Waking up at 4:00 am was definitely worth it! After an hour ride from our hotel on mostly empty roads, six of us arrived in an open field surrounded by farmland. The crew of about 15 on site was already hard at work. Working at what, you ask? Filling our balloon for a dawn hot air balloon ride! The morning was perfect – calm winds, clear skies (except for the smog…), and comfortable temperatures. After the balloon was ready, we climbed aboard the gondola with a few other visitors and sailed aloft.
What a perfect start to a long day! Our balloon pilot was funny, interesting, and engaging, and really made the ride fun. Although hot air balloons flights are common in the area, children and adults still came outside in droves to watch us pass low overhead. All of us did a lot of waving!
Late in the morning, our entire group of 15 went on to Jaipur City Palace for a visit. The ruling king (a king without any particular power, but still wealthy and respected) is a 28 year old very eligible bachelor. He’s also a high end model and Captain of the Indian National polo team!
We also toured the Jantar Mantar solar observatory for a guided tour and explored the collection of astronomical instruments housed there, some dating back to 1727. And in the hottest part of the day, we felt the sun’s energy! Wow, sun with no shade, not fun.
We next stopped at the Jhalana Leopard Safari Park and climbed into open safari jeeps in search of these incredible cats and other wildlife. With a number of abandoned buildings along the route into the park, it seemed as if we were heading into Jurassic Park, although we did not see any dinosaurs.
However, we still hit the jackpot and spotted TWO LEOPARDS, both with cubs. The park is home to 40 leopards, plus cubs, and it is not common to spot one on the two-hour tour. So enjoy the photos and videos. Both leopards were only about 40 yards from our vehicles.
The first leopard…
The second leopard…
I wasn’t able to upload videos of the cats, but I’ll try again when we have different WiFi. Still, it was amazing to see these wild predators from so close in the wild. Pretty awesome!
A short & witty ending…
Pro-Tip: Always pack half the clothes you think you need and twice the patience.
