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Published: April 13th 2007
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Friday the 13th turned out to be amazingly lucky for us. Despite all the expected delays from all the known quarters, we managed to get out from office with our backpacks slung on our back. People stared at us, the 5 adventurers ready for their wild Rajasthan safari, with envy written on their faces. The team of five are out on yet another trip. This time we are out to enjoy the wilderness of Rajasthan. Our destination was Ranthambore, a tiger reserve, which is about 8 hours drive from Delhi. This used to be the hunting grounds for the Ranas (the kings) of that particular region of Rajasthan. Now it is protected as a national park.
The drive to Ranthambore was mostly uneventful except for the fact that for two of us it was the first trip to Rajasthan. There were the occasional stops at the roadside Dhabas. But all of us marvelled at the roadside "rest areas". Often I was wondering how similar those were to the rest areas along the US highways. But the roadways and the mix of traffic with cycles, autos, camel-driven carts bring you back to the realities and the charm of India.
It was very late in the night we reached our destination, Hotel Jhumar Bawri. The hunting palace for the Ranas converted to a hotel. As we walked up the narrow winding stairways of the palace turned hotel, we were transported in time to a different era. All the tiredness just vanished, all the drowsiness just melted away. Leaving the comforts of the air-conditioned rooms and comfy beds, we just decided to spend the few hours of the night under the starry sky. This is a sight that is so rare to us in Delhi. We even imagined seeing the milky way, and were convinced that we have seen a star criss-crossing the sky at such speed that it cannot be anything but a UFO. At the crack of dawn we were all ready for the highlight of our trip, the jungle safari.
Canters, which are open topped buses with about 20 people in each, picks the tourists from each hotel and head into the forest. Ranthambore tiger reserve is not a huge forest compared to many other forests in India. Just for statistics there are just 38 tigers, but a huge population of leopards. The character of this forest
comes from the fort that adjoins the forestland. Ranthambore fort is the second largest fort in Rajasthan, only next in size to the Chitorgarh fort, and galore in legends and history. But more on that later. We were welcomed by a breathtaking site of peacocks, parrots, parakets, and a host of birds as we rolled in through the gates of the forest. These are the gates of the fort that opens into the forest.
We did not have to wait long for our first excitement. The leopard was perched high up on a bluff. There were aftually two of them, but I could only figure that out later in the pictures. My new digital SLR had sprung into action with the first scream of "leopard, leopard". But after waiting there for about 5 minutes and studied every move of the leopard staring high up in the sky, it was getting a bit dull. We were there for the bigger kill, the king of the jungle. With the luck always with us, we were too impatient to waste our time in admiring the leopard any longer. The safari turned out to be long and tiring, with the compounded effects of
a long drive, sleepless night, watching hordes of sambar, spotted deers, peacocks. Finally, when the safari ended after three hours we were sapped of the last bit of energy, and quite disappointed that we could not see the tiger.
First thing we did was to book a slot for the next safari in the evening. Our motto in any such trip is to never loose heart. But the body demanded rest, and we dropped dead for the next few hours that we had in our disposal. After a wholesome lunch at the hotel, we were again ready to set out for our "hunting" trip. This time we had our fingers crossed for something better. Everytime we came across a peacock or a deer or a crocodile, we would let out a sigh of desperation. This is not the first time that we have come back disheartened from a tiger reserve not getting a glimpse of a tiger. We were bracing ourselves for a similar fate. But, not this time. We had the charm of Friday the 13th with us. The tiger was resting calmly behind the bushes. It took us a while to spot it. But what a sight
it was !! The big wild cat at a stones throw, and everyone jumping over another to get a glimpse of it. At times it felt like we were in a zoo, but instantly the thought crossed my mind what if the tiger disturbed by all this noise decides to make a feast of us. Nothing untoward happened, and we took the opportunity to enjoy the sight to our hearts content. The delight was visible in every tourists face ... mission accomplished !!
But this was not yet the end. Just as we were headed out of the forest, the tracker in our canter caught sight of a leopard at a distance resting in the shades of a cliff. Suddenly, leaving us all speechless, the leopard jumped into action. It burst into a sprint chasing a monkey up a cliff. The sequence of events were so fast that it left no room to wonder ever again who is the fastest in the animal kingdom. A leopard chasing its prey in the wild ... this is stuff right out of the National Geographic channel. We had nothing more to ask for. Back at the hotel we felt like the royals
from the medieval ages back from a successful hunting trip. Drinks and snacks were awaiting us to add up to the pleasures of the moment. We just gazed into the sunset as the day came to a close. It was a memorable day for all us !!
The next morning was the time to be amazed yet again. This time it was the legends of the Rajput kings who managed to built such a breathtaking fort in the midst of such wild terrain.
The Ranthambore fort sits on top a hill surrounded by six other hills and the forest. From atop the fort, one could get a clear panoramic view of the forest. Throughout our walk through the exapnsive fort complex, the guide enthralled us with stories of the glorious past, the battles between Rana Humvir and Allauddin Khilji, the secret tunnels under the Shiv-ling, the sacrifices of the queens.
The next one hour as we came out of the fort was spent in the search of an ATM. Ranthambore is a small town, but attracts tourists from all over the world. It so happened that all of them must have been cash starved just like us. We
ended up paying a visit to all ATMs in the little town before heading to the next town to get our cash. As usual we had hurried out of Delhi with little cash, and believing in the mastercard slogan "There are some things money can't buy. For everything else there's Mastercard" ... who on earth knew the hotel was one of those things that Mastercard fails. But it all ended well, just added a couple of hours delay to our return journey home.
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maya
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looks great!
Hello Prad, this place looks really great!! And nice blog too... See you soon