Goodbye Delhi - India

Thursday - Friday, March 15 -6, 2013.

Deli Day 1

India is a subcontinent of which we have only touched the surface. Like any traveler there is always more to see and do - with lots of surprises along the way. For now though, we are ready to move on. Our Indian journey began in a rural, litter strewn and impoverished border town and is ending in the tree lined capital city of Delhi.

We arrived in Delhi late in the afternoon. The new freeway we took was spectacular. It is only a few years old and hardly used. For local people the road is expensive to use. What most certainly would have taken several hours by train, took only three hours by freeway. The free way is suspended above farm fields and is absent of cars, motor bikes, cows, filth, potholes, and litter. It is 12 lines wide, six in each direction. There are few on and off ramps. With so little places to turn around, it is not uncommon to see cars in your lane that have made a u- turn and are now coming at you.

As we approached the city we passed a very modern sporting arena complex and suburban and new suburban high rise apartments. Delhi is a city of trees and lovely gardens, monuments, and government buildings. It also has a subway and cows laying about in the narrow median strips between lanes of busy, congested streets.

We spent our last nigh in Delhi having a farewell dinner with fellow Intrepid Travelers who will disperse tomorrow to other places in the world.

Delhi Day 2

We made arrangements with the hotel to rent an air conditioned taxi for the day, about $20. This is a great, no hassle way to see the sites and do shopping. Our driver was a nice young man who spoke English well enough and took us everywhere we wanted to go. We bought a new little Samsung camera to take as our primary camera into Bhutan. It as a good little zoom lens and picture clarity is better than our little backup Cannon which. will be relegated again as emergency backup.

We had a wonderful late lunch at a restaurant that our driver suggested, so dinner was crackers and chips, followed by packing and then to bed. It will take 45 minutes to get to the airport and we must be there 3 hours before our 6:30 am flight. Taking all of the logistics into account, we were up at 2:15 a.m. Way too early!

We are off to Bhutan in the morning. Good-bye India!

All is well with the Worrall Travel R's

Agra - Taj Mahal

Thursday, March 15' 2013

Day 13 Agra

 

Travel by train to the Mughal city of Agra (approx 5 hrs).

Agra is home to one of the world's most recognisable monuments, the Taj Mahal.

Visit the Taj Mahal - a masterpiece of shimmering white marble set amid beautiful formal gardens. Built by Emperor Shah Jahan as a memorial to his wife Mumtaz, this 'teardrop on the face of eternity' (as it was described by writer Rabindranath Tagore) lives up to all expectations.

Hop on to your cycle rickshaw for a tour of the city - a truly fun and Intrepid way to see the monuments of Agra. Note that during summer and winter months on days when the weather is particularly hot or subject to dense fog, the cycle rickshaw tour will be replaced with battery powered rickshaws.

Visit Agra Fort on the banks of the Yamuna River. Built in 1565 by Emperor Akbar, the fort was originally designed to be a military structure. It was converted to a palace in Emperor Shah Jahan's time and eventually became his prison after he lost power in 1658.

See Akbar's Mausoleum - a beautiful sandstone and marble tomb built for the greatest of the Mughal emperors.

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The Taj Mahal is spectacular!  Words cannot, and even pictures cannot, fully convey the magnificence of the Red Fort and Palace of Emperor Shah Jahan and the Taj Mahal which built for his queen, and where both of them are interned. 

We spent the afternoon until sunset Taj Mahal gazing as the colors changed and the sunset.  Wow, a most worthwhile experience and check on the bucket list.

We leave for Delhi and the last full day of our Nepal-India Intrepid adventure.

All is well with the Worrall Travel R's

Heritage Site of Orchha

Tuesday and Wednesday, March 12-13,

Days 11-12 Orchha Intrepid Itinerary

 

After arriving in Jhansi, travel by auto rickshaw across a classic Indian rural landscape to the picturesque town of Orchha to experience a very different side of India (approx 45 mins).

Situated on the banks of the Betwa River, Orchha has changed little over the centuries. Originally a hunting area, it became the capital of the Bundela rajas and, as a result, Orchha has more temples and palaces than any town of this size deserves.

Explore the palaces and temples scattered across the peaceful countryside, walk in rural areas untouched by modern life and meet the very friendly locals. The river water is cold but clean enough to swim in.

Experience an evening puja ceremony at the Ram Raja Temple.

See the stunning Orchha Palace, built by Bir Sing Deo for his friend Jehangir, the great Mughal ruler.

Take the chance to experience the local flavours at a cooking demonstration by our local friends.

Visit Taragram, one of Intrepid's Responsible Tourism projects. This unique papermaking plant was set up to give tribal women from the area a chance to work outside the traditional areas normally afforded to them. All the paper is made from recycled clothing and wood pulp.  In

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In Orchha we stayed in a lovely Heritage Bundelkhand property, that conjured images of what the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel was supposed to be; Old traditional Indian architecture, central courtyard with gardens, pool, bougainvillea and wisteria spilling over the covered walkways in a profusion of burgundies, pinks, lavender and white blossoms, ceiling fans, tiled walkways, and individual garden patios out the backdoors of each large bedroom.  Although I couldn't fully appreciate anything much beyond the room amenities the first day, we certainly appreciated all of it the second day. About $36.00 a day.

By day two I felt well enough for a full day of site seeing after a light breakfast in the dining room.

Our first stop was Taragram, a Women's Paper making Project that Intrepid funds as a part of their commitment to responsible tourism, making places better with donations from our traveling fees.  We really like this idea and loved this project.  It was started in 1996 and has opened up an avenue of income and opportunity for tribal women to learn skills and better support their families.

It is organized to produce in a way that accommodates the other cultural responsibilities women have; itinerant, drop in workers, child care provisions, and work accounts that only the women can draw from.  At first the project met resistance from village men who wanted to keep their women home afraid they would become smarter and earn more than the men, and of course that is what is happening, but the extra income for the families has quelled the objections.  

Men and the women who have chosen to participate, now have separate income streams. The women do not have to beg for money from their husbands.  Even with both incomes ( perhaps less than $100.00 a month), families here are desperately poor with intolerable living conditions and sanitation.

Women rotate through the various paper-process from start to finish including office and sales room skills.  The project has expanded to include  cement round tiles for roofing and a radio station for broadcasting music and farm news.  The place was not littered and well maintained. Women are called in when  there are big orders to be filled.  The day we were here, we only saw 3 women in the section we were in and the rest were men about 10 or more, packing supplies, cleaning up, and operating the sales room. These men may also have been part time or full time workers.  We don't know, and while this struck us as odd, I guess this arrangement keeps things going when times are slack and women need to be elsewhere.

After our tour here, we opted to visit a tribal village and school. These tribal people go into the forest to gather wood for resale as their primary source of income.  They also gather up the holy cow poop to make paddies.  2000 paddies sell for 100 rupees, about a penny a piece. The cow chips are sold to brick factories to fire their kilns.   We don't know anyone who would make a single cow paddy with their ungloved hands, squatting in the dirt in the hot sun at any price.  Do you?  Most of the paddy makers were  women in glittery saris.  Quite a visual contrast. 

The children and adults begged for us to take their photos and show them what they looked like

Individuals often conducted their own side business of making pottery and baskets.

Our school experience was wonderful.  We didn't get a chance to stay long, but still enjoyed having some interaction with these young people.

We made a trip into the main village of Orrcha  to visit an ATM, buy some batteries and snacks, do a little catchup sightseeing for me.  In the central market a lovely twelve year old girl with surprisingly good English skills begged me to see her jewlery.  I caved, she sat me down on a stool and eventually would have sold me her store she was such a sweet and persuasive sales lady.  I was able to eventually gain control of what I was willing to buy, She would no doubt win a Girl Scout Cookie seller award.

In the evening, we visited a local family's home and our hostess demonstrated and we participated in preparing and eating an Indian meal from chai to dessert.

We leave for Agra by train in the morning to see the Taj Mahal.  We are so excited!  This is the icing on the cake.

All is well with the Worrall Travel R's

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Sail, Row, Drift Down the Ganges

Saturday and Sunday, March 9-10, 2013

Day 8 River Ganges Boat Trip

 

Transfer to the River Ganges and our small riverboats for two days of sailing. A full support crew will be on hand as we sail down river, passing village communities and viewing river life as it goes on around us. 

Our crew will cook us delicious meals and we spend one night camping on the river bank in basic twin-share tents with common tented toilets. Life on the river is much slower than in the chaotic cities, so lie back, relax and literally go with the flow. The Ganges is a holy river, so in respect of this we enjoy vegetarian food and alcohol is not available.

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It took us about an hour and a half to drive up river and a day and half to drift, row, and sail down river.  This Ganges River trip is unique to Intrepid.  We were the only boats on the river with the exception of some local fisherman.  In fact the four row/sailboats (three passenger boats and a cooking boat) are from a fishing village that Intrepid has made arrangements with for Intrepid travel traverse down the river.  They are set up with lounging mats for passengers to lounge.

This trip is probably done only a half dozen times a year, and the village fisherman rotate and take turns.  Intrepid sets them up with with the expectations, life vests, and camping gear.  The boats are quite worn.  However despite the holes in our sail,  we were one of the fastest boats going down the river.  

The food was plentiful and tasted wonderful.  Sadly though, I think I contracted ecoli somewhere on the trip, and have been suffering with it for a couple of days. Despite the anti- bacteral soaps, gels and washing our hands with bottled water, the food handlers are not doing the same. Thank goodness we brought the cipro, flagyl, and cup of soups.  Besides the latent effects of the trip, Russ sat the Kindle down, on the mat, and when I repositioned myself, I sat on it, breaking the screen.  Bummer!

As sundown approached on the first night, we made camp on a sand bar peninsula.  The sand was clean and white.  The boat crew set up a mess tent ( hoards of bugs), and infividual tents for the campers.  We fell asleep under a star filled sky and the constant, incessant sing song Hindu chanting, broadcast through mega, loud speakers mounted on every temple and shrine

Surprises..... The Ganges is cleaner looking than what we thought it would be.  Unlike the muddy Mekong in Laos, the Ganges above Varanasi  was clear enough to reflect blue. And there was no bad smell,  The river bank was clear of debris.  We can only imagine how filthy the water below the pilgrim city of Varanasi might be, with the millions of people, holy cows, defecating and urinating, cremating the dead on the banks, bathing and washing in it.  It may have looked clean, but I felt myself gagging when the boatmen were dipping their cups in the river for a drink.  

Sunday March 12, 2013

Days 9 Varanasi

 

Sail back into Varanasi.

Set off by cycle rickshaw to visit the oldest part of the city, bustling with tourists and priests, and see different rituals being performed.

Wander through the Old City with its maze of narrow alleyways packed full of small shops and stalls. See pilgrims bathing and performing rituals and ceremonies unchanged for hundreds of years; temples full of bell chimes and the smell of incense; the dhobi wallahs and the burning ghats.

Spend the evening soaking up the magical atmosphere of a candle flower ceremony, on a Ganges river cruise as the sun sets.

Start early with a sunrise boat ride on the Ganges, passing the many ghats and temples along the river.

We wanted to take an early morning photo of the Ganges, but our Cannon's telescopic lens crapped out.  This is my third Cannon in four years, and each one has had this difficulty.  This one is only seven months old. Glad I bought the replacement policy for this one, but it won't help me out until I return stateside.   Good thing we carry a backup camera, which is also a little Cannon, but the quality of pictures just aren't the same, and the zoom stinks.    We may be looking for a new camera in Dehli before we go into Bhutan.  We'll see what's available.

We reached Varanasi after lunch on the river and then explored the Ghats, bathing places with long broad steps down to the river.  Men bathed nakedly, and the women in their saris.  There are no public toilets, so men and women squat where they can.  Some early morning cremation fires had just burnt down, and cows were bathing in the river with the people as well.  Again, the incessant chanting, gongs, and bell ringing continued.  We saw several snake handlers, and pathetic beggars...little girls of 3 or 4  years carrying around malnourished infant siblings, elderly, handicapped people.

The most awful was the badly deformed man who literally snaked on his belly along the filthy road pushing a donation plate in front of him.  With so many people begging, we tried to ignore most of them, but we did donate to the man on his belly.  No wonder these people believe in reincarnation and a different new life. We worked our way to the old section of town where pilgrims often wait two days in a queue, sleeping in line on the filthy streets to get into one of the temples. Life here for most of them looks pretty grim and from the looks of things all the rituals, chanting, bathing, and superstitions does no good.  They are so steeped in their religious beliefs and have been poor for so long, they don't seem to know or expect any better in this life.

Our guide took us to an Intrepid supported shop to learn about silks, block print textile cottons, cashmere, and pashminas.  We sat cross legged on cream colored mattresses, where the propritor spread out the various textiles.  It was fascinating.

Later that same evening, we took a sunset river ride to watch the temple ceremonies, and to cast wish candles to float down the river.  I wished that no one would ever have to beg anymore.  Didn't work.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Days 10 Varanasi

Start early with a sunrise boat ride on the Ganges, passing the many ghats and temples along the river.

There's plenty to see and do in your free time here:

Visit the Ram Nagar Fort which lies about 14 km from Varanasi on the opposite bank of River Ganga. Built by Maharaja Balwant Singh in the 18th century, it's the ancestral home of the Maharaja of Banaras.

Board our overnight train for Jhansi - the nearest junction to Orchha (approx 15 hrs). Sleeper trains are usually comfortable and air-conditioned (sometimes fan-cooled), a great way to travel long distances and still get maximum time in each place. Most of the time sheets, pillow and blanket are provided but some people prefer to bring their own sleeping sheet. Please note you may be sharing with locals in a same/mixed gender situation.

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Tuesday, March 12,  2013

Days 10 Varanasi

A Long 48 hours

About midnight I woke up feeling sick.  By morning, I had made more trips to the bathroom erupting from both ends than I care to count.  I had a pounding headache, dry mouth, and knew I couldnt't wander too far from a restroom.  Russ went out with our guide and less than half of our group.  Can't speak for the others who didn't go, but I was "pooped" out.

Russ took some great sunrise shots, and returned by 9:00 a.m.  We had to checkout of our rooms by noon and had the rest of the day free until three when we took jeeps to the train station.   Our train, wasn't scheduled to leave until six, but because traffic can be so bad at times, our guide wanted to make sure we go there in plenty of time.  I stayed in bed with a pillow over my head to blockout the incessant music and chanting, until just minutes before 12:00 p.m. checkout.  Then hung we hung out in the lobby until three.  So much for free time.  I looked like hell and felt worse.

We arrived at the train station at 3:45.  It was teeming with hot sweaty people, moving in all directions or just sitting or squatting on the floors while everyone wove their way around them.  We could no longer hear the incessant chanting and singing, but it was replaced with a loud speaker and an announcer who was enthralled with her own voice.  She did not let up.  Please, please shut up...I know, sounds bitchy, but my head was falling off.  The part that was still attached was using all my reserve not to be sick.  There were no toilets.  Men and women were hopping down on the tracks or squirting against a wall to do their business.  The stench was awful.  Our guide and fellow travelers helped me seek out a place to sit.  I put my suitcase in front  me, bent forward with my head on top of the case and head pillow and didn't move for 3.5 hours.

The train was late.

As soon as we got on the train, Russ scoped out the bathrooms for me.  The good news, there were both Indian squat toilets and western seat toilets.  The bad news, they were both filthy.  if I wasn't gagging before I went in, I was before I got out.  We were in the first class sleeper car, too.

There were six of us in our sleep cubicle, stacked three high.  

We did have air conditioning that worked whenever the train was rolling....which for an express train seemed to stop for great lengths of time.  I think we were so far behind schedule that we now were giving way to other on time traffic.  Suffice it to say it was a long, long night for me.  Only curtains separated us from the passage way.  Travelers moving about were noisy and the several times people would walk in our compartment and look around for an empty berth.  The train was overfull.  People were sleeping in the passageways on the floor.

By six a.m. we were to have reached Orchha.  My head was no longer pounding and bathroom trips were less frequent....primarily because conditions in the toilets were deteriorating throughout the night and we were all holding it as long as we could.   

It was early afternoon by the time we arrived.  We took motorized rickshaws, to our hotel, and had until 3:00 p.m. to get ourselves rested before a walking tour of this small, quaint city.  First thing we did was laundry and I took a shower.  I've never felt so dirty.  Once again, Russ went off with the camera, and I reluctantly but wisely stayed  in the hotel room where I got some much needed rest and some quiet alone time.  So the riddle of the day....Where in the world would you rather not be if you got sick....??? Hmmm.  In our 3.5 years of cruising, I have never felt worse.

Tomorrow we will have a full day here, and I expect to be operational in the morning.

All is Well and Ok with the Worrall Travel R's

Into India

Friday, March 8, 2013 - Goodbye Nepal

We left  the Chitwan National Park Royal Guest House at 2:00 a.m. in a 12 passenger van, Thursday, March 7.  Our goal was to get to our next destination of Lumbini, Buddha's birthplace, before the roads closed at 8:00 am or sooner.  

It felt like a stealth escape leaving in the darkness and avoiding road blocks as we drove through a deep fog on a rutted road.  A few oncoming vehicles with their lights on pierced through the black fog and road dust illuminating the van and the fourteen of us squished together, heads at all angles trying to sleep or eyes wide, avoiding sleep,   The big trucks are colorfuuly decorated with luminescent paint.  Coming from the opposite direction toward us, they would catch the light from our head lamps and appear as glowing apparitions in the fog.

Occasionally we would stop at ramshackle huts to pay what appeared to be a toll for road use.  There was one stop where military personnel walked around the vehicle peering in on us.  Despite the sudden stops and swerves to avoid dogs, cows, potholes, and few early morning wagons and trucks,  we reached our destination safely by 5:00 am., three hours ahead of schedule.

Rooms were ready for us.  We tumbled into bed and picked up our sleep where we left off 4 hours earlier

We all awoke at different times, but gathered at 1:00 pm  after lunch to walk to the temple grounds which cover several square kilometers.  In the village of Lumbini across from the temple,  the village  of Lumbini was hosting a Hindu revival meeting with a traveling swami.  Hundreds of men, women and children milled around the field and streets.  The women and girls were wearing brightly colored saris and tunic pant outfits with lots of bling that twinkled brightly in the afternoon sun.  The men wore tans and plain garments.  Their rich attire was in stark contrast to the dusty, shabby, and filthy living conditions in the village and areas surrounding the temple grounds.

Even though Buddha was born in Lumbini, most of the people here are Hindu.  The Hindu religion is based on a complex mythology of gods.  Everyday there is a celebration for one god or another.  Buddha himself was a Hindu by birth.  When Hindus started to defect to Buddhism, the Hindu holy men added Buddha and his teachings which are compatible with the Hindu religion, to their complex list of gods stifling the need for seekers to jump religions.  The people are Hindu but also revere Buddha without being Buddhist.

The exact historical place of Siddartha the Buddha's birth is a stone slab within the ruins of a Hindu Temple and is covered over with bullet proof glass and a fort-like building covers a good portion of  the ruins of the original temple.  The temple and grounds of Buddha's birth place is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Surrounding the birthplace, Hindu/Buddhist temples and monasteries from several nations are located.

Friday, March 8, 2013 - Holy Cow

Today has been a long travel day from Lumbini to Varanasi.  We left Nepal at 5:00 am, checked out of Nepal at 6:00 am, walked across no man's land to India and completed our entry paper work and India immigration at 7:00 am.  The contrast between Nepal and India is immediate.  We went from crowded, littered, impoverished, dirty and shabby, (CLIDS) from the power of 5 to 10 on the CLIDS scale plus Holy Cows and their droppings everywhere. 

We are now immersed in India where personal space is absent, streets are packed with vehicles, people, and cows.  Few people have even greeted us with Namaste which we became accustomed to in Nepal.  Yesterday, we stopped for a train crossing with a mob of people, vehicles and a large well-fed and shiny gray-colored cow stood right next to our car.  Everyone waited patiently for the trains to pass.  After a considerable wait, the gates lifted and everyone but the cow converged across the tracks. The cowed stayed stationery while the traffic moved around her.  We were still in the throngs of the crossing when we noticed the cow had moved behind our car, worked her way to the outside and and was crossing ahead of us.  There is an advantage to being a holy cow.

We arrived late yesterday afternoon in Varanasi with just enough time to glimpse the River Ganga with a dusk walk before dinner. Varanasi is where Buddha gave his first sermon.  Our guide told us there will be a big festival here on Sunday when we return from our river trip.  And there will be 100 times the people who are here today.  Our heads can't even get around that as it is packed now.  

Today we will be driving two hours up the Ganges and taking a two day down river trip in a row boa back to Varanasi.  There will be three boats.  Twelve of us plus our guide will divide between two boats with two oarsmen per boat.  The third boat is a cooking boat and carries the tents as we will be camping on an island on the Ganges tonight.

Should be an interesting experience!  Life is a journey.  All is well with the Worrall Travel R's.

PS SPOT IS ON, if you are interested in following us down the river.

Day 6 Lumbini,

Travel to the border town of Lumbini, the sacred birthplace of Buddha.

Day 7 Varanasi

The change of scenery from Nepal to India is immediate. Enter Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, and be greeted by holy cows ambling along the highway.

Day 8 River Ganges Boat Trip

What better way to experience the sacred River Ganges than by boat? Journey down the waterway and experience life on India's holy river. Enjoy a delicious meal before spending a night camping on the riverbank.

Nepal Chitwan National Park Part 3 Safari by Elephant

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Breakfast at the jungle guesthouse was at 6:30 am and we were packed in an open air 4 x 4 jeep truck and bumping down a jungle track in the early morning mist by 7:00. We only have an hour and a half ride back to our base camp, but there is a people's political strike starting to close the main roads beginning at 8:00 or sooner. The government has doubled the price of cylinder gas, and the people complain by shutting down the roads...parking cars sidewise in the middle of the road.

We will be avoiding main roads and doing some cross country and village dirt tracks back to the base camp. Driving through sleepy villages just waking up, villagers starting cooking fires, milking goats, pumping well water, squat sitting in family groups close to their shelter are a photo vomis we jadn't anticipated bonus we hadn't anticipated.

As we approached the broad river we had canoed down the day earlier, our jeep rolled forward into the river. We could see the road on the other side. Fortunately, the driver had local knowledge and did not drive straight across. Instead we arced down river and and back up to the road avoiding a deeper area that could have swamped us. By 8:30 we were back at our ho,e base with a whole day, until 3:00 p.m. and our elephant safari, to just relax.

Our clothes from our jungle trek were filthy and sweaty, so for all of us laundry topped our list of "free time" activities. We sent ours to be beat on a rock at the river, and others did their own. One of our fellow travelers is a yoga instructor, so between laundry, taking walking excursions tothe village, and catching up on email or naps, we had a yoga session on the shaddy lawn.

Our entire group signed up for the 2 hour jungle safari in the late afternoon. This time we wouldn't be trekking ourselves, but would be high above the ground on the back of an elephant. We were excited about having the opportunity to actually look around and not at our feet. Rhinos, tigers and bears apparently are disinterested in attacking elephants, so our chances of getting closer to the wild life without fear was definitely appealing. Our mahute was Ali

There were 12 of us, four of us on 3 elephants. Our elephant was Sompakali. She had a square platform on her back with a guard rail attached by short poles in the four corners? Two of us straddled the poles forward facing, and two faced backwards. The ladies were in front and had a more comfortable ride than the men who sat backward on the downward slope of the elephant's back and had their chests pressed against the rails for two hours.

We crossed two rivers and each time the elephants would suck in the water and with their trunks swinging, spray themselves and us to cool down. I was quite nervous that the camera would get squirted, but I took fewer photos when we were in the water to keep the camera more covered.

We thought it was a great experience being so high looking down or high enough to not look so high for monkeys. We saw deer, wild bore, monkeys and three rhinos feeding. Even though the rhinos were disinterested in the elephants, the elephants had to be coaxed to get within 10 feet of the rhinos. Each rhino encounter, we could feel Sompakali shuddering and raising her trunk to puff indignantly, She didn't like it. We felt sorry for her.

Our safari came to an end and we parted ways with our elephants. We ate at a local restaurant and retired early. We would be leaving at 2:00 am,! The strike would be continuing in the morning and we couldn't wait or the roads would be closed. Our trip is expected to take 5 hours, so we will be in Lumbini, birthplace of Buddha, by 7:00 a.m.

Lights out. All is well with the Worrall Travel R's

Chitwan National Park Part 2 - Rhino Charge

Tuesday, March 7, 2013

We awoke early this morning to pole down the Rapti river in long tippy wooden canoes. "Sit still, and don't move" for two hours numbs the butt and cramps the legs, but each time there was the slightest movement by anyone of the six occupants, the canoe would rock. Since we were all carrying cameras that weren't waterproof, and we were right at waterline we stayed still and practiced yoga breathing as we glided down the misty river. The bird life was rich and wonderful.
What a wonderful way to start the day. We even saw hige crocs sunning themselves. It's quite different being in a rocky boat at eye level with these huge creatures. Be quiet we are told, they might come after us if we talk.

By 10:00 am, we reached our down river destination to start our jungle trek which would be five or six hours long depending the speed of our walk and the wildlife we would see. Our Intrepid group had four park guides, each carrying a big stick, no guns. We would be walking unarmed through a jungle filled with tigers, bull elephants, rhinos, and sloth bears. Hmmm, time to consider the wisdom of this expedition had passed, and we were in the jungle now!

We have all worn neutral blending colors for the trek so that we would not cause undo attention to ourselves..no white, red yellows, etc. We are carrying 5-15 lb. backpacks with water and overnight stay gear in a jungle guest house. Russ and I are in Khaki long pants and long sleeved shirts, Our guide now gives us additional instruction on jungle protocol and survival. Spray ourselves well with deet particular the bottoms of our pants and shoes. The jungle at this time of the year is tic infested. Luckily it is not the wet season, or we would be calf deep in mud with lots of leeches.

No talking or noise. We are to whistle or sh sh sh sh to get group attention, hand signals and pointing toward the direction of the animal with finger count of animals. Much of the initial part of our walk was through a control burn of elephant grass. The unburnt grass grows so tall and thick and closes itself around you it os easy to get lost and to not be a le to spot the animals lurking in the grass. The burned areas open the view so expeditions can see one another and potential threats, but the burnt grasses make for crunchy, pokey, tangling walking. There is a hand signal to walk quietly. That is a near impossibility for a line of 17 people. Each person must relay hand signals to person behind them.

We can take photos of wildlife, but be sure we are safe...distance, animals eating or watering are less aggressive. There are safe times and not safe times to photograph.

If we see a tiger, gather together, keep eye contact with the tiger, don't turn your head and run. They love the chase and will go for your neck and take you down. (not a safe time to photo)

If we see a bear, huddle in a group, look outward, raise your hands above your head, scream and yell. (not a safe time to photo)

If we see bull elephants or rhinos, and they charge, run! Rhinos can run fast 45 km per hour, but have a hard time turning. Sp we are to zigzag, hide behind a tree, climb the tree at least 10 feet up. I'm sure I wasn't the only one thinking "holy rhino sh&@!", I'm going to die here! (not a safe time to photo).

I couldn't scale a tree ten foot high when I was 20..we aren't talking trees with low branches and footholds, we are talking trees where the first branch is 30 feet high and we are wearing backpacks.

We look at the elephant grass and the trees seem a long way off in the distance. Our guide reassures us that these are worst case scenarios and none of this will happen, but he needs to prepare us. I look longingly back at the canoe and wonder how hard it would be to pole it back up stream.

We trek for about an hour before we stop and Suk our lead guide climbs part way up a tree to look over the grass lands for animals. We follow him past some watering holes with lots of rhino prints and sloth bear holes and dens. We hear sh sh sh sh, and Suk puts one fisted hand with extended index finger to his forehead indicating rhino. He points and holds up three fingers indicating number and gives us the walk very quietly sound.

Less than 20 feet to our right, we can just barely see three rhinos through the elephant grass cooling themselves is in a mud hole. It' s hot and sweaty at midday, and we can see how the cool mud might feel good. We are at a standstill, being very quiet. Suk motions for us to give him our cameras. He stealthily moves forward to a position where he can better photograph them. The rhinos are probably aware of our presence, but seem unbothered. Individually, we edge a little closer.

One of our party coughs! We freeze, but the rhino doesn't. His head pops up and he stares right at us. Russ whispers, "Did you get that shot?"

Hell no! I frantically tuck the camera in my front pouch, before the rhino starts to move toward us, and the guide tells us to RUN! All of us start pounding down the trail, backpacks flapping behind us. There is a lot of crashing behind us.

We are somewhere in the middle of the pack and we can't tell if the crashing is the rhino or members of our group. Where are the trees? We have run about 25 yards. I see a tree slightly uphill, and am about ready to veer off the trail toward the tree when the back guide yells for us to stop running. The rhino has veered to the right and we can see him charging through the thicket, parallel to is. He is now ahead of us and seems to have changed his interest! Phew!

My knees are trembling. I guess now we can say we successfully survived a rhino charge! It wasn't on our bucket list, but we are checking it off anyway and hope it's the only one.

The rest of our jungle trek seemed pretty tame. We saw a wild bore, monkeys, deer and sleeping crocs. We made it to our jungle guest house about 3:30 pm. Made good time....must have been the runnug! We order cool beers, recount our experience, and watch the sun drop into the river before our Nepalese home cooked meal, and sleep under the mosquito nets. It's been an exciting day.

Tomorrow we must rise really early and be on our way to our base camp. There is a strike happening tomorrow and the main roads will be closing by 8:00 a.m. We will need to take a lesser used cross country, village road network back to our base guesthouse where we have left the bulk of our luggage.

Lights out. All is well with the Worrall Survive R's

Chitwan National Park, Nepal Part 1

Monday, March 4-6, 2013 - Days 3-5 Chitwan National Park

 

Day 3

Take a local bus down to Chitwan National Park at the base of the Himalayas (approx 6 hours).

Declared a Unesco World Heritage site in 1984, Chitwan National Park offers some of the best wildlife viewing in Asia with rhinos, deer, monkeys and a wide array of birdlife including the infamous Nepalese wild chickens.

We were to take a local bus today out of Kathmandu.  I personally thought the first 10 minutes might be an interesting experience, and the next 6 hours, might be hell.  Riding with locals, chickens, and goats in an old bus with no shock absorbers, bench seats, with open windows, no air conditioning on bumpy dusty roads with only one planned toilet stop along the way didn't sound alluring.  

There are twelve of us on this trip plus our guide, and it was mind boggling to think all of us and our luggage would even fit in a local bus.  Guess you've guessed by now, we are not on a comfort trip.  Intrepid is about real life experiences with the locals.  Fortunately there have been threats of transportation and fuel station strikes, so our guide decided to play it safe and hired a private mini bus.  Just to make sure we got our "real life experience" this was no posh mini bus with cushie seats, seat belts, or air conditioning.  This van didn't look bad on the ouside, but inside it was a bit rough with hard seats.  All  of our luggage with the exception of our day packs was tied down on top of the bus, and we were sardined into the 13 small seats with our knees presses into the seats in front of us.  We used the 13th seat for day packs.

Kathmandu is a high mountain valley approximately 4,000 feet high.  The goal today was to descend out of the valley down to the river canyon, follow the river for a while then head toward the park.  Our driver lives in the park and had left at 3:00 am this morning to pick us up at 8:30 in Kathmandu and drive us back.  He was, I guess, an excellent driver as we arrived in one piece and alive, but it was the scariest ride we've ever taken.  

The road out of Kathmandu is a narrow, windy, descent.   It is a two lane major road with no lines so drivers can weave back and forth to avoid rubble, potholes, cows, and other vehicles doing the same.   It is crammed with buses, trucks, and motor bikes, going to and from Kathmandu.  

In order for us to make it to Chitwan National Park in six hours, our driver followed no one and passed everyone.  Vehicles coming the opposite direction were doing the same.  There were numerous times when our vehicle and an on coming vehicle were both on the wrong side of the road doing a dosey-do swerve and pass...Yipes.  We passed several trucks and buses that had broken down along the way, one over turned truck, and passenger bus that had gone partially over one of the steep river embankments and was being towed back.

Okay!  Needless to say, that was an experience, I am not looking forward to again, but am afraid that is the norm here and this only day 3!  The scenery was very interesting and we saw slices of rural village life and lovely terraced vistas as we descended.   It was not spectacularly beautiful as we had hoped.  The air here is smokey-dusty-hazy, the villages are shabby, and rubble and trash border the road.  The people however are beautiful.

The lack of any nicer restaurants along the way also meant no toilets either. We relieved ourselves along side the road in the bush.  Glad I had the she wee with me.  We stopped in one quaint village area by the river, and it had a single outhouse toilet that was well used.  By the time we reached The Royal Park Hotel in Chitwan about 2:30, my stomach was a rumbling volcano.  I stayed close to our room until dinner, skipping  a late lunch and a bicycle ride.  Russ took some lovely photos of the village life and a Nepal sunset.

We were treated to a cultural dance program this evening.  It was very entertaining.  The dances we saw are warrior dances by men with bamboo rhythmic sticks.  The men danced to bongo type drums and with great eye-hand coordination clacked their two sticks together and then those of other dancers as they whirled and twirled.  The performance ended with a fire dance.

All is Well with the Worrall Travel R's

Day 4

Set off with our local guides for a full-day jungle excursion. Begin by canoeing on the Rapti River into the park (approx 90 mins), before jumping out and embarking on a trek to Ghatgai, a village in another section of the park (approx 12 km, 7-8 hrs). Our trekking pace will be slow and quiet to try to maximise our chances of seeing some wildlife and we can soak up the atmosphere with a couple of breaks and a lunch stop along the way. You'll need to carry your own day pack, including your picnic lunch.

 

Day 5

The next day, trek back into the park for about 90 minutes and visit the crocodile breeding centre, then take jeeps back to our hotel at the edge of the park.

Kathmandu Unfolds

Saturday and Sunday, March 2-3, 2013

Today was our first day in Kathmandu. Russ and I, along with a fellow Intrepid traveler Sandra from Texas struck out on our own through the gates of the Kathmandu Guest House after breakfast at the cafe.  Our formal group gathering with our guide wouldn't start until 6:00 pm, so we made arrangements through the Intrepid office for a half day tour to Baktapur, a UNESCO World Heritage site, after lunch, but for now we had the morning free.

Sandra had also come in the night before and was as curious as we were about the dark alleys we had traveled through and what they would like in the day light.  The shabby steel doored alley ways were still shabby, but  the steel doors had lifted and the alleys had exploded into a profusion of people, vehicles, and brightly colored textiles, rugs, clothing, masks, scarves, shawls, fruits, vegetables, jewelry, musical instruments, incense, rickshaws, purses ,bags, and so much more.  What an absolute feast for the eyes.

Here is what the Intrepid Itineray looks like for the first two days.

Days 1-2 Kathmandu

Namaste! Welcome to Nepal.

Your adventure begins with a welcome meeting at 6 pm on Day 1.

Kathmandu is the largest (and pretty much only) city in the country. It can feel like another developing-world city rushing into a modern era of concrete and traffic pollution, but take a walk in the back streets and the capital's amazing cultural and artistic heritage reveals itself in hidden temples overflowing with marigolds, courtyards full of drying chillies and rice, and tiny hobbit-sized workshops largely unchanged since the Middle Ages.

Day 1 optional on your own:

Take a trip to Bhaktapur, located about 20 km east of Kathmandu. Known as the 'City of Devotees' and Nepal's cultural gem, Bhaktapur is filled with monuments, palaces and temples with elaborate carvings, gilded roofs and open courtyards.

After a tasty lunch of momo (similar to pot stickers) and Thukpa  (noodle soup), we hired a taxi and guide to take us to Bhaktapur.  This is a city built in the 1400's.  The temples and carved wood work are wonderful.  UNESCO is assisting with financing the restoration of this site which needs repair as much of it has gone to ruin.  The locals who live here have limited electricity and still draw water from the well to take up to their living quarters.

Nepal is primarily a Hindu country.  Hinduism is a complex religion based on mythologies and reincarnations.  

Day 2 optional on your own:

Early AM:  Take-off on a flight from Kathmandu airport to see some spectacular mountain scenery. Those who don't have the opportunity to go trekking can get panoramic views of the Himalayas in just an hour.

Our early morning flight suffered many before and after delays due to ground fog, but we had a beautiful sunrise and the views of the Himalayas were wonderful.  As we flew back to Kathmandu, the pilot informed us that the Kathmandu airport had closed because of the fog and we could not circle indefinitely or we would run out of gas.  So we had to wait it out in Pakhara,  20 minute flight or 8 hour car drive from Kathmandu.  We could just see a ghost of the Anapurna range through the fog while we were on  the ground.   It was an altogether different experience seeing these massive mountains from the bottom looking up

Day 2 as a group:

Mid-morning, early afternoon:  See the ancient Swayambhunath Stupa (known to tourists as the Monkey Temple) - Kathmandu's most important Buddhist shrine. The sleepy, all-seeing Buddha eyes that stare out from the top have become the quintessential symbol of Nepal.

Join the pilgrims at Bodhnath Stupa - the largest stupa in Nepal and the holiest Tibetan Buddhist temple outside Tibet. It's the centre of Tibetan culture in Kathmandu and rich in Buddhist symbolism.

Our morning flight was delayed, so we didn't start our temple tours until afternoon.  We visited the Swayambhunath Stupa and the Bodhnath Stupa, both Buddhist  temples.  The first one was the oldest and the second is the biggest in Nepal.  We visited an art school where Buddhist monks and students work to paint the Mandela.  It takes ten years to become a master student.  It is amazing the patience and fine hand skills these students develop.

Tomorrow our group heads out tp the Chitwan National Forest for some trekking.  I think posting photos, blogs, etc. will be difficult if not impossible.  

For now though, all is well with the 2 Worrall Travel R's.

Arrived in Nepal

Arrived in Kathmandu Guest House last night at midnight. Brrr. Glad we had on our long pants and fleece jackets. Had a voucher for a taxi transfer and room, but lots of confusion as we weren't on the list. Eventually it all got sorted out.

We asked our driver how long the drive was from airport to hotel. He said, 6 km-20 minutes...short distance, long time?? And indeed the narrow rutted, dark road through curvy alleys and shabby buildings seemed other worldly and took us 30 minutes. Crossed my mind that we were being kidnapped and our bodies would be found in the morning. The guesthouse is behind iron gates. The daylight adventure begins today as we step through the gates.

We will be exploring on our own today. Plan to take a sunrise air flight tomorrow through the Himalayas then we start our touring after breakfast

All is Well with the Worrall Travel R's