Jaipur is named after its founder, Jai Singh II ( a warrior/scientist). It was Northern India's first planned city. The old city was painted pink (colour of hospitality) by Maharaja Ram Singh in 1876 to welcome the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII). Our tour today started with a trip or the magnificent Amber Fort which dominates the city. Residents of the old city are compelled by law to maintain the pink colour for all buildings. In Jaipur you see not only cows and dogs roaming the streets but also camels!!! The wall of the fort is 18 kms long. We took an elephant ride to the top accompanied by hawkers who follow you the whole way from the bottom to the top. There are many palaces within the fort with interiors of paintings and carvings. ... read more

We stayed at the Ranthamborne Regency an old but comfortable hotel for our safaris to try and see tigers. It was all inclusive so meals were relaxing. Our first venture was out in the cold of the morning in a jeep and it took us to one section of the National park. Lots of 4WD driving up steep hills but alas no tigers. We saw some pretty parrots, blue bull antelopes (nilgai) and sambar deer. Our afternoon trip proved more fruitful but it took a while. We drove around for some time on a different route and saw lots of birds, antelopes and deer. The drive was bumpy again and the driver hit a rock very hard which ultimately resulted in a flat tyre. We got out of the jeep while it was changed and then ... read more

DAYS FOURTEEN AND FIFTEEN This morning we had a pickup for a tour of the town of Broome where we had started our tour. After looking at the dinosaur footprint site and other landmarks we were dropped in town. We wandered around and then had a coffee before we departed for our tour of Horizontal Falls. We were dropped at the airport for our flight on a seaplane. The flight takes 50 minutes over the Dampier Peninsula and King Sound. We land on the calm waters of Talbot Bay. When we boarded the boat we had a lunch of BBQ barramundi and salads. Then it was time for our boat tour through the falls . It was fast and bumpy and exhilarating.The falls are created by the 2nd largest tides in the world and create a ... read more

DAY ELEVEN This morning Kevin and I took an optional helicopter flight over the Bungle Bungles. the Purnulu National Park covers an area of 239,723ha. The banded sandstone domes cover 45,000ha. The park was listed for World Heritage in 2003 because of its natural beauty and geological value. The domes orange and grey bands are caused by the presence (dark) or absence (orange) of cyanobacteria. The orange bands are oxidised iron compounds that have dried out too quickly for the bands to grow. The sandstone was deposited about 360 million years ago. We were so glad that we did. The helicopter was the best way to see the size of area covered by these iconic rock formations. After this everybody went for a walk through the unique orange and black beehive shaped domes. We then proceeded ... read more

DAYS SEVEN and EIGHT We leave the Mitchell Plateau and follow the Kalumburu River back to the Gibb. From here we head to the Durak River before we head to Emma Gorge resort, part of El Questro Wilderness Park. Today we went for a swim at the Zebedee Thermal Springs - 30 degrees. Unfortunately there were a lot of people there so you could have a soak but not a swim. After lunch Paul took us on a guided walk to Emma Gorge. The walk takes about 45 minutes (3.2 km return) and can be challenging in parts as you can be scrambling over rocks and boulders. Good hiking shoes required. We decided against a swim but a couple of our group did. It was very refreshing!!!...they said. Under a waterfall... read more