April 26: Delhi, India to Ranthambore National Park, India

Today we had about a 5 hour drive from Delhi to Ranthambore. We left about 8am and arrived about 1pm- in time for lunch. Later in the afternoon (3pm) we had our first game drive to look for Indian Tigers.

The rest stops are pretty fun- they are small shopping centers that have great bathrooms and places to get food or tea.

We saw many different vehicles on the roads from large trucks to small motorcycles. Pedestrians, horses, cows and camels were on the road too. The most we saw on one motorcycle was 5 people. Periodically we’d see 4 on a motorcycle but we only saw 5 on a motorcycle once.

I also liked the Pepsi signs on many of the small roadside stores.

We were super happy to see tigers on our first game drive. The first tiger we saw wasn’t in very good shape- she had a baseball sized tumor on her back leg and was very skinny- but she moved well and still looked powerful. The other tigers we saw today were much healthier.

Drive to Agra

Rest Stop with great signs for the restrooms

Tibor really liked the disposable cup for his Masala Chai. The cup is clay and can be thrown away and it will biodegrade. He wasn’t as happy when he learned that he got the tourist price (100 rupee) versus the local price (20 rupee) for his cup of tea. Our guide is next to Tibor.

motorcycle and park wall. The wall keeps the cows and livestock out of the park rather than keep the tigers in the park

Afternoon Game Drive- Zone 3

Full view of the first tiger we saw- even tho skinny with baseball size tumor, she is still powerful

Second tiger of the day- we saw a few more and then as frosting on the cake we saw one just as we were leaving the park

Backing up at speed to change direction to look for another tiger

Scenic View- we had beautiful weather- not very hot and we didn’t get any rain from the clouds tho they threatened

Franklin mom and chicks