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  India Wildlife and Medieval Tour for Mr. Aladdin
34 Nights – 35 Days Cut short to 30 days due to VISA issues
 Sunday 10th of January 2016 and they called me at 7 to wake me up. I can't say that I was bouncing or turning cartwheels out of bed. But it was not bad as I managed to fall asleep ASAP yesterday. I ripped open a Diet Pepsi and I started to check the pictures from our road trip  adventure yesterday.
5 or 7 minutes later someone called again and it was from the reception. My driver had arrived. I asked if I could speak with him - He don't speak English and he want to know when you want to leave - OK, ask him how long time it will take to drive to Jim Corbett - OK, then we can leave at 11. Good, I have finally time to relax for a few hours. I went for my breakfast at 11 o'clock and the staff recognised me from yesterday. Good, I asked for my tea pot. One of the best pots I have experienced so far, well, at least one of the biggest and I  was sure it would last me through the breakfast without having to ask for a refill.
After breakfast I went to pack my bag and they called me at 11 o'clock, just when I was about to leave the room. The Driver is here with the car. I checked out and the Driver was in the garage to get the car. I asked for a Supermarket to buy toothpaste and maybe some Diet Pepsi. There were no Supermarket but a market. I told them that I wanted a clean place and everyone looked at me while giving me a understanding smile. Yeah, to open up a chain of  Family Marts in India would make you a billionaire. Only problem is the non-existing  infrastructure. Imaging all Indians coming and shop at your place. And you would get them all as customers as everyone likes a clean place.
I was in a great mood, great breakfast and I was told that it would take 5 to 6 hours to Jim Corbett. I confirmed with the hotel staff, 4 to 5 hours, great!! I  was on cloud 9 when we left the hotel.  A full day in the car yesterday was more than enough for this tour. Our driver, well, he didn't spoke English and when he changed the 5 to 6 hours to 7, well, I was not  happy about it, but 7 hours is OK.
We passed several signs saying Indian Gate and I was thinking about when I was here 29 years ago, what a change. Suddenly my driver stopped and asked for the way to India Gate. What? Just follow the signs! We are obviously going to India Gate and I understood later on that the driver only knew the way from there. I was surprised when we stopped at a place and he told me that they had toothpaste. The place looked, well, for sure not clean. He told me that they had toothpaste. I was for sure not going to use any toothpaste from this place, but I asked if they had Diet Pepsi. They guy shook his head and pointed next door and I went over to check it out.  We stop for tooth paste and Diet Pepsi
What would you have prefer, this or a nice and clean Family Mart?
 10 cans of Diet Pepsi, everything they had
They had Diet Pepsi and he gave me a can and I asked how many cans he had. - 25 Rupees - No, how many cans? He counted and he had 10 cans remaining and I bought all of them, no toothpaste. But I can buy  the toothpaste when we arrive to Jim Corbett, at least I hope so.
We were driving on a nice 4 lane highway, and by 4 lane highway I mean 4 lines in each direction. Not like my driver in Sasan Gir. He called it a 4 lane highway when there were 2 lanes in each direction. That is a 2 lane highway, at least this is how I remember how to call it. I was at least to say excited in the back seat. It was a  beautiful road and I asked the driver if it was like this all the way to Jim Corbett.
He confirmed this and I was expected to arrive to Corbett within very soon. OK, Jim Corbett HERE WE COME!!!! We are going to haul arse on the Indian highways today. BOOM! Great roads and great weather and I asked the driver id he could turn on some great Indian music. Well, didn't take long before I had reasons to get worried. - Where are you going? It was something about paying car tax as Jim Corbett is in another state and now we were cruising around looking for the tax office. And after that he had problem to find his way back to the  highway even though he stopped every now and then to ask for directions.
By then it was all gloom and grey in the back seat! Yeah, I was not happy, and it got worse when he stopped to fill up diesel in the car. Am I right to get, well, annoyed dis the word I'm looking for here. He had been sitting around for 4 hours waiting for me at the hotel. Then he should have paid the tax and filled up the car. And as a courtesy to the customer he could have studied a map. Turned out that he didn't had a clue where we were going.  Some tax place in Delhi
 Paying the tax
 Where is the highway?
 Where is the highway?
 Well...
 Suddenly and totally unexpected, I found myself at a giant construction site
 Suddenly and totally unexpected, I found myself at a giant construction site
 Suddenly and totally unexpected, I found myself at a giant construction site
 Another accident, a scooter stuck in a car
Where ever we went the driver was looking around for the right way and suddenly we passed through a construction site. They were building condos and apartments for as long as I could see. Reminded me about Dubai, first time I was there it was like a fishing village. I was back 10 years ago and jeez, they were building everywhere. Anyway, I find it hard to believe that the highway to one of India’s most popular wildlife destinations are going through a residential area. The driver was pointing ahead all the time - The highway - Yeah, right This was bad, and so far I have had 3 different Drivers in India, no one had been speaking English. And that’s what they say about India, everyone speaks English. I asked other foreigners if they had been able to have a conversation with anyone. They have just shook their heads. Only the educated people are able to speak English. Much like on the Philippines, if you meet anyone claiming that everyone speaks English on the Philippines you know that they have never been there. It was 3 hours after we left the hotel when we were finally at the Dasna Toll Plaza Ghaziabad. I expected a 4 lane highway, jeez, I was shocked when we left the toll both behind. This was not the quality I had expected after the 4 lane earlier today. A disappointment and I had given up the 6 hours trip along time ago. I will be happy if we make it in 7 hours.
We had been driving for a while when the highway turned much better and it was OK all the way  to where ever we left the highway. My driver was so happy when he finally saw a road sign with Jim Corbett Park.
We crossed the Ganga (Ganga is a Hindu name for Ganges) River and I made a mental ot to stop there on the way back for a few pictures. Ganga River, well, I was doing Ganges on a row boat when I was in Varanasi a very long time ago. So the stop at Ganga River can turn out to be one of the high lights of the tour. I saw that there were many people stopping there so something is going on. We crossed the river and the road we excellent and not too much traffic. But many people coming down the wrong  direction and cattle sleeping on the road so we had to slow down. Passing through villages etc. so it was impossible to keep full speed. But it was not bad, 160 km in about 2 hours. It was an interesting ride down the highway. We stopped so the Driver cold have a cup of tea and to ask for directions when we came of the highway. 92km to go and the road left a whole lot to wish for, not to mention the traffic. By now I was getting hungry and I wanted to get to my hotel.  We had to stop to show them that we had paid the tax at a check-point in one of the villages we  passed. Most time was spent on trying to find the documents needed for the car.
By now we had been on the way for more than 6 hours and I had given up asking the driver. It was always the same answer and last time I asked, back on the highway I realised that it was a pointless exercise to ask. I had asked him how much time remaining before we reached the hotel and Jim Corbett.  - One hour plus extra
- How many kilometres remaining? - 30, well, I don't know OK, so you know what we're up against, guess work and I found it strange that he didn't knew where we were going. We drive on and on and every now and then we stop to ask for directions. My driver don't know the name of the hotel so he don't know where to go. I don't know the name of the hotel either. But on the drivers paper it says Corbett Riverside Resort. We passing some bigger cities and I was wondering where the jungle and the tigers are. This is for  sure not looking like a jungle adventure.
Suddenly we pass a boom and we're in the forest. Souvenir shops along the road and after a while we start see hotels along the road. The hotels are named tiger this and safari that so we know we are at the right place. There are a few hotel with river in the name, but when we pass a Riverside hotel I tell the driver to stop. He ask me to go confirm, but I don't speak Hindu. The driver gets out and he comes back happy. He have found the place. He told me that he know Jaipur, Agra and Delhi. This is his area and he is the driver that are going to take me there, so we are going to stay together for 2 weeks as he is the one that are  going to drive me around. If he could only speak English.
It was nice to get out of the car and in to the reception. The staff was surprised when I busted in wearing full safari uniform. But they liked it. It was a very nice staff and they explained everything about the safaris for me. And it was pretty much the same as at Gir, but I can sleep 30 minutes longer here. 06:00 PROMPT, meeting in the reception and departure for safari 09:30 Back at the hotel for breakfast 13:00 - 13:30 Lunch 13:30 PROMPT, meeting in the reception and departure for safari 17:30 back at the hotel 20:00 Dinner   The manager was going to help me with my VODAPHONE SIM card that I bought back in Sasan Gir, it is not working anymore and I have loaded 5 GB to the SIM. He thought that I might need to register the card. Yeah, seems like the staff are OK and I think I will enjoy my stay here. We brought my stuff (including a box of Diet Pepsi to my room and I was soon alone again. Well, they were soon knocking on my door with an extra blanket. Dinner at 8 o'clock and that gave me some time for my web page before going to eat. The dining hall is on the other side of the camp and I had to walk in the dark imagine all kinds of snakes and stuff lurking in the dark. I read some reviews before leaving and at one place they had found a scorpion in the bath tub. Yeah, I could not help but thinking about ab Idiot abroad. Our hero thoughts about the Chinese food. Anyway, the Waiter told me they had King Cobras and Black Mambas around here. Luckily enough, only during the summer. They are  hopefully sleeping now and not in my bed.
The Waiter walked me back to my room and he showed me that they had caught a Tiger killing 6 people, as a bonus he showed me a picture of one of the dead guys and, well, somethings you cannot have UNSEEN even if you wished. Otherwise they had not seen any tigers in a long time, so I hope I'm lucky tomorrow. Wake up call at 5 thirty tomorrow morning and departure for the safari at 06:00 so you just need to click HERE to find out if we were lucky with the tigers. Or if we get to see any beautiful birds during our tour in Jim Corbett National Park. 
    
  You are visitor no.
To www.aladdin.st since December 2005
Visitors from different countries since 26th of September 2011
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