead. We've found it very challenging to make time to send back journal entries between finding food for our camels, feeding ourselves, locating places to set up camp for the night, loading camels, and dealing with all the little details of an expedition.

Next we will tell you what it is like to be a celebrity and Dan's unique way of handling one of the drawbacks of celebrity status.