Next on our whirlwind tour of Northern India – Bharatpur, Rajistan, near the border of Uttar Pradesh. It’s a smaller town four hours from Jaipur with one claim to fame – Keoladeo Ghana National Park, which is really more of a bird sanctuary.
A cycle rickshaw guide toured us through the park, describing the birds and animals in incredible detail, listing the defining characteristics and even making their appropriate sounds. They sure work hard for their money! We saw every kind of bird you can think of, including cranes, and gazelles. On rare occasions tigers show up.
The idea of bird watching initially did not appeal to me but in the end everyone found it relaxing. The greenery was beautiful as were the sounds of birds and crickets.
Our guide was actually Sikh and was thrilled to hear we were from Canada, and more so Vancouver. It seems that every Sikh in India has friends and relatives in Surrey, a suburb of Vancouver.
