Jaipur

We stopped at Jaipur on our way back from Ranthambhore. Having heard so much about the Pink city, we had a fair bit of expectations around it. It lived up to most but disappointed on some. Photos.

In Jaipur, we were put up at Hotel Umaid Mahal. We had done our bookings through Travelguru, and faced no problems at any point. The rooms were clean and tastefully decorated, ambience was great, and their rooftop restaurant was really good. We had some time to kill on the last day as our flight was a few hours after the check out time, so the restaurant was a real blessing.

Onto the sight seeing first. We enjoyed Jantar Mantar the most - the skill and precision of the equipment and the sheer scale was inspiring and educational at the same time. Amer fort was also a great experience with its sheesh mahal, royal chambers, diwan-e-aam and diwan-e-khaas. We had watched the entirely forgettable 'Jodha Akbar' a few weeks earlier, so it was even more fun mapping the movies sets to the real structures and ruins. Jaigadh fort has a huge cannon (largest in world?) but nothing much beyond that. We visited Nahargad fort as well on hearing about its great view of the city, but didn't find it that interesting - give it a skip. Hawa Mahal looks much better in photos than reality - we were surprised about how thin and unimposing the structure actually is. The City Palace was again on the average side, the only interesting points for us being some stuff in the arms room and the museum displaying clothes of the kings - one really has to see the clothes to believe how huge those kings. I had heard tales about the king being on the wrong side of the weight scales, but this was beyond words as some pajamas were a good 6 feet across at the waist!

Shopping was at the top of Sheetal's agenda, and rightfully so. There is so much to shop for at such good rates, I couldn't but join Sheetal in letting the flood gates open ;). Hand printed textiles were good (especially the bagru prints) -from saris and dresses for Sheetal and Ilisa to bed sheets and razai. We found some of the precious stones (and jewellery made using) them also tempting, and rates were very competitive when compared to Hyderabad. I found some good leather chappals as well (camel) for myself as well. Apart from the government showroom (Rajsthali), we visited Bapu bazaar and Ganpati Plaza in hunt of the goodies :)

Eating was at the top of my agenda :). We made it a point to visit the famous 'Choki Dhani' and had more than our fill as we did full justice to the very reasonable entry fees. Our dinner was made more interesting by some tourists from South Africa next to us, who were really trying hard to figure out stuff and were looking to us for some help. We also picked up very good ghewar, onion kachori and malpua from Rawat on the way from hotel to the airport.

Some aspects of the city were disappointing though. I found the city fairly dirty and filthy, this coming from someone living in Hyderabad is a damning indictment. You get a sense of a well oiled machinery out to squeeze the last penny from the tourists, but perhaps that is to be expected given the dependence of tourism. But above all, I was taken aback by lack of polish and finish amongst the staff all over the tourist places and even in some shops - most came across as indifferent, while some were outright rude :(. This was surprising given the overall hype about the importance of tourists etc! And finally, the airport is a huge letdown in several aspects- the mannerism of the officials manning the security check and otherwise, the airlines staff, the toilets - everything was very disappointing :(.

-Phani

Tigers of Ranthambhore

Sheetal and I made a much awaited visit to Rajasthan in April. Our primary objective was to visit the Ranthambhore National Park, hoping to watch some Royal Bengal tigers at their home and maybe even get lucky and capture some good photos on our D80. And did we meet it or what- we had a wonderful time spotting tigers in their kingdom and got better photos than I ever hoped to get.

First up, special mentions for the people who enabled us to have a great time in Ranthambhore. While doing research on ideal iternaries and places to stay, Sheetal came across The Ranthambhore Bagh. It is a lovely resort run in a very homely manner by its owner Aditya Singh. The entire establishment of the "bagh" has a tremendous passion for tigers - after all Aditya setup the place so that he can be close to the tigers. This passion, and his deep interest in photography meant that overall the place is full of genuine tiger lovers and more often than not professional nature photographers. We sent them an email indicating our interests in watching tigers, our itch to capture them on a photo albeit as beginners and finally our duration of stay. They were very helpful. Not only did they suggest a great iternary, Aditya sent out a very detailed mail to help me come up to speed on photographing wild animals. He suggested camera settings, filter settings, equivalent practice objects etc. In short, if you like any of the photos, the credit is as much his as it is for the camera itself. We opted for their "Big Cat Prowl" package, but changed from the default canters to open jeeps and opted for the Swiss tents.

We reached Ranthambhore from Jaipur by taxi around 2 p.m., giving us enough time for a lunch and a nap before the adventures being. We were not in time to catch an evening safari, so we set out to watch the Ranthambhore fort in a shared jeep instead with another family from the same resort. Having lived our life in cities, spotting a peacock on the roads before we even entered the national park premises was enough to get us excited, but the nonchalance with which the locals were treating them and other wildlife immediately registered that things are going to get better once we are in. As we were driving towards the fort, our driver suddenly stopped the jeep and asked us to keep quiet. Suddenly, a tiger appeared walking down the road towards our jeep. It briefly looked at us before deciding that it can ignore us and settled down in a puddle of water right next to our jeep. Unfortunately, this was not one of the open jeeps used for safaris, so our photography options were very restricted, but we got a good ten minutes to watch the majestic cat in action - drink water, lick itself, repeat - before it decided to head into the foliage. It was just amazing :)! Having started off with a bonus sighting, we then continued our way to the fort with a big smile and a racing heart. The fort itself was very beautiful, and we could have spent a lot of time up there but for timing restrictions of closing at 5 p.m. :(. It gives a great view of the entire national park with its water bodies and ruins and an interesting mix of fauna and flora (with special mentions to parrots and monkeys). And of course, lots and lots of peacocks - I doubt I have as many crows near our home in Hyderabad as they have peacocks- sitting on the walls, sitting on the trees, walking on the road - you spot them wherever you turn your head :)

We had a relaxing evening after getting back to the resort - chilling out in their spacious garden with a cup of tea and watching some kids chase hares. Soon it was dinner time with a cultural program where some artists were performing folksongs dressed up in the traditional attire accompanies by the haunting music from their Ravanhatta. They had a tandoor as well - the flames going up into the clear sky added something special to the ambience. The only thing spoiling the fun of watching countless stars was the buzz of mosquitoes - there are armies of them waiting around for an unsuspecting victim, so make sure you carry a mosquito lotion to supplement the coils provided there.

The next morning we headed for our first safari before sunrise in an open safari jeep. It was a little chilly going to the park at that time, but the temperature became more pleasant once the sun came out. At the park entrance we were told that the park is split into several zones, and only 4 jeeps are allowed into each zone. There is a lottery at the park entrance to decide who gets which zone, and our jeep got zone 4. While the numbers meant nothing to us, we had a couple of professional photographers for company in the same jeep who told us that this is zone that one is the most likely to spot a tiger in and also one where we tend to get the best photos. Wow!

Sure enough, within ten minutes of entering the park, we spotted a tiger lazing under a tree almost as if it was waiting for the sun. After waiting unsuccessfully for any signs of movement from it for a while, we left it alone and drove around the rest of the zone trying to see if we can spot any other tigers. Sheetal and I were busy enjoying the nature around us while the driver and the guide were doing the hard work of spotting a tiger. Just as we were about to turn back to our original spot, we spotted a tiger crossing a lake in the distance along a causeway. It was too far out for us to even get a close look but our photographer friends with their huge lenses managed to even take some photos! But we were not to be denied as the lazing tiger decided to get up close and personal when we got back to it. It was a breathtaking experience as the tiger got up from its lazing ground and majestically walked towards and past us. At its closest, it was no more than 2 feet from me and the experience of staring his majesty in the eyes from that close is an experience we will carry for the rest of our life. I must confess that there was a tinge of fear to go with the pulse raising excitement on such a close encounter, for we were just one angry claw away from a certain death at his hands! Pure unadulterated adrenalin rush.


We kept watching the tiger till it decided to move beyond us and into the foliage, but not before I started worrying about running out of memory on my camera as it was almost impossible to take my hands off the shutter release button :). Every nuance of its movement - shrugs, angry stares, don't care looks - every single one of them oozed of class, of knowing that it is the master of all that it sees before it, and being completely at ease with that fact. It could be that the tigers are used to humans and hence don't react to them, but it was almost as if the tiger knows no fear of anyone or anything else in the park.

We did a few more rounds of the zone looking for more tigers, and finally settled down at a vantage point where we were watching the same tiger take rest in an abandoned mosque. Every once in a while it would raise its head to make sure its audience is still waiting for it, and then go back to sleep. After an interesting 30 minutes or so of this hide and seek, it finally decided to make a move and walked along the road to its next resting place. We were lucky to be the first jeep behind the tiger, and watched it stride majestically along the road like a king, with half a dozen vehicle full of people as the followers. The tiger would stop here and there as if on whims and fancies, completely unperturbed that there are creatures behind it who might need the way :). As it finally went off the road into the thicket, we drove past the gates of the park to conclude our morning safari - our energies completely drained from non stop thrills and excitement. Wow, the best morning of our lives?

It took a good 3-4 hours of rest and a filling breakfast + lunch before we returned to normalcy levels, but then it was time for the afternoon safari! I had used the resort computer to download all the photos from my camera onto an external hard drive, so I was all set to refill my memory cards as we headed out back to the park in the same jeep with the same company. We drew zone 4 again. This time round we spotted a tiger sleeping blissfully under a tree across the river, and given that it showed no inclination to get up, spent some time chasing birds and other animals around the zone. We were back just in time to watch him get up and walk back to the mosque from the morning safari, and yet again we got to lead the followers of the tiger. But the games had just started. From the mosque the tiger spotted a herd of deer grazing, and it was time for hunting! Over the next half an hour, it was a breathtaking experience as the tiger slowly and steadily progressed towards the deer, while the deer kept moving back sensing possible danger. I was holding my breath in anticipation as the tiger got down to a crouching position where it was on its legs yet the whole body was along the ground, and then walk closer in that position to the deer. Unfortunately (or fortunately for the deer), it wasn't good enough and the deer fled as they sensed the tiger, and the entire effort was fruitless from the tigers view point. After that, the tiger went into a hiding in the thick undergrowth and we were unable to spot it for over half an hour even though we were not more than 100 feet from it - camouflage? The waiting time was still an exceptional experience, as we were relaxing in the shade of a wonderful tree and as the cool breeze and countless birds singing their lullabies almost put us to sleep. We were awaken from our stupor as someone spotted the tiger (or its tail to be more precise) eventually, but it showed no inclination to step out of hiding and the closing hours of the park were upon us.

A relaxing tea and dinner under the stars brought a very eventful day to an end. It had been a very satisfying day, and we were pleased as a punch with our fortune with the tigers, photos and overall felt good about life. Over dinner, we exchanged notes with other guests at the resort, each having their own tales about their tigers to tell. We also met an interesting French Indian couple who gave some very useful tips on how to ensure Ilisa is comfortable in multiple languages right from her childhood. Their kid was speaking Bengali and French apart from English and Hindi, so we had data to prove that Ilisa can in fact learn Marathi and Telugu without any issues :)

We had already got our moneys worth, so next morning safari was almost a bonus. We were hoping to get some other zone, so that we get to see more of the park. And it was fulfilled - this time it was Zone 1. Zone 4 was along the water bodies and hence had lots of vegetation. Zone 1 on the other hand was more in keeping with the season, and its barren trees in the rugged juggle terrain served us a timely reminder that this is summer time in one of the driest states of India. It was an incredible experience as we rode along the rough terrain, looking for tiger paw prints in the soil, listening for bird cries or deer cries to suggest the presence of a tiger. There was a mother tiger with 2 cubs spotted in the zone the previous day, so the guide and driver were optimistic of getting lucky. Not that Sheetal and I were too bothered as we were busy taking in the scenery around us - grazing deer, naked trees, colorful birds, flying peacocks, sunshine filtering through the hills, more grazing deer and a sense of contentment :). We didn't spot a tiger during this safari, but did get some wonderful sightings of peacocks with wings spread out, antelopes and some kingfishers.

After breakfast, it was time to head back to Jaipur. It had been a wonderful 48 hours in Ranthambhore. Both of us knew we had to come back here again - perhaps with Ilisa when she was old enough to enjoy the place, perhaps in some other season to see the forest at its best. But for now, we already had a lifetime of memories with us and a lot of good photos too ;). Till next time...

PS: Special mention must also be made for the guides and drivers of Ranthambhore. They are very well informed about the tigers, and have great instincts for its movements etc. They are also keen students of photography, and would always know where to stop the jeep to ensure that we get the best possible angle and backdrop for the photo. And one thing that left a huge impression on me - all the drivers and guides we met would credit Aditya Singh for this, stating how he has always shared his knowledge with them and guided them right through. We even saw a few forest officials coming to his office for advise on the health of the trails and development work! We know where we will be staying next time round :).

-Phani