Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, Bangkok, Thailand

Floating markets are one of the must-visit attractions when come to the Land of Smile, Thailand. However, the size and method of selling may vary from market to market. The floating markets have been a century old traditional culture of Thai. As such, without doubts the market is established in every province in the country. 

Damnoen Saduak is one of the most popular tourist attraction and a must-visit destination floating market for both local and foreign tourists in Bangkok. The market feature sellers are offering their goods on a small non-motorized boat, whilst visitors are on a separate motorized boats along few kilometres of small canals in the town. Any purchase can be done from the boat. Varieties of goods sold here, including local and traditional food, local fruits, drinks, souvenirs, local produce and household items.  

Other popular floating market in Bangkok is Taling Chan Floating Market. Taling Chan adopts very different approach of trading, where the sellers are on stationary boats tied on a concrete platform and the buyers are going around to do the purchase on the same platform. Almost of all items sold here are food, both traditional Thai food and seafood. The famous and the most sought after food here is barbeque fresh seafood. 

How to get to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market is located Damnoen Saduak district in Ratchaburi Province, some 100 km Southwest of Bangkok. It takes approximately one hour drive from Bangkok city center and it cost around Baht 1,500 to Baht 1,800 per trip by car or taxi. Bus is also available from certain locations in Bangkok. The conversion is 1 USD equivalent to 30 Baht.     

Best time to visit Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

The best time to visit Damnoen Saduak Floating Market is the morning from 7.00 a.m. to 12.00 p.m. The market is opened daily and no entrance fee is collected. To avoid over crowed market and traffic jam along the narrow canals, come early and be ready with your camera to capture the action. 

Challenges in Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

Although there is no entrance fee into the market, foreign tourists are brought to a pier where most of the taxis and buses were stopped and the boatmen are offering their boat services to foreign tourists. One motorized boat, which may be shared by 5-12 people depending on the size may cost from Baht 1,500 to Baht 2,200 per trip for going around the market area along small canals. To move along narrow canals and to maneuver easily in the crowed canals, small boats are preferred. 

Alternatively, for experienced foreign and local tourists, ask the taxi drivers to go straight to the main market building, where all vendor boats are heading to perform the business. 

Yellow-bellied Prinia @ Taman Melawati Hill, Selangor, Malaysia

Yellow-bellied Prinia (Prinia flaviventris) is one of the attractive, cute and fast action residence birds can be found in Taman Melawati Hill. It can be found in the vegetation along the small stream at the foothill.

Taman Melawati Hill is hill forest located at Taman Melawati, in the state of Selangor. The hill is part of Tabur Hill East or Bukit Tabur, a popular hiking place to the local during weekend and a wildlife and nature heaven. The view from the hill is breathtaking. It can be reached just less than an hour drive away from Kuala Lumpur City Center. 

Other neighboring areas to Taman Melawati Hill for the birding destinations include Kemensah Heights and Ukay Perdana.

Taman Melawati Hill is well known place to watch raptors migration process which happens during the month of March and April every year. It certainly entices many birders to be there. The main target birds include different types of kites, eagles, buzzards, hawks, kingfishers, weavers, flycatchers, cuckoos, bulbuls, pigeons just to name a few. It has become a destination for migratory birds too.

Black Stork @ Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan, India

Black Stork (Ciconia nigra) is a large, attractive and active bird among many hundred of bird species can be found in Ranthambore National Park. It can be found at the lakes located at lower elevation in the forest of the park.  

Ranthambore National Park

Ranthambore National Park needs no introduction to the world. It is famous for Royal Bengal Tiger, the biggest wild cat alive today. The park has the most tiger population per square kilometer and it is also the largest national park in the state of Rajasthan, India. Originally as project tiger reserves in 1973, the park was declared as National Park on 1 November 1980. 

Inside the Ranthambore National Park, the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Ranthambore Fort is situated. 

How to get to Ranthambore National Park

Located in a small town called Sawai Madhopur, the park can be reached in approximately 3.5 hours by car from Jaipur international airport for a distance of about 160 km. Train and buses are also available mode of transportation from Jaipur to Sawai Madhopur. 

Although Sawai Madhopur is a small town, to cater for both local and foreign tourists visiting Ranthambore National Park, there are abundant hotels, resorts, villas and guesthouses of different standards and prices. Not forgetting restaurants, cafe, convenience shops of all kinds and standards.  

Best time to visit Ranthambore National Park

For a purpose of tiger sighting, the best time to visit the park is during summer; from April to June. During this period the temperature can go up to 40 - 48 degree centigrade. Hence get ready with suitable clothing and a lot of water. Summer generally is non-peak period for Ranthambore National Park as tourists try to avoid very hot weather. However, for serious animal or tiger lovers and wildlife photographers, this is the best period to capture the mammal as they come out to find water at the designated water points.

The peak period where most tourists visit the park is during winter, from November to February where the temperature can drop to 4-10 degree centigrade in the early morning and below 15 in the afternoon. 

Ranthambore National Park is closed during monsoon season, from July to September and it is coincide with a mating season for the tigers. 

Safari at Ranthambore National Park

Safari can be pre-booked or booked from the local agents in the small town of Sawai Madhopur. However, it is advisable to pre-booked the safari as it may be fully booked and the price may be hiked during the peak season. Generally, there are two type of vehicles for safari which allowed to enter into the park, a small jeep with maximum 6 passengers, with a driver and a guide. The other type of vehicle is called Canter, a larger 20-seater modified vehicle. Both vehicles are opened top vehicle. 

The desired type of vehicle can also be chosen during the booking is made as it is different in price. 

For serious wildlife photographers, a small jeep is much desirable as vehicle can move much faster and can enter smaller roads to find animals in the park. 

The Untold Rules of Safari at Ranthambore National Park

Although the total area of the park is approximately 1,300 square kilometers, only less than 30% is opened to public. The area that opens to public is divided into 10 zones, Zone 1 - 6 are considered premium zones where possibility of sighting tiger is better than other zones and they are nearer to the town. Zone 7 -10 cover more hilly and rocky areas with less chances to sight the tigers and it takes about one hour to reach the entrance of the zone from town where hotels are located. 

Although, the zone for each safari vehicle visits is determined by the forestry department officer based on computerized system, speak to local agent where booking is made for desired zones. Beware, some local agents will charge more for the arrangement to enter the premium zones. 

Secondly, the park is opened in two time slots, morning from 6.30 a.m. to 10.00 a.m. and afternoon from 2.30 p.m. to 5.30 p.m. At the end of each time slot, all safari vehicles must exit the park. Hence, the effective duration for safari for each time slot is only 2 hours. As such, arrange safari vehicle for early pickup so the jeep will be at the entrance of designated zone as it opens.  

For serious wildlife lovers and photographers, request for the entire day safari without exiting the park can also be made at the local agent where the booking is made so as to allow more time to search for animal in the park. However, do expect much more expensive fee. 

What to expect in Ranthambore National Park

Visitors to the park expect to see the Royal Bengal Tiger. During summer, the chances to sight this mammal is more than 70% whist only 30% chances during winter. Besides tiger, for wild cat family, leopard, caracal and jungle cat can also be found here. 

Other common animal can be sighted in the park include spotted deer, sambar deer, antelope, gray langur just to name a few. 

The park is also a home to more than 350 species of birds, 40 species of mammal and reptiles and few hundred species of plants.

 

 

Tiger Shrike @ Awana Genting Highlands, Pahang, Malaysia

Tiger Shrike (Lanius tigrinus) is yet another attractive, very active and adorable bird among many birds can be found and residence of Awana Genting Highlands Golf and Country Resort, Pahang, Malaysia. It can be found in a forest along the road at the back of Awana Genting Highlands.

The forest behind Awana Genting Highlands is yet another popular highland birding destination in Pahang, Malaysia. It is located some 51 km for the capital city, Kuala Lumpur and it can be reached in approximately forty minutes by car. 

Other neighboring area to Awana Genting Highlands for the birding destination include the old pump house which is around 500 m from the hotel.    

Awana Genting Highlands is a residence to many exotic birds, including different type of Flycatchers, Bee-eaters, Leafbirds, Bulbuls, Doves, Trogons, Minivets and Magpies just to name a few and many migratory birds.