January 2025 – Kathy and Dave's Excellent Adventures

01/14/2025 – Beginning the Journey Home

01/14/2025 – Beginning the journey home

After a nice breakfast, we said goodbye to our compatriots at the resort and clambered into our car for the ride back to Kathmandu. We will stay one night before flying back to Delhi where we will stay one night before jetting our way back home.

The car ride back to Kathmandu was relatively painless. It took only 4.5 bumpy hours. Half way through, the driver stopped for a pit stop. We used the facilities and Kathy and Dave got a snack and a Coke Zero. The bottles in Nepal have the smallest openings we have ever seen on a drinking bottle – barely big enough for a straw, if one was so inclined. At one point, Kathy was attempting to take a sip from the bottle when we hit a very large bump. She advised Dave, “Do not drink Coke!” Dave looked at her, with Coke Zero dripping from her nose and advised her, “Do not snort Coke!” The anti-drug message delivered, we made it back to the Ramada Encore Kathmandu and checked in to our room before enjoying a lovely lunch of Mo:Mos and chicken skewers at the rooftop restaurant at the hotel. The thoughts of those villagers near Chitwan were still ringing in our heads as we dined as if we were in the top 1%. Maybe we are.

After lunch, we went for a walk around the alleys and streets of Kathmandu, buying some souvenirs and gifts. Dodging motorbikes and cars had become second nature for us now. We then went back to the hotel to relax before dinner. After dinner, we walked again and then settled in for the night. Tomorrow, we head back to Delhi for our last day of this trip. India has just started a holy festival that happens every 3 years and they are expecting the world’s largest ever gathering of humans. We don’t have a clue where they will fit the expected 400 million celebrants (that’s more than the total population of the United States and Canada combined!) Fortunately, most of the celebration will be along the Ganges River, not in Delhi. Hey! Maybe Delhi will be empty tomorrow because they’ll all be at the festival!?! Check in tomorrow to find out.

Chitwan National Park

01/13/2025 – Back up! Back up!

The morning started nice and cool. Not even chilly, just cool. We had breakfast and then boarded the bus to take us to the canoe ride. Dave was just a little tired after checking the score last night a couple of times. Just because we’re sure everyone needs to know – the Bills won! Beating the Broncos 31-7 in the wildcard playoff game. He had a dream that they had won 73-7, so he was just a tad off.

When we arrived at the ticket kiosk, we heard there was an elephant nearby. We disembarked and looked around, but only saw a few spotted deer. We got back on the bus. But then, we saw several people running and a few cars cars backing up quickly across the bridge. Back up! Back up!! Sure enough, here comes this elephant jogging down the road towards us. One brave/crazy dog barked at him and nipped at his heels. He continued down the road until he went around a corner and we lost sight of him.

We eventually boarded the dugout canoe and floated our way down the river. We saw two types of crocs – one that eats only fish and one that eats everything, including humans. We saw many of them, but in the cool morning air, they did not even stir from basking in the sun on the river banks. Well, except for one who swam toward the boat, then swam away. Apparently, even he does not like American food! We also saw several different types of birds and the ever-present yaks, or water buffalos. Go Buffalo! After the canoe ride, we went to an elephant breeding center along the river. Kathy and I stayed away from gawking at the elephants they had chained up there. We read in the information kiosk that there are over 250 captive elephants in Nepal.

We then went for a jungle walk with a couple of guides. Before we left, our guide told us about the dangers in the jungle. Lions, rhinos, wild elephants, leopards, and other critters were out there and are dangerous. His plan if we spotted one…was to make a plan when we spotted one. Sage advice! We didn’t see one, but we did see … a deer! Oh, and some birds. And yet, we survived the walk in the jungle. Rikki tikki tavi THAT! We walked back to the resort for lunch after that.

After lunch, we jumped in a safari vehicle and headed deep into Chitwan National Park. We saw an amazing bunch of very colorful birds, including a peacock strutting his stuff for his group of about 8 peahens. His tail feathers were fully arrayed and huge! We giggled as he shook his red rear end at them, too. Kathy noticed that the hens appeared to be nonplussed as they continued eating whatever they could find on the ground. We also saw a bunch of spotted deer and a few of the larger sambar deer – the largest deer species in Nepal.

We were hoping to see more mammals in the park, but alas, we saw no tigers or leopards. Oh, did we mention that we saw not one, not two, not even three, for our five, but SEVEN one-horned rhinos! There are several species of rhinos in the world, but Asia has the only one-horned variety. And we saw them live and up close. One was within a few feet of our vehicle. And one had a couple of youngin’s with her. The way they ate the trees and mowed them down had Kathy wondering how there were any trees left in the park! Seeing them was a definite treat.

We went back to the lodge and ate a nice dinner before heading back to our rooms to relax. Dave did speak with the guide before retiring, though. Throughout the small town outside the park, we noticed some nice homes, but we also saw many small, open, concrete houses where the majority of the population lived. Each evening, the family would light a small fire and gather around it. We also noticed many of them using hand pumps to get water – some even using them to bathe themselves. I asked the guide if the people gathering outside over an open fire were cooking, staying warm, or socializing. He said they were doing all three. There are people with indoor kitchens and running water (the “rich people” our guide said) and then there are people without such basic amenities. The town does have electricity and surprisingly, we have had Wi-Fi most places, albeit spotty. Many of the poorer houses also have goats tied up on 3-foot leashes, although a few run free. Cows and yaks are also penned, tied, or collared, too. Many dogs ran free. We wondered how the “rich people” became rich and what “rich” actually meant in Nepal. Most of the people appeared to be happy, although many of them also just sat in plastic chairs outside. We saw many kids playing badminton, but without a net. They just batted the shuttlecock back and forth. Once again while traveling, we became grateful for the blessings and opportunities that have been bestowed on us.

Time to get ready for bed. Tomorrow we go back in the blender for the ride back to Kathmandu.

01/12/205 – The Long and Winding (and Rocky and Dusty and Bumpy) Road

01/12/205 – The Long and Winding (and Rocky and Dusty and Bumpy) Road

We were able to eat breakfast at the hotel before our driver came and picked us up for the 5 hour drive to Chitwan National Park. He knew a shortcut, he said. Up and over a mountain whose road had been washed away with the last monsoon. Okay, we thought, it might be worth the bumping and jostling of using this shortcut without asphalt if it gets us to Chitwan earlier. After an hour of the shortcut, we made it back to the “highway”. Dave is pretty sure that there is not a one mile stretch of the entire trip that was not under construction. To show you how bumpy the road was, Kathy got 5000 steps and 20 “heart points” on her phone – and she was seated the entire way!

We made it almost all the way to the Lodge where we will be spending the next two nights, when the driver pulled over. Something was wrong with the car. I guess 5 sraight hours of speed bumps can do that to an automobile! Fortunately, we think we heard that it was the belt for the AC compressor. The driver said he would get it fixed after he dropped us off. We had the rest of the day “at leisure” on our schedule, so that worked for us. We were looking forward to some leisure after several early mornings and the blender of a ride this morning. We made it to the resort in time for lunch. But then there was a scheduled walk with the lodge guide, then there was a scheduled trip into town to watch a local show featuring indigenous dancing, then it was dinner in the “Dinning Room” at the lodge at 8 pm. So much for “leisure.” At least Dave made a friend at the local show. He had a toddler who was seated in front of him in stitches for most of the show. The little Nepali boy would offer Dave a piece of his candy, and then yank it away when Dave reached out for it. They sure do teach them young in Nepal!

We are finally full from our dinner and in our room. We will soon be serenaded by Mr. Sandman, although Dave may occasionally check his phone for the score of the Bills playoff game, which starts at 11:45 pm local time.😟 Tomorrow we will be hiking and canoeing to look for big game here in Chitwan.

01/10 – 11/2025 – The Earth’s roof!

01/10/2025 – Welcome to the “City of Wooden Temples”, AKA Kathmandu

The drive from Jaipur to the Delhi airport went relatively smoothly, although we did run into fog for quite a while. And we believe this was actual water vapor fog! We arrived at the airport by about 9:45 and said our goodbyes to our guide, Joy, and our driver, Robey. They had been very good to us and we will miss them. Getting into the airport was relatively painless, although they had to throw in one new wrinkle as a goodbye to us. We checked in our bags, got our boarding passes, and headed to the security checkpoint. Kathy and I dutifully pulled all of our electronics and wires out of our packs and placed them in a separate bin and put all our belongings through the scanner. We also took everything out of our pockets, and Dave took off his belt, and put everything in the bins. The line for the women’s security was shorter and in no time, Kathy walked through the metal detectors and got patted down. But wait! At THIS particular security checkpoint, you also have to get your boarding pass stamped. Of course, Kathy had put the boarding passes in her pack before going through the metal detectors and had to yell at Dave to get them before they went through the scanner. Yikes! Now, we were through and on to the gate to await our flight. Lo! And behold! There is a McDonald’s at the food court! Now, we knew that getting a hamburger was out of the question in Hindu India, but surely they would have an Egg McMuffin or a Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Biscuit. Nope. No breakfast items at all. Breakfast was fries for Kathy and Chicken McNuggets for Dave. We sat down to eat and looked for a place to charge our phones. But wait! The outlets in India are not like those in the US and Dave put all of his cords and adapters in his checked bag to avoid having an issue at the security checkpoint. Fortunately, the airport had “magical” outlets that accepted many different types of plugs, including ours (and a chap named Jacob from the UK who sat with us and charged his phone, too!)

The flight to Kathmandu was easy and soon we were picked up by our new guide and driver. They took is straight to the hotel. It was a good thing, too, as we were pretty tired and had to get used to the time zone change. What? You didn’t know that India and Nepal are on different time zones? Yep, the 15 minute difference in time zones between the two countries will be hard to adapt to – hope we don’t get jet lag too badly! Dave did not think he was going to bother re-setting his watch for the time zone difference. Ensconced in our hotel room (a room with actual electronic key cards again, unlike the padlocks and skeleton keys from the previous two hotels), we ordered a chicken club sandwich from room service and settled in for the night. It’s another early morning tomorrow as we catch a flight to see Mount Everest and the Himalayans!

01/11/2025 – The Top of the World

Our 6:30 am pickup from the hotel was waiting for us as we picked up a boxed breakfast from the hotel. We had booked a sightseeing flight to Mount Everest as part of our trip. We were rather surprised that it was a commercial airline flight! We had to go through the domestic flight terminal and get to gate #1 for our flight. Once aboard, we had a flight attendant and about 10 rows of seats. The 18 passengers were each assigned a window seat on one side of the aircraft or the other. We took off and flew along the Himalayas before turning around and flying back. That way, each side got a good view of the highest mountains in the world. Everest was, of course, stunning. But also seeing the tiny villages dotting the landscape and the zig-zagging “roads” (or trails?) that connected them was also impressive.

After the flight, we returned to our hotel room and were met by our new guide who was going to show us around Kathmandu. We started out on foot from the hotel and visited temples, shrines, and Buddhist Monasteries. Kathmandu is a Nepali word originally meaning “City of Wooden Temples”, and we saw why. Some of them were 400 or more years old. We saw temples were people come if they have smallpox and we saw a place where people come and nail coins to a wall if they have a tooth problem. We also went to Durbar Square, which was built in 1549 as a royal palace and temple. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We then drove to the ancient Buddhist Stupa called Bouddha Stupa on top of a hill. Legends have it that this stupa has been around for 1000 years! If so, it was built 400 years after the Lord Buddha was alive. A “stupa” is a mound-like structure that contains a relic of Lord Buddha. In this one, there is said to be a tooth from the original Buddha. Talk about “long in the tooth”! After Dave was almost attacked by a monkey for getting his hand too close to its baby, we met back up with our driver and went back to the hotel. We walked around a bit in the city, found a nice restaurant to eat lunch (Cuisine alert – Afghani Mo:Mo’s are pretty good!), bought a hand-stitched t-shirt for Dave and some dessert, and went back to the hotel to rest up.

Tomorrow morning we drive to Chitwan National Park!

Mario Karts to Oz what a Journey

01/05/2025 – Let’s a’ Go, Throwaway, Yiiiipeee, Yeah, ha ha ha, Waha!, Here we go! Way to Go! We did it!

Well, this morning we say goodbye to Varanasi and hello to Agra. First, however, we must take the dreaded commercial flight. We asked to be picked up at the hotel early so that if any issues happen at the airport, we won’t be sweating the possibility of missing our flight. Our driver picked us up at 09:30 and the ride to the airport was uneventful and quick. We had determined that we were going to make it through check-in and to our gate without any (paid) help. Of course, new airport – new wrinkle! Before we could enter the airport, we had to show our boarding passes and passports, get our photo taken, and be issued a biometrics tag. From then on, we could just “look into the camera” and, abracadabra! The gate would open for us. (or is it “open sesame” in India?) Anyway, we are now seasoned Indian travelers since we made it through bag check-in, security checkpoint, (paper) boarding pass acquisition, and to our gate without any issues! Of course, that meant we were extra early for our flight, of course, or course, our flight was delayed meaning we were there extra, extra early for our flight! The flight was delayed because the plane was late arriving due to “fog conditions” (is what they call it). “Smog conditions” is what we smelled. Anyway, we arrived back in Delhi, picked up a quick bite to eat, and met our previous driver and guide for the 4-hour drive to Agra.

The drive to Agra was relatively painless; at least once we got outside Delhi. The time before we left the boundaries of Delhi, though, made us think we were in a game of Mario Karts. Dashing in and out of each other’s paths, honking incessantly, and careening around curves… we kept waiting for a banana peel to be thrown in front of us or a turtle shell to go whizzing by! By the time we left that video game world and traffic abated, it was dark, and this was our first time traveling at night, so that was a new wrinkle. We were traveling serenely on a 6-lane divided highway, when the 3 lanes going in our direction were closed due to construction. We were re-routed onto the 3 lanes going in the opposite direction. This happens in the US. What also happens in the US are concrete barricades to separate the lanes going in opposite directions. Not so much in India. Three lanes of playing chicken at highway speeds is what happens in India. A Mario Karts reprise! Fortunately, the construction area wasn’t too long and we made it through without any near-death experiences. We arrived at our relatively swanky hotel in Agra and are awaiting tomorrow morning when we will see the Taj Mahal! See you on the flip side!

01/06/2025 – Welcome to the Wow Mahal!

Another Seven Wonders of the World can be checked off of our bucket list! Morning arrived quickly and we collectively decided to go to the Taj Mahal first thing in the morning. It was a good choice. It was not busy. The beautiful complex was shrouded in a misty fog that gave the beautiful building a magical quality. We’ve seen pictures of the royal tomb of the wife of the Fourth Mogul Ruler, but in real life, up close, it was WOW! The marble was still gorgeous after 400 years, as were the precious stones painstakingly embedded in the marble. It was truly awe inspiring, as it was intended to be. After visiting this iconic landmark, we stopped by a marble workshop that is still being run by descendants of the families who built the Taj, and are using the same techniques to make precious stone-embedded marble products to this day. They were exquisite.

Next on the stop was the Red Fort, an actual working fort that is currently 70% occupied by India’s special military forces. The ancient building is still in excellent condition and we enjoyed walking through the area and learning about the history. This was the home of the same Fourth Mogul Ruler who had built the Taj Mahal. After his wife died, he was inconsolable. After a few years, one of his sons beheaded his older brother (and next in line to rule) and imprisoned his father in this fort. His father’s only request was that he be able to view the Taj Mahal from his room. It was barely visible today with all the fog/smog in the air.

Now, it is time to drive to Ranthambore National Park, a 4-5 hour drive through the countryside. After a relatively easy drive, we arrived at our new hotel – Ranthambore Heritage Haveli. This place is like an ancient Indian palace, with marble and decorative entrances. Even the individual rooms have old fashioned type padlocks which use skeleton-type keys. Breakfasts and dinners are very nice buffets with several staff on hand to get whatever we need.

Tomorrow we will experience our first two safaris in the park. Watch out tigers, here we come!

01/07-08/2025 – Leopards and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

We have spent the last two days going on 3 safaris inside Ranthambore National Park. The park is divided into Zones and we have been in Zones 2, 3 and 6. We did a morning and an afternoon safari yesterday, and a morning safari today. We did manage to see one tiger, although it was from about 100 yards away and through some scrawny trees – but, we did see a tiger! We were also fortunate enough to see things like spotted deer and Indian wild boars, Indian flying foxes (aka fruit bats), sloth bears (including one cub!), crocodiles, a jackal, a mongoose, macaques, several birds (including new Life-List birds like Asian Wooly-necked storks, peacocks, Rose-ringed parakeets, Pied kingfishers, Rufous Treepies, Red-Wattled lapwings, Taiga flycatchers, cormorants, herons, and 2 types of owls – the Indian Scops-Owl and the Brown Fish-Owl. Kathy was more excited about seeing owls than she was the tiger!), and – at the last minute as we were exiting the park – a leopard with 2 cubs, again from a distance. So, as Dorothy and the Scarecrow would say, we saw “leopards, and tigers, and bears, oh my!” (Okay, so we took a little creative licensing, sue us!) The trip to Ranthambore was definitely a highlight of our trip. The wildlife was awesome, but it was also the first time seeing blue skies above us! Delightful!

After our second morning safari, we drove about 5 hours to get to Jaipur, also known as the “Pink City”. After a stop at the Amber Fort, a magnificent fort/palace built in the late 1500’s, we arrived in Jaipur just in time for our scheduled dinner, complete with authentic music and dancing by locals. The food was traditional Rasthanjani food. Our guide, Joy, is from Jaipur and he can attest to its authenticity. After dinner, we were taken to our hotel to get some sleep before our very early hot air balloon ride over the Pink City. We can’t wait!

01/09/2025 – Up, up, and away in my beautiful balloon!

Up before daylight, we were driven an hour to where the hot air balloon will take off. We watched a beautiful misty morning sunrise as the crew readies the balloon for the 16 passengers. Then, it was up in the air and drifting with the breeze. It was so beautiful looking down at the changing terrain from plowed farms to houses to two different mountains. Many people below stopped to take our photos and we all waived as they waived back at us. It was serene and peaceful, a welcome respite from the regular hustle and bustle of India.

After the balloon ride, we toured the Pink City including the Royal Palace, which is still in use today, although the king who lives there no longer has any power (other than wealth, of course.) We also toured a gem and jewelry shop which makes all of their wares by hand in the same way as they have for generations. We saw huge rocks that, if we saw them lying on the ground we would just kick them down the trail, but were actually fist-sized rubies, emeralds, and amethysts. We toured a linen factory which made rugs from hand (in wool, cotton, silk, and camels’ hair), as well as bed linens, table cloths, and clothing. All very pretty, and all made painstakingly by hand. Dave even tried his hand at making a cloth with a 4-color display. It didn’t turn out too badly for a non-Indian with no artistic talent! He had a good Raja to teach him!

Well, tomorrow morning at 5:30 comes early, and that is when we have to leave Jaipur to drive to Delhi and catch our flight to Kathmandu. We will post some photos now from our phones. The best wildlife photos were taken by Dave’s SLR camera and will have to wait until later to be added to the website. Tomorrow, “We’re Going to Kathmandu!” as Bob Segar would sing.

Oh, Happy Days!

01/03-04/2025 Oh Happy Days

Varanasi is the heart and soul of the Hindus in India. At least once in their lifetime they are required to make a pilgrimage to Varanasi and bathe in the Ganges River. Once we got to our hotel, we just chilled for a bit, which was a nice change from the hectic airports. That sedate glow didn’t last too long as we were soon on our way for our first adventure to this city, a religious ceremony held on the banks of the Ganges River. The journey to get to the river was not easy – or quiet – as masses of humans crowded the streets to make their way to the sacred ceremony. Along the way we dodged motorcycles going at breakneck speed through the throngs of pedestrians, dogs, monkeys, cows and, of course, their cow patties deposited in the middle of the walkway. There were more people in the streets than it seems there are in the entire town of Lockport, NY. And each one was intent on getting the best spot to view the priests. Upon reaching our high overlook atop a nearby structure – again a nice perk for us out of towners. Granted, we paid for this perk (a donation for the temple) but it was still a perk and we settled in to look down at the ceremony which was to begin. The masses below us were just not perched on every available piece of land, but also were on boats that were crammed as close to the shore as possible. There were boats parked bow to stern for hundreds of yards into the Ganges.

Soon the ceremony began. It began with a priest chanting something in Sanskrit, what I don’t know, but apparently it was enough to get the crowd a rockin’ and rollin’, and soon we were reminded of a Baptist church revival with joyous shouts and what we assumed were hallelujahs. It was a joyous site to behold and be a part of. The emotions and joy that filled the crowd was nice. Being Catholic, we are known for our predictable rituals, yet we appreciated the outpouring of love and joy expressed by the community. The single priest was soon joined by four other priests and the chanting, incense burning, bell ringing, drum pounding, and of course, the fire and flames were next. Wow, our religion is kind of staid! Still, we kind of like the quiet contemplativeness of mass especially as we dodged people, machines and animals to get back to the hotel. Phew! Alive and well with no cow pies wedged into the grooves of our shoes.

Morning came and we were again off. This time, the agenda included a boat ride on the Ganges River where we learned the importance and mythology of the river and the meaning behind many of the rituals that take place on the river. One very important one is the cremation, or commitment of the dead. We actually watched from our boat the “funeral” pyre of a woman who had died. We put that in quotation marks only because what we think of a funeral is something completely different than in the Hindu religion. The person who dies is cremated within one day of their death. The deceased is prepared, wrapped in finery and flowers, and then cleaned up by the women of the family. The men then take the body to the edge of the Ganges where they dip the body in the river. The nice garments are then removed leaving only a white shroud to cover the deceased person. The men then put the body next to a large pile of wood to cremate the person. It is estimated by our guide to take 3-4 hours for the body to be fully cremated. Some of the ashes are then put into the Ganges. Another part of a ritual many take part in is the lighting of a small candle that is swaddled in a bouquet of gardenias and put on the river. The lighting of the candle is to honor someone in your family. Kathy, whose mother just passed, lit the candle and gently put the candle and flowers into the Ganges River and said a small prayer for her mom.

Phew, we survived the trek back to the car through the streets of Varanasi and now are on our way to visit Sarnath, the place where the first Buddah gave his first sermon. The site has been excavated over the years and many artifacts and the outlines of old buildings have been found. The foundations of the buildings can be seen nestled in a bed of green grass and lots of flowers. It was a nice reprise from the hustle and bustle of the city traffic and the ever present noise from the throngs of people. We then wandered through the museum that was on the grounds to see all the artifacts recovered from the site.

Kathy, assuming we were going back to the hotel, was informed we would head to a silk factory to learn how they made silk scarves, saris, and other items. Upon arriving, she was ushered into the expansive foyer and greeted by multiple people. Our guide had her stand by one side of a table where he produced a birthday cake and a couple of candles were lit and the staff sang Happy Birthday. What a nice surprise Dave had arranged. The guide had been so attentive all day and on a couple of locations had bought her some small gifts to take home as souvenirs. Of course, we now had to look at their products and again Kathy – against her own agenda – purchased a couple items, or should we say Dave bought her some nice birthday gifts. Kathy felt very pampered and special on this day. Just so it can be in writing, she got lucky – Dave is the best ever!!