Day 2 Chitwan National Park

We woke this morning to a lovely sunrise which we could view from our room balconies.  Some of the tour team managed to see deer graising nearby….I had no such luck but the view was still lovely - I watched the little sparrows jump around the railings.  

We ate another lovely breakfast and then met for a village tour with Rajesh.  A small bus took us to the village and then we walked before returning by bus again.   We were so fortunate to be able to talk to (through Rajesh) one of the families.  They were a relatively elderly couple - they didn’t know how old they were, nor when they got married!  They had been relocated from the National Park where they had once lived some 53 years ago - claiming the land they are now on and building their house - or more aptly ‘house compound’.    They have a number of seperate buildings, all made of straw with a mud render.  The Rooves are made of thatch.  Everything is spotless, although it is earth floor.  Apparently every morning the women polish the floor with a mud wash to seal the dust and provide and clean finish!   

The couple lived in the compound with their sone and daughter-in-law - grandchildren had already left to live elsewhere.  The DIL looked nearly as hold as the MIL and life looked hard (not so bad for the FIL who seemed to hover in the background!).  

We returned for a morning tea refreshment, some down time and then lunch before heading across the river to a jeep for our safari.  I was quite excited while talking to Judy and Lucy just before lunch we spotted a crocodile in the river, so I was hopeful of seeing more.  

Our large jeep took us from the river through some river plains to more wooded areas that were definitely jungle like - with various layers of foliage.  We spent 5 hours driving various trails through dense wood, open grassland and bushy areas around waterholes looking for animals.  The search started well with the spotting of a tiger footprint on the path next to our jeep.  Over the 5+ hours I think we counted 15 Indian Rhinos (Greater one horn Rhinoceros); probably a few hundred spotted deer; some hog deer; some herds of Gaur (an Indian Bison like beast); Peacocks and pea hens; Northern Plains grey Languors (Hanuman Monkeys); and a variety of birds including three Great Hornbills who are endangered!!

 

We searched and waited for tigers but none showed their faces.   A huge highlight towards the end of the safari was a large Rhino who was initially about 50 metres from the jeep walked towards us to be may be 15 metres away….the size and scale is amazing…such tiny eyes for such a large beast!

Returning covered in a fine layer of dust, we showered and got ready for the second culture dancing showcasing Tharu dancing.  It was another lovely authentic show that showed great skill and tremendous choreography with long stick dancing, short stick dancing.

A special ‘bush dinner’ was prepared for us and we sat laughing and talking in a jungle bush setting surrounded by kerosene lamps to finish the day.

Day 1 Chitwan National Park

 We left Pokhara at a reasonable time for what we were told was a 5 hour drive with a number of breaks.  The times seem to get lost in translations occasionally - 15 minutes turns to an hour etc….so we were unsure whether it was 5 hours driving plus breaks or including.  Some of our crew were worried about 5 straight hours driving without a bathroom break….it is funny how people from different countries view the length of driving….5 hours doesn’t quite get me from home to Wollongong!  One of our stops - which apparently is a known half way point, had a rather good little coffee van and POOL! 

The time on the road was interesting.  We left the Pokhara valley and headed towards Kathmandu.  At one point it was turn left to Kathmandu and turn right to Chitwan.    The landscape changed then to roads that ran alongside a rather large river with steep mountains on either side.  It was really hard to capture by photo.  THere were suspension bridges across the valley and over the river to enable those that lived in tiny houses on the side of the mountain to access the road….had they not been there I can’t imagine what life would be like - the mountains were so very steep it would be impossible to walk on any flat surface at all.  

The Park is located South-Central Nepal near the the town of Sauraha. It is the lowlands of Nepal…and quite different to what we had seen. Whereas the north had farming by terrace in every plot imaginable - wheat particularly - this area has acres of small plots planted with tomatoes, cucumbers, dragon fruit as well as rice, wheat and other general crops. The plots are small however many are butted against each other and dotted with small houses.   

The buildings are interesting….it appears in towns the houses are designed around blocks of 2.5 x 40 metre rectangles  - it almost seems they are shipping containers size…the rich houses are three story and a series of 1 to 4 containers joined….the side walls are cement pillars every 2.5 metres infilled with bricks.  It is really common and I can only imagine it is something to do with ground stability and maximising rigidity.  

Our stay at Chitwan is at the Barahi Jungle Lodge.  The same hotel chain we stayed in at Pokhara.  Quite upmarket…but this takes it to a new level.  The rooms are individual or twin cabins constructed in local materials with minimal plastic and extremely environmentally friendly.  The food is next level and all supplied.  Coffee plunger in room as are jars of biscuits etc.  It was unexpected and we all commented that we did not expect such luxury.

Our first afternoon we had a canoe adventure on the Rapti River.  Our naturalist guide, Rajesh, quietly commented on the seen wildlife - elephant, endangered crocodile and a number of birds.  Sliding down the end of the river powered by our ‘captain’ using a pole, we quietly observed the river banks.  A few little rapids were evident and some submerged logs (that from a distance looked like crocodiles) were spotted.  It was mainly bird life we observed.  

At the end of our ride down river we were greeted with a sunset picnic to watch the sunset over the river and watch locals collect grasses and fish!  

There was complimentary champagne and  nibbles set up with deck chairs facing the river and sunset.  Each group (and there were several) had their own private little area….there were couples who were obviously having a romantic time, while the larger cleared areas catered for the larger groups such as ours.  They had even erected small washroom tents for males and females…it appeared everything had been thought of!  

We all had a few laughs while drinking and taking ‘instagram’ pictures.  

After the champagne sunset picnic…we were just about to leave in the safari jeep to return to the hotel when the clouds cleared and the sun glowed red low on the horizon…..the colouring of the sky matched the water and the local fishermen and boat silhouetted agains a glowing orange and pink sky….absolutely stunning! 

On returning to the hotel, we then enjoyed a cultural dance be one of the two local tribes people.  It felt very authentic and not touristy at all unlike many hotel cultural shows I’ve seen.    We enjoyed a drink and then headed to a lovely buffet dinner.  While we were just about to sit down to eat word got around that there had been a rhinoceros spotlighted on the other side of the river….we immediately walked down to see a very large beast refreshing his/herself beside the water.  It’s a little hard to tell from the photos as it was night and the lighting was torch but you can still clearly see it.