India
Trip ItineraryRight: An Asian Open-billed Stork, one of many water birds seen from the Lake Palace Hotel on Lake Pichola at Udaipur in Rajasthan, India.
Left: View from the window of our 777 as dawn breaks over Switzerland.
23-24 March: Wichita to Dallas to Zurich to Delhi on American Airlines. (Boeing 777 Dallas to Zurich - nice airplane if I do say so myself!)
25-27 March: Hotel Oberoi in Delhi, Sightseeing (Humayan's Tomb, the ruins of Qutab Minar, Gandhi's memorial) and birdwatching in and around Delhi.
28 March: Board the train ("The Palace on Wheels" - very aptly named) and depart for our rail trip. Superb Indian cuisine, comfortable accomodations, and exotic India passing by our windows.
29-30 March: Train stops at Agpur. Buses to Kanha National Park. Accomodations at Kanha Safari Lodge. Days spent touring the park by jeep looking for birds, wildlife, and tigers. Close (5-7 meters) views of a magnificent male tiger from the vantage point of the back of an elephant. Wow!
31 March: Back on the train in the afternoon for the trip
back north to Agra.
1 April: Tour of the Red Fort and Taj Mahal at Agra. The Taj is everything one expects and more. (At right is the required photo of Pat and Roy at the Taj Mahal.)
2 April: By rail to Sawai Madhopur, then by jeep to Ranthambhore National Park. Nights on board the train, days birding, wildlife watching, and tiger seeking in the park. We see a mother and 2 two year old cubs (not as close as the views at Kanha, but very good views).
3 April: Morning in the park, then by rail to Jaipur for sightseeing and shopping and an evening dinner at which the men wear turbans and the women saris and we are entertained by local dancers and musicians. A very pleasant evening.
4 April: Back in Delhi for a day at Hotel Oberoi.
5 April: Flight on Air India Delhi to Jodhpur. Accomodations at the very luxurious HariMahal Palace Hotel. Visits to the countryside to birdwatch and see the local people.
6 April: Mehrangarh Fort, the magnificent structure overlooking the "Blue City", has walls almost 6 miles in length. A fabulous and awe-inspiring place!
7 April: Drive by bus to Udaipur, where we stay in the Lake Palace Hotel in the middle of Lake Pichola. It seems that just when we think we have been in the most beautiful hotel in India, we arrive at another even nicer one.
8 April: Visits to a number of Jain and Hindu temples and other sights in and around Udaipur.
9 April: Due to fly to Delhi today. But we end up having to bus to Jaipur then fly from there to Delhi when our Udaipur-to-Delhi flight is cancelled. Pat catches a stomach illness that has been making the rounds of some of the participants, and is sick and feverish for the trip. We end up arriving at Delhi in 100 degree heat in late evening. We spend a few hours at the Hotel Oberoi, then head for the airport for our 2:00 am flight back home. Pat's illness helps in one way - Swissair gives us an upgrade to business class so that it is easier on her, and that does help. We also opt for an upgrade for Zurich to Dallas on American, although we have to use our miles for the upgrade.
10 April: Home safe and sound, along with all our luggage. Great Trip!