Assam: Kaziranga – “You are old, but funny”

24. November 2025

 

 

The day before, my Diamir travel group had arrived — and we quickly grabbed some breakfast by the roadside. There are eight people who wanted to explore Northeast India more closely and get to know the people. But first, we started with the animals. I’m not a fan of safaris. And yet, for the fourth time in the past two years, I had to gain another experience with one….

 

Kaziranga National Park is famous for its population of over 2,600 one-horned rhinoceroses. We saw quite a lot of them. The first safari began while it was still dark — on elephant back. Two to three people sit one behind the other on an elephant, and then 8–10 elephants set off together for the wildlife viewing.

 

 

 

 

It’s so dark that both my phone and my camera are overwhelmed. But slowly it starts to get lighter, and you spot more and more rhinos in the tall grass. It almost feels a bit like an Easter egg hunt, the way they are hidden in the landscape.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I actually found it quite pleasant. It was peaceful, the landscape was beautiful in the early morning mist, the elephants swayed along comfortably, people chatted quietly, marvelled at the tall vegetation and the frequent sightings. Here are a few more photos:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we drove back for breakfast and visited a nearby orchid and culture show. The people set it up independently. On the grounds there are various things to see, some of them with guided tours. It was really well done, and the people were enthusiastic about sharing aspects of life in Assam. The orchids aren’t really part of daily life, but it’s a fantastic collection, and we marvelled at tiny and large, smelly and fragrant, magnificent and modest blossoms.

 

 

 

 

 

Then there was a museum on Assamese cultures. It was incredibly extensive, but the guide, the group, and I had a lot of fun together. The amount of interesting things shown and explained was enormous. There was no real opportunity for taking photos — except for one:

 

 

There was also a room with musical instruments and demonstrations, a stage with dance and music, an herbal garden, a vegetable garden, a “rice museum,” and the opportunity to try on traditional clothing. We didn’t manage to see everything, but it was really lovely.

 

 

 

In the afternoon, there was a second safari, this time by jeep. We saw even more one-horned rhinos, as well as many birds and so on. I find safari by jeep sillier—maybe because on an elephant you’re at least sitting on something “natural,” whereas the jeep feels like a ridiculous foreign object to me. I had been to Chitwan National Park before to see rhinos—there were very few there, and they mostly just stood around. Here, they were much more active, which made them more interesting to watch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that was it for the animal-focused part of this trip. Within the context of a group tour, it was still manageable for me. But genuine enthusiasm still isn’t setting in.

 

The group is slowly getting to know each other — they’re all experienced travellers with fairly quirky personalities, but — as I can already say a few days later — they get along quite well. And I’ve already received some feedback from one of them: “You’re old, but funny.” That made me laugh.