India, "Namaste"

When I last posted, we had just arrived in Sawai Madhopur, tired and shaken by our first day in India. While we were there, we went on 2 safaris into the Ranthambhore National Park in search of the wild tigers. Unfortunately, we did not see them. That's the thing about wild animals, there is no guarantee. And, since tigers are nocturnal, they aren't likely to be up and about during the day, especially in this heat. We did, however, get to see some tiger footprints (!) across our path, as well as a leopard, large antelopes, spotted deer, monitor lizards, chipmunks, wild peacocks, mongoose, plenty of monkeys and some beautiful birds (Kingfisher and parakeet, to name a couple).

We spent our afternoons relaxing by the pool and enjoying the fabulous hospitality and food at this little "diamond in the rough" hotel.

We weren't able to get three seats on the train that was supposed to take us to Agra/Taj Mahal yesterday, so we took the morning train back to Delhi today. This time, we didn't get sleeping berths, but sat in an air-conditioned coach. I think we all were impressed with train travel in India, which was much better, easier, more comfortable than we imagined it would be (and super cheap)!

We decided to book our last night in Delhi with a hotel name we knew, so we are here living it up at theRadisson Blu near the airport.  We found a bargain on Expedia with breakfast and airport ride included. We got a complementary upgrade to a suite at checkin, so we are all feeling posh.  I think, though, that our lunch here cost more than three days worth of food at Ranthambhore (but still less than lunch at home)!

"Namaste" means that the "light" (or the very best part) in me bows to and recognizes the "light" in you.  This was the greeting we received when we checked into the Ranthambhore National in Sawai Madhopur, India, and I believe it perfectly summarizes how I have grown to feel about India!

India isn't perfect, I wouldn't describe it as "paradise"... We only saw a small piece, but much of India is very hot, dusty, crowded and chaotic.  But on the flip side, it's oh-so-colorful and vibrant! It's interesting, with cool trains, monkeys, tractors with tassels, delicious food, and lots of very kind people. I've always said that the thing I love most about traveling is getting out of my comfort zone. And indeed we did.  It's probably the perfect springboard into our next destination. Countdown to Southeast Asia. Next stop, Bangkok!