Sri Lanka – Sun, sea, wildlife, and some great food – Part 1

This was not my first trip to Sri Lanka. I had spent a few days in Bentota 14 years prior but mostly spent time inside a resort and hardly got a feel of the country. This trip wasn’t much longer, but I intended to get a flavor of the country and be on the move as much as possible. There was no way I could … Continue reading Sri Lanka – Sun, sea, wildlife, and some great food – Part 1

Days 6, 7: Mara – four safaris, 20+ lions, and a near kill

When you are in the jungle, there is never a dull day. Not for the visitors and even more so not for the residents, the animals. The savanas give you ample opportunity to witness the excitement. Each safari was a story or a set of stories to be told. What I felt good about was that we spent a lot of time enjoying each story, … Continue reading Days 6, 7: Mara – four safaris, 20+ lions, and a near kill

Day 5: Masai Mara – The jungle is alive!

Leaving Naivasha was a little sad but there was a lot of excitement to finally see the Masai Mara. It was a 4-hour drive and we started early so we could reach the hotel in time for lunch. There was going to be an additional 45-minute detour the recent floods had damaged the direct bridge that connected our hotel, so we would have to take … Continue reading Day 5: Masai Mara – The jungle is alive!

Days 3, 4: Naivasha and Nakuru – Luxury and wild nature, together…

When I was researching this trip the one hotel that kept popping back up on all travel lists was the Sopa Naivasha Lodge. The pictures were beyond belief and most people said that the experience was even better. It was going to be tough for anything to live up to that expectation! It is a 2-hour drive from Nairobi to Naivasha. This time our airconditioned … Continue reading Days 3, 4: Naivasha and Nakuru – Luxury and wild nature, together…

Days 1, 2: Nairobi – a touristy start…

The press about Nairobi as a city to visit isn’t very positive. Safety is the first question that people ask. While the stories maybe true, there is clearly a positive side to the story as well. The airport experience on landing was amusing at best. The aircraft parked at an aerobridge, and we saw a swanky airport. Just before we could enter, there was a … Continue reading Days 1, 2: Nairobi – a touristy start…

Corbett- Rare combination of luxury and nature

There are truly a lot of flavors of Jim Corbett National park – you just have to choose which one you want. It’s a beautiful forest, very green with two rivers, many tributaries, and a large lake. It hosts a lot of wildlife, tigers, elephants, crocodiles, deer, and many others. The way it is split up, though makes it harder to cover all of it … Continue reading Corbett- Rare combination of luxury and nature

Sariska – A short drive to nature

The unusual problem of 2020 needed some unorthodox solutions. The solution to the ‘no-travel’ problems seems to be road trips to wildlife sanctuaries. I grew up traveling to these nature hotspots, so this isn’t very crazy for me. However, a year of back-to-back visits does sound a bit much. Though this is 2020, anything is possible. For a while, we flip-flopped between Bharatpur and Sariska … Continue reading Sariska – A short drive to nature