India Wildlife and Medieval Tour for Mr. Aladdin
Mumbai – Rajkot - Sasan Gir– Alang - Ahmedabad – Delhi – Corbett – Delhi - Neemrana – Jaipur - Ranthambhore – Fatehpur Sikri – Agra – Delhi - Bandhavgarh – Kanha – Pench – Nagpur – Mumbai
34 Nights – 35 Days Cut short to 30 days due to VISA issues
Day 5: Sasan Gir – Alang - Ahmedabad– (330 kms: 7 – 8 hrs) - Delhi (By Air)
After breakfast check out the hotel and drive to Ahmedabad, Enroute visit Alang, A modern wonder
of Gujarat, the ship-breaking yard at Alang is a fantastic spectacle in itself. It is located on the coast
between Bhavnagar and Talaja. Large ships from America, Europe, and Asia are brought here to be
scrapped.
The reason behind the selection of this site was the nature of its tide, suitable for such
maritime activities and the proximity of industrial zones that could utilize its metal and other scrap.
Later continue drive to Ahmedabad airport to board the Spicejet SG-192 flight for Delhi depart 2110
hrs and arrived 2245 hrs, on arrival transfer to the hotel for overnight stay.
Changed to flight SG 196 departing @ 20:50
Saturday 9thof January 2016and I had my alarm to go off at 6 o'clock. They will come to pick me up at 9 o'clock. My plan was to go for some early morning birding at the Hiran River just outside the Lion Safari Camp. Would be nice to spot another few birds before leaving for Alang.
But, well, time turned quickly and it was soon 9 o'clock when we would leave Lion Safari Camp in Sasan Gir. I had time for a quick breakfast before it was time to leave. And of course, we hadtime for the mandatory pictures.
The driver told me it would take about 7 hours to reach Ahmedabad so we had plenty time. We left Lion Safari Camp around quarter past 9. We were driving on the dust road and I was looking out for the tree with the two spotted Owlets.
But I could not see the tree, they were all looking the same. Our driver stopped to ask a old guy if he wanted a ride. The guy was lookingback at me when he noticed the smoke from the back seat.
He looked at me like I was a magician. Yeah, nothing like alittle HOCUS-POCUS in the morning.
He got eyes like saucers every time I was blowing smoke. He could not believe what he was seeing. - Abracadabra motherfoockers!
We left our new friend the hitchhiker on the main street and we continued. We left Sasan Gir at the opposite side as we had arrived a few nights ago. Sasan Gir behind us and a longstraight highway, well,hmm, a road ahead of us.
We were in an upbeat mood and I had planned to spend the hours waiting at the airport by having a look at my pictures.
We were hauling arse and I was in an upbeat mood in the back seat. This lasted for abouthmm, well, maybe 7 minutes.
My non English speaking driver told me that we would be in Ahmedabad in the evening - IN THE EVENING??!! You just told me that we had plenty time!
I told him that I needed to be at the airport at 7. Then suddenly we ran in to traffic. I really suspect that India as a country lose a lot of money because of the cows and shitty vehicles on the roads. Average speed on the roads are 50 km/h or less.
Yeah, just bring it on!
All cows should be brought out in the forests. Now they are like rats eating garbage in the towns and villages. Then ban all the whatever they call it from the roads, teach people how to drive and the whole country would benefit and develop.
You make the best biscuits in the world, your neighbour try them and he just love them SO MUCH. The year pass by and the rumours about the “best biscuits in the world” spreads around India and everyone wants to buy them. Bad luck, you cannot sell them because they are old before they reach the next town down the highway.
We pass a place where the boil the sugar cane juice and we stop to have a look at the place. All the loaded trucks we see on the roads are loaded with sugar cane.
We stop at a sugar factory
Sugar cane
We stayed for about 10 minutes before we continued our road trip towards Alang and the scrap yard. The sugar factory was just a bit more than an hour from Lion Safari Camp. And even thoughwe had run in to different set-backs on the way the spirit was high in the back seat. I expected to be in Ahmedabad early afternoon. But I was soon realising that this was not going to happen.
But I was soon starting to get worried, if we're going to be at Ahmedabad Domestic Airport in the late afternoon we're better off to arrive to Alang soon. The driver tell me that we will be at Ahmedabad around 6 o'clock in the evening.
There was no end to it and we passed road signs with the distance to Bhavnagar every now and then. And the distance didn't decrease. In one hour the distance had decreased by 40 km so the average speedwas nothing to brag about. This was not looking good. Well, as long as we make it to the airport to 7 o'clock.
One good sign was that they were putting new pavement on the road. We passed a road work area so the road will maybe be a little better in the future.
And the biggest problem is not the state of the road but what’s on the road. Suddenly there is a cow in the middle of the road. Or hundreds of cows or goats and whatever. Motorcycles driving in the middle of the road and cars and trucks parked all over the place.
New pavement
New pavement
We stop so the driver can drink tea
A container that will be late for the ship
Finally in Alang
We arrived to Alang, at least the sign 5 hours after departure from Lion Safari Camp. It was just after 2 o'clock in the afternoon when I took the picture of the Alang sign.
My driver kept on nagging about permit to enter and he stopped all the time. He went on and on and I told him to drive until we were stopped. The road down to the beach was lined with shops selling everything you could find on a ship.
We drove almost all the way down to the beach where I had to go out from the car as I was not allowed inside. I walked around taking pictures of the few ships I could see from the gate.
Alang
is a census town in Bhavnagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. In the past three decades, its beaches have become a major worldwide centre for ship breaking.
How can this be allowed? Does anyone believe this crap? Safety first and environmentally friendly, what a load of cackaracka
This is how long I got before they stopped us
My driver is drinking tea while I explore the area
Scarecrows, another way to use old life jackets
We're leaving again driving back along the rows of ship scrap shops
Bathrooms for sale
Thank you, it was interesting to see
We were back at the intersection around 3 o'clock, about one hour after arrival to Alang. It was, well, would have been nice to come down to the beach. But it was interesting to have seen Alang and the business around the ship scrapping, sorry, the recycling.
3 o'clock and I need to be at Ahmedabad Domestic Airport. Will we make it in time? And it cannot come as a surprise that you just have to clickHEREto find out if I make it to my flight.
OK, it has come to my knowledge that we have senior citizens visiting my web page. How hard can itbe? So it's not very easy for them to see the blue coloured links to the next page.
Jiffy (also jiff)
noun[in SING.] informal a moment: we'll be back in a jiffy.
ORIGINlate 18th cent.: of unknown origin.
So as you understand, in a jiff pretty much depends on your internet.
So I put a “Next” button here and I hope that there isn't any problem to understand how to use that one. So just CLICK the “Next” button on your left hand side and you will be on the next page in a jiff!
Marunong ka mag-tagalog? Walang problema! Magpunta sa kabilang pahina pindutin ang “NEXT” button sa itaas
Faites vous parlez le français? Pas de problème! Pour arriver à la page suivante faites s'il vous plaît un déclic le bouton “Next” ci-dessus!
Haga usted dice el español? No hay problema! Ver la siguiente página sólo hacer clic el botón “Next” encima!
Farla parla l'italiano? Non problemi! Per vedere la prossima pagina lo scatto per favore giusto Il bottone “Next” sopra
Sprechen sie Deutsch! Kein problem! Wenn Sie die folgende Seite sehen wollen gerade klicken der Knopf “Next” oben!