Lunch after birding & Spice market

After a really nice easy pace and productive morning of birding, Mahendra had a good plan for the afternoon. But then Chris mentioned a craving for dosa so we switched it up a bit. They found a South Indian restaurant for us for dosa (I’m sure I’ll get plenty in two weeks) and then drove us to a spot to hire a tuk tuk to head to the wholesale markets. Mahendra thought we would enjoy experiencing the tuk tuk while also not having to wade through cow dung. He was right and it was super fun and so glad he rode along with us. We would be literally at a loss without him. I am including one photo of just wires on a building in the area we went through- I honestly don’t know how things can function like this! And the traffic chaos is next level but there is somehow the most amazing order to it all.

Okhla Bird Sanctuary

The second birding outing was to Okhla Bird Sanctuary just outside Dehli. It was very foggy in the morning, but it eventually lifted. The highlights were barbets (Brown and Coppersmith), Red-breasted Flycatcher, the Black-rumped Flameback (a woodpecker with a flame red head), and a Shiraz (a raptor).

 Here’s the ebird list Ohkla bird sanctuary

When in Rome ……..

Or maybe not 😛

So I’m trying to maintain my gluten free lifestyle even while traveling because it really keeps me feeling better- and I’ve already lost the battle to India one day with severe intestinal issues. So I’m back feeling great today and at breakfast a typical Indian dish of Idly was available. The little pancake part itself is gluten free but all the accoutrements are full of onions and whatnot that can send me into distress.

Well, the Idly bread sort of looks like an uncrustable, and since they put out peanut butter and jelly for the regular toast - I did what any reasonable hungry person would do and improvised and made my own PB&J Idly. This provided a hearty morning chuckle for us both!  And we are now en route with Keyshon and Mahendra for our second day of birding outside Delhi.

Sultanpur National Park

The first day of real birding was fairly productive.  We also learned about India in the hour drive through Delhi to get there.

The birding highlights were spotted owlets, painted storks, Indian pond herons and the common tailorbird.

Here are the full ebird lists.

Sultanpur National Park

Chandu Reed Bank

Healthy nuts for the health nuts

Our first official outing was to a health food store to change out our car snacks. We will have the same car and driver throughout this first leg of India and the company graciously put a basket of “snacks” in the car for us.

On Sunday morning, the owner of Asian Adventures arranged to drop by and meet us to make sure everything was to our liking. He was so helpful! I felt comfortable speaking up and saying there is no way we will be munching on that selection. He knew of a shop we would love, so he had our bird guide and driver take us there. 

It was like gluten free heaven! We even got activated nuts which we usually only find at farmers markets near us.

We got tons of stuff to carry us through, but we haven’t tried anything yet because we had already consumed an abundant breakfast and also were heading to lunch at 12:30.

The lunch restaurant, Dum Puckt, was a very well respected establishment that specializes in a very slow style of cooking and they grind their own spices and the recipes are secret. It was great albeit a tad spicy for me, but the staff offered to bring out plain curd which fixed that problem - so we didn’t need dinner or any snacks still after that big meal.

In the afternoon we walked it off a bit when our driver and guide took us to a local garden to do a small bit of birding. The park was very crowded with people enjoying their Sunday, so we didn’t stay long but actually picked up a few lifers. I’m sure Mike will post some bird photos soon. He’s asleep and I’m awake at 3 am. Obviously jet lag and time changes are an issue but we are managing okay. Going out for real birding today at 8 am - such a civilized time to start!

Arrived India!

All good so far here in India. Flight was long and boring with a decent meal (but crappy snacks 😂) and we were greeted promptly by our Asian Adventures representative and are nicely ensconced at the Taj Palace for four nights.

Before we forget - have to post about a fun meal we had when we went to see the snow monkeys. Never ones to just go with the usual crowds, we did some research about what to eat while in Nagano and it became an obsession and a must try. Our driver was actually very helpful and found the place we had researched. We got there after they were making them fresh but fortunately before they were all sold out. 

Language barrier was hysterical. We were paying for them and the clerk kept repeating something over and over. We were clueless. Eventually she pulls out a little notebook and finds a page with the words “very hot.” This is after we made our selection and had paid so then Chris was worried they were going to be too spicy. Sticking out her tongue and pointing didn’t do anything to help the communication along 😂. So Mike had to taste first to see. We got three different fillings, beans, green vegetables and something else that tasted like potato salad. None were the least bit spicy nor were they hot in temperature- so we are still laughing about that little encounter. They were good overall but would have been better a little fresher. 

Here are the foodie related photos.

It’s been a sweet stay!

We checked out of Palace Hotel Tokyo this morning after another nice breakfast (with Elmo this time) in the club lounge. India, here we come! I’m not sure we are going to be prepared for the chaos of India after such a calm abode. The signature scent of the Plaza was “tranquility” and it was very relaxing and not a bit overwhelming as it wafted through the hallways and emerged from the skin care amenities in the room.

It was a really nice base for a few days while we got our bearings, and hopefully some day we will be back to Tokyo to explore more. It is super clean here! As we were being driven to the airport this morning, it occurred to me this is a huge city like Los Angeles or NYC full of high rises and little else, but there is not a scrap of litter or any graffiti on the buildings! It really makes a difference in one’s perception.

It’s always nice to find a little special something at each place we stop - and for Chris it was the honey that was light and unique tasting that she drizzled on Greek yogurt and fresh fruits each morning.

Elmo liked it too! I bet Elmo would have loved the snow monkeys even more than we did! The antics of the little ones was a highlight- hair pulling and pushing - just like some little ones we know. 🥰