Just About Everything

Sloth Bear at Tadoba National Forest, India It was our 2nd last day at Tadoba National forest, and we decided to do the buffer zone for the morning safari (We found out that the biggest male tiger in India, Wagdoh, had been sighted in the buffer zone the previous day) Cancelling the regular safari and deciding to do the buffer zone that morning was perhaps the best decision we made! Not only did we see the Wagdoh male tiger, we sighted two sloth bears! While the first one (in the picture below) was quite a distance away and disappeared into the forest when we tried to get a closer look, and therefore we did not get a chance to take any pictures:( the 2nd one was just perfect! We got enough time to take pictures and get a good look at the bear before it disappeared. There is also a video clipping of the Sloth Bear at the end of this post, if you want to see it a little more of it. The first sloth bear, just caught a glimpse before it disappeared! Sloth Bear ...

Tadoba National Park, Maharashtra, India Tadoba Natonal Park in Maharashtra is at a distance of 130 km from Nagpur. There are several trains connecting major cities to Nagpur  and the flight connections are pretty good too. We flew till Nagpur and for the onward journey to Tadoba Moharli gate, we hired a car. It took a little over 3 hours to reach Tadoba from Nagpur, the road was pretty good. Since all our safaris (except two, one from the buffer zone and the other one was from the Kuswanda gate) were from the Moharli gate, we decided to stay close to Moharli. The other entry gates are Kolara, Nave Gaon, Pangdi, and Zari Gate. We had booked our accommodation at the MTDC near the Moharli gate in Tadoba. I quite liked the accommodation. Reasonable with A/C and mini fridge, a verandah overlooking a water body and jungle, room service, a well equipped restaurant....I think that is a lot to ask for in a jungle! We picked up the hottest time of the year to visi...

Bhaja caves, Maharashtra India Just another 8 kms away from the Karla caves near Lonavla, Maharashtra, India, are another set of Buddhist rock-cut caves of Bhaja. The Buddhist rock-cut caves at Bhaja date back to the 2nd Century BC and are of the Hinayana sect of Buddhism. It is not a difficult climb, though during the monsoons you may need to watch your step, but it is worth the trek. I would recommend that you definitely visit this cave complex, especially if you are visiting Lonavla. The prayer is quite similar to that of Karla. The exterior side of the prayer hall had a timber attachment but it is no longer there. This place is quite captivating. I keep visualizing how this place must have looked in the 2nd century BC. This place is quite remote  since it is at a certain height and away from the main city, back then it must have been so completely cut off. But, the architecture is certainly not back dated, it was quite advanced actually. There are structures that he...

Prayer hall  Tucked away a midst the beautiful sylvan hills near Lonavla, Maharashtra, are the Karla caves dating back to the 2nd century BC to the 6th-7th century AD. This cave overlooks the Indrayani valley. There used to be a monastery in the Karla cave complex dating back to the 2nd century BC. In the complex there are viharas or places where monks lived. The artistic decoration of the caves is of the Hinayana and Mahayana sect of Buddhism. It is a modest climb to the cave and well worth it. On the way to the cave, you will come across waterfalls, and the view from the top is absolutely amazing. The cave has a huge prayer hall where the Stupa is situated and there is a veranda in the front. There are beautiful sculptures of men, women, and animals in the cave. The most interesting part of the caves is that the roof of the hall is fitted with actual wooded ribs. And the wood is absolutely intact! Donations and support from many individuals, a prince of a Marathi famil...