VIV'S BLOG

Even up until the 1950s, when they were much more common, you could spend years in the wilds of India without obtaining so much as a glimpse of a tiger in the wild state. As the numbers of the great cats were decimated through shooting, trapping, and poisoning, the chances of sighting one of the wary survivors became less and less. Though their numbers have slowly risen in a few well-guarded sanctuaries in recent years, the odds of a visitor spotting one still remain slim. Your best chance of seeing a tiger in India today is most likely to be in the Ranthambore National Park in the state of Rajasthan. When I visited India in January 2019, arranged by Viv's India tours, a detour by train was arranged for me from the Bharatpur bird sanctuary to the station closest to Ranthambore, where the odds of my seeing a tiger in the cool of January was about 50-50 (in the heat of summer, the chances are even higher because some will come down to the deep river pools to cool off). I had three safaris booked there; one in the early morning and two late afternoon ones. On the first two outings, we saw a range of animals, including deer, wild pigs, monkeys, and even bears, as well as a variety of birds, but no tiger. It was not until the third and final foray towards evening that I was lucky enough to first encounter the big cat. After combing the forest tracks close to the river, we decided to change tactics and negotiated a bumpy road which climbed up and around a rocky hillside. When we reached the top, we systematically scanned the slope opposite with binoculars, a procedure known as ‘glassing’ in the old days of big game hunting, or ‘shikar’, as it was then known. For some time, we saw no sign of life at all, except a flock of parrots. Then we spotted a huge Sambar stag close to a rock outcrop. It was standing quite still with ears pricked and seemed to be staring upslope. Suddenly, it gave vent to a loud call which sounded like a heavy bell clang and was clearly audible to us on the opposite side of the valley. After following its gaze several times, I thought I caught a glimpse of something orange moving through the clumps of grass above where the deer was standing. When the orange shape moved into a more open patch of ground, it revealed itself to be a huge tiger! Its striped coat shone in the late afternoon sun and we were able to watch it for several minutes before the stag lost its nerve and bounded downhill and out of sight. With its potential meal gone, the tiger lost interest and also vanished into the scrub. It had been a distant view but satisfying nonetheless. On the drive back along the track, I felt lucky to have at last seen a tiger in the wild, no matter at what distance. Halfway back to the park entrance our driver spotted a sloth bear snuffling the ground for termites, quite close to the vehicle. We watched and photographed it for a few minutes before it shuffled and snuffled its way deeper into the woods. We did not have a lot of time left to linger anyway as it would soon be twilight and we risked a fine if we did not arrive at the entrance checkpoint by dark. We hadn’t gone more than a couple of kilometres when the driver slowed to a halt and pointed to his side of the track. He pointed and said simply, “Bagh!” which we took at first to be an exclamation until our English-speaking guide translated it to “Tiger!”  At first, we couldn’t see a thing, when suddenly, there it was: a supine, striped clump of orange fur amongst the trees not far from the side of the road. For some time, it remained lying on its side, quite oblivious to our presence or in no hurry to move. It was not asleep as it twitched its tail and moved its head to lick itself now and then. Most of its body was hidden by a tree trunk and it was not an ideal subject for a photograph. Even so, it was still splendid to watch at such close quarters.

“BOOM!” a gunshot awakens me from a deep sleep.  “Elephant” I humph to myself from the depths of my vast and comfortable bed. I listen to the sounds of the jungle outside, imagining...., my only companion a hot water bottle. Then a loud and piercing, rather chilling, sound in the deep of the night. This time it's the alarm call of a deer. No doubt about it! A tiger! A prickle of excitement and then blissful sleep! Before the break of dawn I’m sipping hot chai and eating homemade biscuits before setting off with Baloo my trusty, and enthusiastic, guide for a walk in the buffer zone. He holds a sturdy stick for protection and grins as he points it to a great pug mark in the sand just metres from our boundary fence. "TIGER" he enunciated proudly. Oh my God! I learn that a tiger has brought down a sambar deer near the village. Is this what I heard last night? At least he won't be hungry! A tiger and a leopard were seen on walks by other tourists whilst I was there. The gunshots heard during the night were set off by a wire trigger to frighten marauding wildlife from the fields. Jim’s Jungle Retreat is my luxurious eco wilderness abode, set in the southern buffer zone of Corbett National Park, India. On arrival I'm welcomed by smiling staff and the manager Ms Rati Karwal, a wonderful hostess who looked after my every whim and made sure that I never ate alone. My jungle home is one of the lodges on stilts which sits comfortably in the bush land that surrounds it. The room is huge and beautifully furnished, with hot water in abundance from the solar energy geysers.

The third annual IABCA Awards (India Australian Business & Community Awards) took place on Friday 28 October at the four Points by Sheraton, Sydney with nearly 500 guests in attendance. There were 13 different categories of awards and congratulations must go to all the finalists and winners from across Australia. The aim of the awards is to showcase the immense migrant talent from the Indian diaspora in Australia and Australian success stories in India, and the night was a celebration of migrant entrepreneurship and community leadership.

Nothing symbolises it more than the wild cry of the fish eagle just before dawn. As a young girl, I lived on a farm in Zambia that shared a border with Kafue National Park. My parents farmed, living an exotic post-war life, experiencing everything to the hilt. As both were pilots we would spend hours flying to school, to holidays in Mozambique and South Africa, as well as getting the ‘hours up’ by flying over the nearby parks. As kids we would be captivated by the massive herds of animals that roamed in the wilderness so close to home. My love for animals was surely born then when mostly ‘baby’ animals were brought to my mother for various reasons. If it was not edible to the African … then we raised it. As a result our home was an ‘animal farm’ with monkeys, warthogs, eagles, duiker, parrots and eventually 3 baby otter. With the game park so close we often had marauding lions ‘take’ a cow; two old leopards who found our calves an easy target; wild dogs hunting our breeding herd; or buffalo ripping up our lawns with Mum trying to ‘shoo’ them away!! Later my parents moved to a sugar cane plantation in Mozambique and again the wild animals roamed through killing and ruining crops. We bordered the Gorongoza National Park now a place to visit for the adventurous traveller. My love for Africa has never waned. I go back each year, usually somewhere different, because as a travel agent a ‘product’ should be tried and tested. I have travelled and lived in many parts of Africa and will continue to find new and exciting destinations for my clients. 

The Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP, Prime Minister of Australia My warmest congratulations to everyone who has been nominated for the India Australia Business and Community Awards this year. In every sphere of endeavour, in every corner of our country, and in every walk of life, there are passionate Indian Australians helping to make our nation a stronger and better place. These awards are a great opportunity to recognise these inspiring individuals, businesses, and organisation—the hardworking, caring and innovative people who are making a real difference. It is also a chance to celebrate the best of Indian culture, and the growing links between our nations. Australia and India enjoy a long-standing friendship, based on our shared history, a commitment to democracy and the rule of law. Two-way trade between our countries is around $15 billion a year, and the conclusion of a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement will further encourage trade and investment. Today, over 390,000 people in Australia claim Indian ancestry, and India is our second largest source of international students. With the New Colombo Plan offering Australians new opportunities to study on the sub- continent, many more of us will have the chance to deepen our understanding of Indian culture and society. In the years ahead, it is my hope and expectation that we will see the benefits of even closer bonds between our nations. I once again congratulate nominees and wish you every success for the future. Viv's Travel Bug nomination Viv's Travel Bug is a boutique travel agency that brings personal experience of India to clients. Situated in beautiful Mollymook on the south coast of New South Wales, the company's aim is to provide sound, friendly advice, good service, and continued support for all those who come to us - and they operate on the 'boomerang theory' in that they would like our clients to return to us again, and again. The business is owned by Viv Craig who has been in the industry for over 25 years. Viv has personally travelled to over 97 countries and she has a passion for adventurous travel to 'different' places. Viv promotes 'sustainable' travel and eco-tourism whenever she can, having seen such projects at first hand. Her expertise has seen her win best Australian Agent Travel Week Awards in the past in the Africa and South America categories. For the last few years, Viv has been fascinated by India, having visited many times to attend travel marts (GITB, SATTE, KTM, MP Travel mart and HP Travel Mart), on familiarisation tours taking travel agents from Travellers Choice and taking her own clients. As a member of TOFT, she wrote "We hope to share with you our passion and enthusiasm for Incredible India and hope that you take the opportunity to visit one of the world’s most exciting travel destinations”.

If you walked out of the movie “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” (or its sequel) with a grin as large as mine and yearning to get to see India, then wait no longer. Keep an open mind and expect the unexpected in everything you do and see! Incredible India offers such diversity. The film, with its excellent international cast, highlighted the delights of India as well as some of the frustrations. The friendly people, the colourful language and clothes, the variety in the markets and in the foods, the size and beauty of the temples and fortresses (the film was set in the towns of Jaipur and Udaipur in Rajasthan) were all apparent. So too was the chaos, the rundown hotel, the seemingly disorganized transport systems, and the incomprehensible machinations of the public service. As a visitor to the fascinating land that is India, one has the opportunity to pick and choose what degree of such diversity one wants. There are plenty of ‘Marigold Hotels’ for the budget-minded but there are also 5 and 6-star hotels, the Taj and Oberoi, that provide service in excess of international standards. Indian trains come in all categories (which generally run on time) and for the discerning traveller there is the prospect of the travelling on the local or upgrading, with the pinnacle being one of the world-famous deluxe trains “The Maharajas Express”. Likewise, bus travel or the local transport around the cities where one can have fun riding in a ‘tuk-tuk’ or a ‘cyclo’ but can also choose an air-conditioned taxi or private sedan if one so desires. Two great rivers, the Ganges and the Brahmaputra offer comfortable cruising to get involved in local river life.

The hot winds rose up to us from the hazy Bangladeshi plains far below. The view was limited by the heat waves but the sheer drop below us was obvious and confronting. We were standing on top of the 600m high escarpment that defines the border between the NE Indian state of Meghalaya and Bangladesh. And it was obvious to us that when the rain-bearing monsoon winds are forced up that escarpment the clouds would burst and torrents of water pour down.

I'd like to take you on a journey! So please, follow me as I entice you into the mist-shrouded Indian jungle on a cold frosty morning. The jeep's exhaust still belching white fumes into the crisp morning air, the ground crackling as the tyres leave their tracks down the winding dirt road, the first rays of sunlight just starting to filter through the tall Sal trees. It's freezing, you're totally wrapped with blankets, gloves, beanies, and scarves - the works! You're after the elusive, but real, tiger that prowls the wild during the night marking its territory and looking for something to fill its belly. Imagine the excitement that has built up, your awareness is heightened by the cold and the prospect of seeing a creature so magnificent and so majestic in the wild.