Our excursion started on 27th Dec from Mumbai and we reached Sawai Madhopur on the next day i.e. on 28th Dec. After reaching there we were put up in a hotel named
al park briefly.
The park was established as the game sanctuary in 1955. Later on in the year 1957 it was established as a wildlife sanctuary and in 1981 as a national park. It was included in Project Tiger in 1973. The National Park covers an area of 392 km² of which 275 km² is the core area. The best season to visit the park is between November to March. There are many water bodies located all over the park, which provide perfect relief during the extremely hot summer months for the forest inhabitants. The park is famous for tigers.
Our guide's name was Fateh Singh Rathore who has worked with Nat Geo & Discovery. We were gald & lucky to have him as our guide. On our first trip we spotted langurs, marsh crocodiles basking in the sun, male sambar sitting lazily in a water puddle, several 
female sambar sitting in the shade of the trees, chittals and babbler bird along with several other birds too. Though we couldn’t spot a tiger the safari was fruitful as we could experience the voice and the music of nature. After safari we went to an interpretation zone where we saw pictures of the tigers, the map of the park, history of the park and the flora & fauna found in the park.
After coming back we had our dinner and we were asked questions related to the park. It was quite a fun as we also had several discussions on the wild.
The next day i.e. on 29th we were off again for the safari. During this safari we saw peacocks, treepie, babbler, and other common animals. Our Guide was different from the previous guide but we were damn lucky as he was a leopard spotter who took us with him in the core zone. We were ecstatic. After the safari we went to visit Ranthambore Fort which lies inside in the National park.
The park gets its name from the Ranthambore fort that stands in the middle of the park. The fort was founded in the 8th century. The fort was a vital stronghold for the control of central 
circumference of its walls approximately 7 kms. It is open to the public from morning to evening. There is no road leading to the top of the hill to the fort but there are only stairs leading from the bottom of the hill. Inside Ranthambore fort there are three Hindu temples dedicated to Ganesh,Shiva and Ramlalaji constructed in 12th and 13th centuries from red Karauli stone. There are many ruins of bygone eras scattered all over the jungle, which give it a unique, wonderful and mixed flavour of nature, hist
ory and wildlife.
The next day i.e. on 30th we left for Bharatpur early morning. After reaching there we took some rest and after dinner we were entertained by the puppet show. It was such a fun to watch puppet show after so many years. We really enjoyed the show. We didn’t do much on the day as were tired traveling. So went off to sleep early.
On 31st we went to Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary, also known as
The name derives from an ancient Hindu temple, devoted to Lord Shiva, which stands at the centre of the park. '
still the ideal visiting months are from August-November for resident breeding birds and October- February for migrant birds. One can walk down the trail, or can travel on cycles & cycle rickshaws. We were lucky enough to spot quite a few birds. Some of them were spotted owl, white fronted kingfisher, darter or snake bird, shobler duck, moorhen, colonies of painted storks, Chinese coot along with turtles and Indian rock python. It was a great experience watching these beautiful birds in their natural surrounding.
Later that night we celebrated the New Year by organizing a small dance party. We had a blast but i did miss my friends a lot.
On 1st Jan, the very first day of the New Year we were lucky to visit the exquisite architecture of Fatehpur Sikri & the monument of love and beauty, Taj Mahal.
The name Fatehpur Sikri came after Mughal Emperor Babur defeated Rana Sanga in a battle at a place called Sikri. Mughal Emperor Akbar wanted to make Fatehpur Sikri his head quarters as a result he built this imposing fort. But due to shortage of water he had to ultimately move his headquarters to Agra Fort. Fatehpur Sikri is regarded as Emperor Akbar's ultimate architectural legacy. Indeed, its numerous palaces, halls, and masjids satisfy his creative and artistic impulses, typical of Mughals. The buildings of Fatehpur Sikri show a perfect blend of Hindu, Jain and Islamic architectural craftsmanship. The building 
material predominantly used is red sandstone. The tomb “Salim Chisti Ka Mazar" was built in 1571 by Akbar in honour of Saint Salim Chishti who blessed the Emperor with a male child, Salim (jahangir), who became the heir to his throne. Earlier it was built with red sand stone but later converted into beautiful marble tomb. Some of the important buildings in the vicinity are Diwan-e-Aam (hall of public audience) where the ruler meets the 
general public, Diwan-e-Khas (hall of private audience) which is famous for its central pillar with 36 voluted brackets supporting a circular platform for Akbar, Jodhabai's palace which shows Gujarati influence and is built around a courtyard, Panch Mahal which is a five-storied impressive structure whose bottom floor has 176 intricately carved columns, Tansen’s seat which is in the middle of Anup Talao & Buland Darwaza (gate of magnificence) a stunning piece of architecture is one of the gateways to the Jama masjid.
Later after this visit we went to see Taj Mahal which was built by Shah Jahan in memory of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.
The Taj Mahal is considered as the finest example of Mughal architecture, a style that combines
elements from Persian, Turkish, Indian, and Islamic architectural styles. The focus of Taj Mahal is the white marble tomb, which stands on a square plinth consisting of a symmetrical building with an arch-shaped doorway, topped by a large dome. The main dome is crowned by a spire. The spire provides a clear example of integration of traditional Persian and Hindu decorative elements. It is topped by a moon, Islamic symbol, whose horns point heavenward. Because of its placement on the main spire, the horns of moon and spire point combine to create a trident shape, the trishul. A beautiful gift from a loving husband to his wife is a sight to remember.
On 2nd early morning we left for Jaipur, popularly known as
It is a classic fusion of Mughal and Hindu architecture, built in red sandstone and white marble. 
The fort is entered through the 'Dil-e-Aaram' Garden, laid out in the traditional Mughal style. An impressive flight of stairs leads to the Diwan-E-Am. The 'Jai Mandir' (hall of victory) has a sparkling ceiling with mirror pieces on stucco and elegant inlaid panels. The Diwan- E- Khas is covered with jail screens and the most exquisite is the Seesh Mahal (hall of Mirrors) known for its craftsmanship in mirrors. Thousands of mirror pieces adorn the walls and the ceiling that, any streak of light makes them sparkle and illuminates the entire room. A very magnificent palace is worth watching.
Later in the evening we went to visit
On 3rd we had a relaxed day since we visited only Hawa Mahal and did some shopping near the palace.
Hawa Mahal (
A good architectural monument, but is not being maintained properly. I thought that the shops just below the palace steal the charm. Frankly speaking I didn’t enjoy the visit. But that’s my opinion.
After the visit we shopped till dusk. Some of us finished our shopping early and then we wandered off to eat the typical rajasthani dishes. It was real fun.
4th Jan, our last day in Rajasthan was spent packing our bags till evening and then we boarded the train wherein we were awake the entire night.
As everything comes to an end, our trip also came to an end.
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