From Asia to Africa: Cambodia, India & Tanzania

By now it was time to head to our 4th continent of our journey... Asia. Where to? Cambodia. Unfortunately for us, we were sick for the three nights we did have in Cambodia and as a result, we didn't get back to Angkor Wat (though we were there in 2007). However, we did get to go back to Tonle Sap, the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia. Around 90% of the people living here make their living by catching fish and this commercial area alone provides more than half of the fish consumed in Cambodia. Within two minutes of us being on the boat, we got stuck and had to get a tow!! Apparently, our boat got stuck in a dam that was being built last year but it wasn’t finished before the water level rose this year. After a good 15 minutes, we were on our way to Tonle Sap, located about 20 minutes from where we had gotten on our local boat. We cruised around the neighborhood passing by shops, a school, and homes before returning to the docks and heading back to Siem Reap.

Floating village of Tonle Sap in Cambodia

Daily life in Tonle Sap

After our bedrest in Cambodia, we were off on a five hour flight to India. We were last in India in 2010, and unlike Cambodia which has changed drastically (more hotels, more developed, mainly motorized rickshaws instead of bicycles, etc), Agra hasn't appeared to change much. Upon disembarking our plane, we immediately set out to sightsee. Because we have seen many of the major sites in Agra, we set off to do something different. We headed to the Kinari Bazar which I had found during my usual pre-trip research. 

Kinari Bazar in Agra

Instantaneously, we were thrown into the hustle and bustle of daily life in Agra (not a surprise considering Agra is the most visited city in India)… and we were the only two tourists in the bazar. We passed by the spice markets, vendors selling fresh vegetables and some of the largest dates I’ve ever seen, stalls where men were custom embroidering cloths, vendors selling religious figures that locals buy clothes for, and so much more. 

A man and his embroidery shop

Dressing up religious figures in seasonal outfits

Street vendor in the Kinar Bazar

A selection of spicecs

Fresh vegetables in Kinari Bazar

In the narrow alleyways it was hard to find space to walk, as men carrying large packages would often bump into you if not the cows standing alongside the road. Like the last time I was in India, I found that this country is incredibly chaotic but somehow the chaos is systematic. For example, drivers are constantly honking their horns. However, unlike at home where people honk in anger, locals honk to alert other drivers of their presence. In India, lanes and signals are only suggestions which only adds to the chaos.

The narrow streets of Kinari Bazar allow rickshaws and motorcycles, so it's pretty crowded.

After spending an hour in the bazar and transferring via e-rickshaw (rickshaws running on energy efficient fuel as Agra tries to go greener to preserve the monuments), we headed over to the Tomb of I’timād-ud-Daulah also known as the Baby Taj. First, we stopped for a second to take some photos of monkeys alongside the road (people feed them carrots so they hang around).

Monkeys eating carrots people have left for them on the side of the road.

Snack break!

The tomb is for a Persian nobleman, built by his daughter Nur-Jahan who married Jehangir. The tomb features finely carved jalis (marble lattice screens) and it was the first Mughal structure built completely from marble as well as the first to make extensive use of pietra dura. In addition, it was the first tomb to be built on the banks of the Yamuna River. Our guide said the structure resembles a jewelry box in shape—very different from the Taj Mahal.

The entrance to the Baby Taj

Baby Taj (with no people!!)

Mom and I at the Baby Taj, being photobombed by two dogs.

Closer look at the beautiful design of the Baby Taj.

All of this is one piece of marble. The decorations are then chiseled out and placed inside so it's a perfect fit!

Side view of the Baby Taj.

Floor inside the Baby Taj. You have to wear shoe protectors to preserve the monument.

One of the many intricate sections of the Baby Taj.

Ceiling at Baby Taj

A small moat surrounds the Baby Taj, though at this time of year there wasn't much water present.

From there, we headed to Mehtab Bagh, a park originally built by Emperor Babur and nicknamed the Moonlight Gardens. To protect the Taj from erosive effects of the sand blown across the river, the park was reconstructed and is now one of the best places to view the UNESCO mausoleum. The fifth Mughal emperor Shah Jahan built the tomb to honor his third and favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child in 19 years. It took nearly 20,000 workers to built the white-marble mausoleum and the structure combines Persian, Central Asian and Islamic architecture. Its octagonal structure is capped by a bulbous dome and the architectural precision is balanced by calligraphic inscriptions and white marble decorate of floral arabesques. I initially wanted to visit this viewpoint because I’ve seen gorgeous pictures of the Taj reflected in the Yamuna River, but we were informed that the river has recently been barricaded to preserve the monument. Now, there also aren’t any boats that are allowed to take tourists along the river for sunrise/sunset viewings of the Taj. Due to the haze and bad air quality in the city, we decided not to stay for the sunset and instead headed to the hotel (which overlooks the Taj anyways).

View of the Taj from the park.

Back at the Oberoi Amarvilas, which is less than half a mile away from the Taj and is Sanskrit for “eternal haven”, we had our first taste of the food we’d been craving most… samosas. Of course I also had to get my favorite Indian drink, a mango lassi, and my mom got her beloved masala chai (tea). Happy and full, we went to sleep to prepare for the day ahead.

We were originally supposed to visit Keoladeo Ghana National Park (also known as the Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary) but ended up cancelling due to the weather forecast. Of course, the weather forecast wasn’t accurate and it didn’t rain as much as it was supposed to, but we were still able to do some sightseeing and we headed out to Fatehpur Sikri. Built by Emperor Akbar in the second half of the 16th century, Fatehpur Sikri was known as the City of Victory and was the capital of the Mughal Empire for about 10 years. Prior to the establishment of the capital here, Akbar had visited the village of Sikri to consult the Sufi saint Shaikh Salim Chishti who predicted the birth of an heir to the Mughal throne. When that prophecy came true, Akbar built his new capital there. The complex itself is huge (consisting of three palaces, one for each of his favorite wives—one a Hindu, one a Muslim and one a Christian) and even houses one of the largest mosques in India, the Jama Masjid.

Wide angle shot at Fatehpur Sikri.

Intricate ceiling work.

We were back by lunchtime, at which time we ate from a fabulous Indian buffet consisting of saag paaner, dal, and some of our other favorite dishes. Our waiter had asked if we wanted anything from the menu instead, so I asked if there was any vegetarian korma… my all-time favorite Indian dish. The chefs whipped up some korma and our waiter brought us my favorite dish… and then some. He could tell how much we enjoy Indian food and he brought even more food for us to try including a traditionally Southern Indian dish called Malabar stew. The stew is a delicious mixture of coconut, curry leaves, and vegetables and it’s served with a light, spongey rice based pancake called pathiri instead of the traditional naan.

In the evening, our group had a party where there were some ladies doing henna (basically temporary tattoos made from vegetable oils). I had gotten henna a few times on the Venice Beach boardwalk in Southern California, but I had never gotten anything as elaborate as what these ladies did. Within a few minutes, both of my hands were elaborately decorated in gorgeous patterns all done free-hand with no reference photos. It’s common to have such henna done if you attend an Indian wedding, and the henna on women is made to look like jewelry. On one of my hands, the woman drew a peacock which is the national bird of India. 

For dinner, we once again had the same waiter from lunch and once again, he brought us a ton of food to try. We ate delicious chicken tikka, fish in a mustard sauce, dal that was cooked overnight (way better than what we had for lunch), our favorite Indian rice pudding called kheer, and an orange blossom and saffron sorbet…. On top of the mango lassi and masala chai we were drinking. I wish we had more time in India because Indian food is some of my all-time favorite cuisine. Thankfully, Southern California has a large Indian population and we’ll just have to go to Little India for authentic Indian food… until I head back to India this April to photograph the tigers at least!

The following morning, it was time to say goodbye to India and hello to Tanzania nearly 8 hours later. Here, our group split up between two popular safari destinations (both of which we’ve been to several times in our 13 years of coming to Tanzania). Because of my altitude sickness, I can’t do Ngorongoro so we went back to the Serengeti for the 8th time. That meant flying an additional hour and then driving approximately one hour to our safari lodge. The vast plains of the Serengeti comprise approximately 9,320 square miles of savanna and open woodland contiguous with Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. The Serengeti is Tanzania’s most famous national park, especially during the annual migration. While many people love the Serengeti, I have to admit it’s not my favorite place to see animals. There are no regulations on the number of vehicles per sighting, meaning you’ll sometimes have upwards of 15 cars around you at any given time (compared to somewhere like Botswana where only 3 cars are allowed per sighting providing a more intimate experience). Additionally, no off-roading is allowed meaning wildlife is sometimes very far away. Because the Serengeti is so large, you also don’t see animals in the numbers you do elsewhere. All that being said, you just have to hope you’re lucky. Our first lion sighting of the trip was so far away you could hardly see it with binoculars. Discouraged, we continued onward to Ndutu (pronounced “nude-too”) which is part of the Ngorongoro conservation area (though not in the crater itself). Ndutu forms part of the annual migration route where hundreds of thousands of wildebeest, zebra, antelope and their predators come to graze between November and March (depending on the rains). From our lodge in the Central Serengeti, Ndutu is a three hour drive non-stop… but of course we stopped. Our guide Baraka happened to spot a lioness sitting on a rock right by the side of the road. 

Mother lioness up on a rock.

Already excited because lions are my favorite animal, we headed closer and saw that the lioness had a cub roughly six months old. While the mother was lazily snoozing, the young cub was alert and staring right at us, watching our every move. 

This cub was maybe six months old.

About thirty minutes later, our guide noticed another lioness walking down the other side of the rock. He repositioned the car and we watched as this seemingly pregnant lioness slowly made her way down the rock and into the middle of the road. We followed her, often driving a bit in front so I could shoot looking back towards her, getting photographs head-on.

Seemingly pregnant lioness walking down the rock.

Walking right in the middle of the road!

Lioness walking through the thick bush to get to the other rocks.

The lioness arrived at another cluster of rocks better hidden by bushes and slowly climbed about halfway up.

Lioness heading up.... Our guide originally thought she was looking for a place to give birth.

Suddenly, one tiny head popped out of the bushes… and another. And another. This lioness was not pregnant… she had recently given birth to three cubs. 

We continued to watch in awe as the momma retrieved her cubs, slowly guiding them back to the nearby rocks where the other lioness and her cub were waiting. The three youngsters clumsily followed their mother, one even tripping over its footing and face-planting in the dirt road, until they made it about half a mile to the rocks. 

Heading back down to go to the other rocks.

Portrait of the momma.

Face plant! This little cub couldn't quite find its footing.

The mother lioness walked up to the top of the rock, greeted the other lioness with a nuzzle, and led her cubs to a puddle of water on the top of the rock face. The older cub even made its way down to greet the lioness. The three youngsters slowly made their way to the top of the rock, where they proceeded to nurse while the older cub was cuddling its mother. 

Eventually, and as expected since lions sleep for 20+ hours per day, the pride laid down for a nap and we were once again on our way to Ndutu. We briefly stopped for a bush breakfast (we left at 6am and by now it was already 10am) while our guide filled out exit paperwork for the Serengeti and entrance paperwork for Ndutu. Due to the unusual weather this time of year, the migration was still in Ndutu which we thought would be a good sign of the day ahead. However, with all the dust (even more than the Serengeti) combined with the vastness of the park and the un-regulation of safari vehicles, we found Ndutu underwhelming. I did stop for photos of secretary birds (my second favorite besides the lilac breasted roller), a hyena taking a mud bath, and various lions and birds we saw along the way but other than that, we found Serengeti to be the more exciting option of the two and we headed back early (still arriving pretty late—by dinner time). 

Hyena taking a mud bath to stay cool

Eagle looking for food

Marabou stork going fishing in Ndutu

The following day, we decided to have a much-needed “chill” day. I sat on our balcony for hours, staring at the waterhole waiting for the elephants to come as they had several months ago when we were last at this lodge. Other than some dik dik, birds, and an agama lizard on our balcony, nothing came. Instead, I sat outside (telephoto by my side) editing photos. 

Dik Dik by the waterhole

Birds on our roof

Agama lizard on our balcony

Panoramic Serengeti

Soon after, my mom and I quickly headed to the spa (which we never have once done on vacation!!) to de-stress. After a sugar scrub, an amazing coffee leg mask, a pedicure, and some relaxing ginger tea, we headed back along the pathway passing by rock hyraxes. I spent the rest of the afternoon hoping more animals would come to the waterhole in the heat of the day and even though I saw herds of buffalo, topi, impala, and a few warthogs, still nothing came. 

An amazing saying and symbology

The following morning, we headed out in our safari vehicles for our one hour drive back to the airstrip. Upon arrival back in Arusha, we boarded our plane for the 5 hour flight to Jordan. Thanks for reading about my adventures… Stay tuned for what’s to come and be sure to hit the subscribe button to be notified of new posts! As always, follow my Instagram @elissatitle for more pics.