Tigers, Scams and Scotch, oh my!

11th-20th March

Good morning, afternoon or evening!

As we have had such a busy few days (lots of travel, sightseeing and mosquito bites) this is going to be a short list of highlights...

11th March -

Ranthambore National Park!

After a healthy dose of Imodium ('nuff said) we set off at half 6 in the morning for our first safari. After confirming our names as 'Ryan' and 'Rose' (middle names) we set off on the most bitterly cold, bumpy ride through the forest. Starting to lose hope, this dude showed up...

And it was AWESOME. 'Take your breath away' moments.

Already feeling very lucky, we got back to our hotel to find that none of the other guests had seen a tiger.

13th March -

Jaipur!

Sightseeing in the city. We met with our guide to visit the astonishing places the Pink City has to offer.

Such as the Palace of Winds (s'cuse you)

Amber Fort (below with Vinod)

Jal Mahal. Palace in the lake. 3 floors are submerged.

Jantar Mantar, astrological observatory. That's a massive sundial! It's accurate to 2 seconds.

We finished the day with a visit to the Elephant Village where we got up close and personal with the magnificent creatures.

This elephant was 30 years old but they can live to be 100!

Dan feeding the elephant sugar canes

Getting henna

14th March -

Pushkar!

After a crazy drive from Jaipur to Pushkar (featuring people turning around and going the wrong way in the middle of the motorway), we headed into the busy town to the holy lake. Commence scam no.2. Some people 'helped us' find the lake through the winding streets, gave us bindis and took us through some 'religious ceremony'.

(Beth actually really enjoyed repeating a long chant to a coconut and throwing flowers in the lake but we don't talk about that...).

After demanding 500 rupees per family member Dan had enough and after some arguing we eventually left - the lake is worthwhile but beware of people preying on foreigners for 'easy cash'.

16th March -

Mandawa!

Got up early for the sunrise from the roof of our hotel - didn't quite make it in time so went back to bed (shhhh).

Later on we had a tour of Mandawa, in which we saw the local Havelis (very old mansions typically renovated into hotels, whilst keeping the original artwork).

Dan was likened to both a Maharaja (king) and a Bollywood star (Beth's never gonna hear the end of that one).

Turns out we were the only guests in the hotel (which had only been opened for 2 months) so we were spoilt! Swimming in the pool, soaking up the sun, playing our music, drinks, snacks and lots of laughs. A great afternoon.

Following an evening cooking lesson, the owner of the hotel (and tour company) Raju, met and had dinner with us. Whacking out the Scotch he insisted we were all 'on the same platform!' aka we needed to be as drunk as he was getting.

18th March -

Delhi!

Our last full day in India and a fairly chilled one. We visited the Lodi Gardens and Akshardham temple (no cameras allowed, sorry!)

On a side note... suncream in India is hard to find, eventually we found some called 'Sissy Lotion'. Once we explained the English meaning of 'sissy' to our driver Vinod he found this hilarious and absolutely loved it. Planning to call everyone "a sissy" if he ever comes to the UK!

19th March - Arrived in Thailand (3hr30mins flight). Pre-booked taxi to our AirBnB.

20th March - Today! Woohoo we have caught up with ourselves. Pool, swim, tan. The End.

Tip Time:

- Always have cash on you. We've had some v. awkward moments with housekeeping and luggage staff. Get out more than you need, you'll spend it.

- DON'T DRIVE IN INDIA. Nope, don't even think about it. To give you a little taste, roundabout etiquette is to give way to whoever is driving the fastest. Yep.

- As cute as the street puppies get (trust me, some of them are Andrex-worthy) don't touch them! Some even follow you down the road... my heart.

- Do smile at locals. At first they just stare but it's amazing how quickly people's hard exteriors dissolve! Waves and smiles all round.

- Hygiene, hygiene, hygiene. We were OCD in India. Hand sanitiser before food, after washing hands (yup) etc., water purification tablets, brush teeth with bottled water, don't eat salad/skin of fruit. Citricidal is yo best friend. A tip from my Aunty. It's concentrated grapefruit extract. You drink a few drops in water twice a day and hey presto, we were never sick!

- Do remember to look up. Starry nights in Mandawa were insane. No light pollution. No clouds.

- Don't be afraid to say no. We got taken to multiple workshops and 'traditional' shops on our tour. At the end of the demonstration they would show you items for sale (jewellery, scarfs, wall hangings). At first we bought little things as to not seem rude. But we're on a budget. If you just say you won't be buying from the beginning it saves a lot of time and a lot of pleasantries.

- Do get up at the crack of dawn! Watching sunrises and our morning at the Taj Mahal will stay with us forever.

Hope you are all well <3

Love,

B&D

- Temperatures from 32 - 36 degrees C.

- Amber Fort, Jaipur entrance fees - 500 rupees per person (£5.50)

- Elephant ride and feeding in Jaipur for two - 7220 rupees (£80)

- Henna painting in Jaipur - 600 rupees (£6.60)

Ranthambore Safari

Amber Fort!

Kumar, works at the Mandawa Hotel and is such a nice guy!

Sunsets on the rooftop

Breakfast feastin'!