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Lions and Tigers

September - October 2019
We have been looking forward to a trip to Africa for a long time and we were fortunate to back up the African tour with a short tour of India. So, lions in Africa, tigers in India.... can't wait! Read more
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  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 22

    Lake Nakuru Game Drive

    October 14, 2019 in Kenya ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    We had a very long game drive - left at 7 and returned after 12. While Amboseli is mainly known for elephants, Lake Nakuru is more recognised for giraffe, cape buffalo, zebra, impala, baboon (well, they are just everywhere), rhinos (mostly white , but occasionally black rhino), and flamingos. The big cats (lion, cheetah and leopard) are in the park but usually they are not seen.

    While we did not see any cats, we did see all of the others, including both black and white rhinos. The giraffe were the Rothschild giraffe which I think are more beautifully marked than the ones we saw in Kruger (Maasai giraffe I think). On some, the tiles/spots were almost black and very striking.

    The difference between the black and white rhino is mainly to do with the shape of their snout. The white being more square because they graze while the black is more pointed to help pick fruits etc from bushes. The white rhino is bigger while the black rhino is rarer. We were lucky to see both as or guide said they usually only see the white rhino.

    There was a flock of Greater flamingos which are only slightly pink whereas the Lesser flamingos are a much brighter pink. Unfortunately we could not get closer to the flock because the vehicles can only travel on designated tracks unlike Kruger where we were on a private concession and could drive off the path. So in most cases the pictures were done with a telephoto lens so may not be as clear as they could be but Brad did a good job.

    The evening drive was called off due to storms but we didn't mind because we had basically seen the main points of interest in this game park. We travel to Masa Mara tomorrow where we will have 2 full days to hopefully find a leopard.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 23

    African Massage on the way to Masa Mara

    October 15, 2019 in Kenya ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    The trip to Masa Mara from Lake Nakuru was only about 200km but it took the best part of a day to drive there along some of the roughest roads I think I've ever travelled. In fact, just sitting in the 4WD my fitbit said I did 22,000 steps, over 14km walking, and climbed over 300 floors. No wonder I was tired. Hence the African massage.

    It's amazing to see how the scenery changed. Climbing up our of the Rift Valley, the farmland was very fertile and being used for crops and veggies etc. It was lush and green. We then drove onto the open plains - very dry, very little vegetation. Many of the villages we passed were not attractive, very poor and lots of rubbish laying around from market days.

    Masa Mara is almost on the border of Tanzania and close to the Serengeti National Park. At the right time of year we would have witnessed the Great Migration where enormous herds of Wildebeest pass through in search of good grazing land and often fall victim to lions and crocodiles when making the river crossings. I've seen it on TV and it is quite a spectacle. However, the migration had already passed through this area about a month ago so it was a shame we missed it. Still, this park is known for it's cats so maybe here we will complete our big 5 and see the leopard!    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 23

    Masa Mara - part 1

    October 15, 2019 in Kenya ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Before we checked into our accommodation we had a game drive through the park mainly because the place we were staying was at the other end of the property.

    Within minutes our guide pointed out a cheetah who appeared to be eyeing off some impala. We waited for some time in anticipation of a chase but it seemed the cheetah lost interest... or was prepared to wait much longer than we were.

    Driving further on we came to a solitary tree under which lay 5 male cheetahs. Apparently they are known by National Geographic as the five brothers who have been filming them for some time. We were lucky to come across them so easily.

    We are staying at Fig Tree Camp which is described as luxury tented camping (maybe even glamping). So imagine canvas and screened walls with zippered doors and a fully tiled modern bathroom. The camp almost seems to be an island and we have a river bank outside our front door complete with hippos and warthogs (The bank is too steep for hippos to climb). There are monkeys and baboons around and there is a young Maasai man who constantly wanders around making sure the baboons don't try and get into the tents. As far as camping goes it is not too bad.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 24

    A leopard is spotted!

    October 16, 2019 in Kenya ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    No kidding Sherlock!

    Well we have sighted all the big 5 animals. This refers to the most dangerous animals to hunt and are comprised of the lion, cape buffalo, rhinoceros, elephant and leopard. We spotted the first 4 on our first safari drive in Kruger but the elusive leopard was not seen until our fifth and final game park. Granted, it wasn't particularly clear as she was hidden in the bushes but at least we did see her.

    Masa Mara is a huge park and we had a big 6 hour game drive. Some of our group took an optional balloon ride but at $450USD per person it was a bit out of our budget. So while they were ballooning we checked out a pod of hippos. There were several other trucks there and some people wandered down the river bank a little. Ok be hippos took exception and started to charge towards them. We were farther away but our guide was yelling "get back in the truck". Brad says he has never seen me move so fast. That was nothing compared to the faces of the people who were very close. I wish I was filming at the time.

    We picked up the balloonists and that is when we found the leopard. We also saw a business of mongoose (That is the collective noun) . They are very similar to meerkats and act the same way popping their heads up to look around. There was also a male ostrich doing a display dance to impress the female - bit of a waste of time because the female was to far away to even notice.

    Perhaps the most exciting thing for us was our version of The Great Migration. We noticed a large herd of Wildebeest and some zebra looking interested in crossing a small river. Once one started they all went. Ok, it wasn't the tens of thousands of wildebeest that cross while trying to avoid being lunch for the crocodiles or lions but we got the impression of a crossing.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 25

    Final safari drive

    October 17, 2019 in Kenya ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    So we come to the end of safari drives in Africa - what more could we possibly see? As it turns out there were a couple more things that we had not already seen, mainly to do with lions.

    We came across a small pride of lions and we got photos of a mother and her 2 cubs firstly taking a drink and then the cubs suckling.

    Later we came upon a larger pride who had had full bellies from a topi (type of antelope) they had killed. One young lion was still having a go at the carcass and when he left the vultures came in to finish off the pickings. Such is the circle of life.

    There were large crocodiles resting in the mud of the river with pods of hippos just metres away. Not to mention the birds of Africa which I'll make a separate post.

    We flew out of Masa Mara in what was basically a taxi plane. Picked us up, took off, landed again after 10 minutes, then did another pick up before making the 40 minute flight to Nairobi. Brad and I are staying the night in Nairobi, another couple are returning to Australia, while the rest of the group (6 people) are doing another 5 days in Tanzania. We fly to India tomorrow to pick up another tour for 12 days.

    Africa has been wonderful. We saw much more than I expected. Although we will probably not return, I can understand the fascination that people have with Africa that keeps wanting them to come back.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 27

    Birds of Africa

    October 19, 2019 in Kenya ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Not to mention the beautiful birds in Africa, from the lilac breasted roller, kingfishers and bee eaters, to the secretary bird and a multitude of herons and egrets. There are many not so pretty birds too like the vultures and marabou work. This post is for the ones I haven't posted before. I'm a bit vague with the names and some are probably incorrect.Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 28

    Out of Africa...Into India

    October 20, 2019 in India ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    We stayed an extra day in Nairobi, same hotel but this time with views over the national park - perfect! Saturday was spent waiting around at the hotel as our flight was not until nearly 11pm. Arrived at the airport around 5pm - big mistake - unlike Brisbane airport, if you arrive early there is always a place to relax and a food court and shopping area while waiting for the check in to open. Not at Nairobi though. They were reluctant to even let us into the terminal building. Anyway, a five hour flight to Dubai, and other five hours wait in Dubai, then three and a half hours flight to Delhi and we have arrived in India.

    Airport to hotel almost an hour but the traffic here is unlike anything we have seen before. There are line markings but they are largely ignored. Everyone toots their horn, not in anger, more an announcement of "hey, I'm on the road". It is utter chaos but eventually we arrived at our sanctuary for the next 4 nights - The Maidens Hotel. This heritage hotel from India's colonial past is very peaceful, very polite and attentive staff. The rooms, while certainly not modern, are large with a separate dressing/luggage storage room. There is even the local newspaper hanging from the doorknob each morning. Such peace and tranquility compared to the outside world.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 29

    Eat Like a Local

    October 21, 2019 in India ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We had a day to fill in and had booked a local tour with hotel pick up to explore the Chandni Chowk market area/ try street food.

    It was an experience! First the driver who picked us up barely spoke a word of English and we thought he was our guide. This is going to be good...NOT!! It took almost an hour to arrive at the starting point and we realised this was not our guide, merely the driver and we were relieved to find our guide was a rather bubbly young Indian man (named Anil I think) with a passion for food. That tour group was comprised of 9 people, including 7 Australians.

    First we caught the metro - you pass through screening when entering public places - ladies one side, gents the other. Then started walking through the narrow market alleyways to our first food stop . It was actually upstairs like a small basic restaurant where we sampled 2 dishes. I cannot remember the name but they tasted ok. We moved on, pushing past throngs of people and really putting me out of my comfort zone.

    Next stop and 2 more dishes, a samosa and a sweet fried pastry, eaten while standing in the middle of the alley. By this time Brad was feeling a bit dubious about the food as it really wasn't mating his health inspector eyes approval. By the 3rd stop which was 140yr old establishment famous for its fried bread type of dish, Brad declined any more food, especially after seeing one guy washing up in the drain, another sneeze into his hands and then continue kneading the dough... It was all too much for him.

    There was a quiet alleyway which had remnants of original Delhi architecture, quite old and it was a bit of a peaceful haven amongst all the chaos. Another stop for a lassi (yoghurt drink) and some sort of rice dessert. Then our guide wanted to show us a view from the top of the market place. So off we trot through the spice market where the smells were overwhelming. Everybody was coughing and sneezing, even the people who work in it every day. Up three or four flights of stairs, no lights, step and maybe a handrail if you are lucky. Finally, out on the rooftop to see the setting sun over Delhi and the views over the market and a nearby mosque.

    The return to the starting point required more bustling through people, walking for about half an hour, back on the metro, the drive back to the hotel through the incredible Delhi traffic. This tour was an assault on the senses, the sights, the smells, the noise, the push and shove and even a taste of authentic Indian food. We were exhausted when we arrived home. It was really quite interesting though.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 31

    Delhi sightseeing - like a tourist

    October 23, 2019 in India ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    After our eat like a local tour we decided to spend the next day taking it easy within the confines of the hotel. Our India tour doesn't officially start until the evening when we meet the tour group then of full swing on Wednesday morning with a sightseeing tour of Delhi.

    First stop was a mosque but no photos taken taken because they charge for use of a camera. As far as mosques go it was not particularly decorative. After that we had a rickshaw ride around the Chandni Chowk market area. Organised chaos. Moved on from there to visit the memorial of Mahatma Ghandi, drove past India Gate and a look around the Parliament complex - lovely buildings made from red and white sandstone.

    Lunch was held at a silk rug factory. Plied us with food and drink, demonstrated how the rugs were made and then proceeded to convince us that we needed to buy one. Very expensive and probably worth it as they are completely hand knotted- takes a family of four around 2 years to make a large rug. Cost would be around $25,000USD. Fortunately, the designs were too traditional for my liking but I believe 2 members of the group did buy a rug each (probably more in the $2000 range)

    After lunch and rug sales we visited Humayun's tomb. This mausoleum built in 1560's is a precurser to the Taj Mahal and you can see that in the symmetry and domes. Final stop was Qutab Minar, an ornate 72m tall minaret . Beats me how they make these things. Finally the drive back to the hotel should have only taken about an hour, however India is currently in Dwali season (sort of the Hindu equivalent of Christmas) and the roads were absolutely gridlocked. Two and a half hours later we finally arrived back after hitting all the major tourist hotspots in Delhi.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceLions and Tigers
    Day 32

    Iconic India

    October 24, 2019 in India ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Of course, when talking about visiting India, the first thing to come to mind is the Taj Mahal- today was the day!

    As this was a rail journey tour, we left Delhi on the Gatimaan Express, a high speed train that got us to Agra in less than 2 hours - by road it probably would have taken 4 hours. Efficient - yes! Luxury - no! Pulled down the tray table and thought eww! However, it was comfortable and we had arrived at our hotel in Agra before noon.

    As our rooms were not ready, we toured the other renowned building in Agra - The Agra Fort. Built in the 16th century it was a residence to emperors of the Mughal dynasty until the mid 1600's. Later, Shah Jahan was under "house arrest" in the fort (by his own son - this was how transfer of power was done at this time) and he was able to gaze upon his tribute to his late wife, the Taj Mahal which was only a couple of km away. Today, the fort is a World UNESCO site, made of red sandstone and marble and contains many separate courtyards, rooms and garden areas.

    Later in the day we visited the Taj Mahal at sunset. It really is a magnificent building and we were not disappointed. It is larger than what I thought, all marble with elaborate carvings and other decorations made with inlaid semi-precious stone. Inside the mausoleum was highly ornate however no photos allowed. Brad managed to get a fairly good photo of the reflection in the pool - an iconic shot.    Read more

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