10.30.18 Morning Safari...Another Tiger???


It goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway...could we possibly spot another tiger?  Well to spare you needless suspense, the answer is "no."  However, I am relying on either Cathy or Michele to share their rear end shot of a leopard as well as anyone else who was lucky enough to catch the sloth bear in any amount of detail other than a large black ball behind a bunch of trees...

But safaris are never a total letdown...the black-face monkeys are always happy to oblige anyone who pays attention to them...

Just hanging and waiting to get into devilment.

Nit-picking.

Missed a spot.

OW! What more can I say??

Even monkeys get thirsty and need to turn on the tap for a drink.

The trail we were assigned this morning featured more lakes and interesting landscapes than our previous route.

Stunning Banyan roots surrounded the entrance gate.

Sunrise and silhouettes.

Favorite shade spot for the tigers in hotter weather.

 

Lots of archaeological remains.

The old Ranthambore fort.

Old temples.

The chilly morning provided more bird activity as well...

Kingfisher (the bird, not the beer we had been drinking).

 A Rufous Treepie perched on our jeep 

searching for a free handout.

First time I ever saw a bird devouring 

one that was a lot bigger.

And finally, some first sightings...

The antelope.

Rear view of a crocodile just exiting the lake.

10.29.18 Onto Bollywood - or NOT...


We have had the best luck with festivals and celebrations during this trip, and it continued when we arrived at Nahargarh Hotel during the filming of a Bollywood film (apparently in the Punjab series)...

After breakfast we roamed the many courtyards to investigate - since we weren't leaving for the village until 10 AM.  Multiple scenes were being set up for filming - including a wedding scene, which I inadventently walked into the background while they were filming. I must say the gentleman who approached me was quite polite in requesting I leave - despite the fact that I ruined that cut. 

Alas, a potential budding film career ends up once again on the cutting floor...

Soon it was time to depart for the village to interact with the locals and learn more about their culture...

We had a fantastic day with the families, starting with a question and answer session with them inside their temple...

This little one was so adorable and wearing make-up at an early age...

I absolutely loved these 14 year old ladies who were so impressive and loving...

Two young ladies at work with a giant size mortar and pestle...

Most of the girls were on a handball team at school. Here they are gladly modeling their uniform.

Checking out some of the photos I took of them...

The girls decided it would be a hoot to dress me up in their gear and challenge me with a "dance-off" competition (maybe with the hopes that I could still make it to Bollywood). This young lady, and even the little guy, made me look like someone in need of many more lessons.  I thought she was the best one on the floor and later learned that she was a trained dancer (ringer) ha ha. I danced until it was time for lunch - with all of us laughing and having a grand time.  Any issues I had I blamed on the veil that kept falling off my head.

I think they are the most beautiful souls I have ever the chance to meet. This photo was taken after we finished lunch and were ready to depart. Just look at those smiles...

And of course they were smiling and laughing...they planned to make me dance one more time with them before we left!

10.28.18 On the Road to Ranthambore...


Excitement builds as we begin our 5-hour journey to Ranthambore National Park (with the rest of the Indian and tourist population) for a much-anticipated safari.  Along the way we have many opportunities for some rural countryside photography...

It was amazing to see these pickup trucks loaded with inflated bags containing feed from their fields that were so large, you needed to attach a ladder to access the top.  They also appeared to make driving difficult and quite restrictive - inching toward the windows of the cab.

The women worked alongside the men in the fields. 

 I couldn't get over how beautifully they were dressed 

while toiling away.

Our hotel destination - Nahargarh Hotel - was, by far, the most impressive, incredible-looking hotel I have ever had the pleasure of staying in.  It reminded me of our own Taj Mahal.

There is no way I could possibly photograph it in its entirety, so here is a photo from their website:

https://www.nahargarh.com/


And here are the best photos I managed to capture:

This handsome young man is the son of the man below. 

I could watch him dance all night long.

Dad played some beautiful, soothing Indian music.

Our room key.

As our festival mojo continues, we discover there is a Bollywood movie being filmed at our hotel. We will be approaching them later tomorrow to see if they might be in need of extras for the crowd shots. Think we will fit right in???

Factoids about Ranthambore National Park...

• located near the town of Sawai Madhopur
• one of 11 sites chosen for Project Tiger, India's national tiger conservation program
• more than 100 square miles of deciduous forest & several large lakes
• a hunting preserve of the Maharajas until 1970

Well, less than 5 minutes into our extremely rocky afternoon safari ride, we came upon several monkeys - mostly female - nursing their babies. They were so used to the jeeps they just ignored us and continued on with their afternoon routine. 

These photos are dimensionally longer because these monkeys had extremely long tails - something I had never seen before on my previous safaris in Africa.

Then came the sambar deer and the spotted deer...

Baby crocodile

But our naturalist was getting impatient and chomping at the bit to find a tiger for us - apparently, like the African leopard not an easy feat.  He suggested we continue forward in our quest and try to get the more common animal photos on our return leg.

It wasn't too long after we began that hunt in earnest when we heard a monkey warning coming from the canopy of one of the tallest trees alongside a river...

RUN!!!

And, just to our right - lounging in the river in all his youthful glory - was a young male tiger...

...totally oblivious to the pushy, aggressive human beings

 jockeying for the best photo.

 

I call these types the "National Geographic" photographers.  

I wonder how they had these cameras and managed to stay under the airport weight limitations.

And, to top of the day - another fantastic sunset.