Blogs from Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan, India, Asia - page 2

Tigers are a symbol of India and we wanted to have a National Park visit as part of our travelling with Ian and Daniel to see if we could catch a glimpse. It is not something you can bet on. We had met several travellers who had been to Ranthambhore and seen none. We had tried to see wild elephants in Rajaji and seen none. We booked two tours on the internet; one in the morning and one in the afternoon. You ride on a 'canter', a 20 seater four wheel drive jeep. The drive itself is as good as any roller coaster. We got good advice to take the back seats. It meant we could stand up without disturbing others and got good views of wildlife from the sides and back. We were amazingly lucky. ... read more

Another Road TripOnce again we awoke to thick fog, we had breakfast, packed up and piled into Jasveer's wagon for the journey to Ranthambore. A roadworks diversion sent us on a route through small country villages. We were enchanted with the small immaculately kept dwellings. Splashes of bright jewel coloured saris hanging on lines, fences and over trees indicated washing day. We saw women and children washing at the communal wells. They and their children tended the flocks of goats which all looked very healthy with shiny coats and long ears. There were pigs and cows and of course camels, some tethered and some pulling carts laden with goods. Women were working in the fields and carried loads on their heads. Children lined up for school in spotless uniforms and the men were driving tractors and ... read more

Warning! This blog contains negative comments! But first, here are some positive ones: We'd had a great time in , but were now on our way to ten days of tranquil wildlife safaris and bird-watching, starting with the well-known tiger reserve of Ranthambore (that's the negative bit, which comes later). On the way, we called in at the Monkey Temple, Galtaji, about 10 kilometres from Jaipur on the road towards Agra. This is not a well-trodden tourist site like most other places hereabouts. You'll be asked to make a tiny donation if you plan to use a camera and, for a few Rupees, you can buy some peanuts to feed the monkeys from the man at the entrance; he'll put them into little bags that he makes from old newspapers. You might find a snake charmer ... read more

Awoke early to leave at 7am for a tiger safari. Early breakfast of vegetable curry, for some, and cornflakes for the others! Freezing cold morning so multiple layers of clothes needed and blankets supplied by the hotel. Taken into the National Park by a 20 person canter, an open topped bus, with poor suspension! After picking up several other people at various hotels we arrived at the Ranthambore National Park via a large stone gateway. Several other jeeps and canters aslo arrived at the same time and various hawkers hassled the vehicles selling fleeces and wooly hats with National park logo on. Lots of Indian tourists along with swedes, English and Danish. We eagerly anticipated the first sighting of a Tiger so looked carefully for any signs of the animal. Several times fresh foot prints were ... read more

So here are the photos from the final 2 weeks of our holiday covering Deshnok, Jodhpur, Udaipur, mt Abu, Bundi, Ranthambhore National Park and Agra. Hope you enjoy!... read more