Author name: AllisonHill

Majestic Tigers and The Taj Mahal

Wildlife Watching /

Tigers have been top of my wildlife-to-see list for a while, so that’s what took me to India in April. As usual, I combined the trip with some special sights – and I’m very glad I did.

Varanasi – a Must Visit

First stop was Varanasi – known as India’s spiritual capital. It was one of the most amazing places I’ve ever visited. People flock there to bathe in the Ganges for spiritual liberation and attend evening ceremonies conducted by Brahmin priests. I didn’t do the bathing, but I did attend the evening aarti honouring Mother Ganga. Seven priests performed rituals with chants, incense, lamps and other visual displays.

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Plenty to See in the Pantanal

Wildlife Watching /

A great trip to the Pantanal in 2017 inspired us to return. Our gang of 4 wildlife watchers set off in mid-September. Naturally my greatest hope was to see lots of jaguars, plus the amazing variety of animals and birds to be found in this great landscape of Brazil.

After a slightly irritating flight delay, we arrived at our first destination –  South Wild Pantanal Lodge on the banks of the Pixaim River. We spent just over 2 days with a mix of walks and boat trips. Although we didn’t see jaguars, we did see lots of capybaras – which I am really fond of – capuchin and howler monkeys, caimans and a whole array of birds.

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Roars of Pride

Poems /

Celebrating England Women  winning the Euros, 2025

Our lionesses now rightfully reign,
Making history, they’ve won the Euros again.
Sarina’s grand plan proved to be right,
As they pulled themselves through a nail-biting fight.

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Utterly Lovely Lynx

Wildlife Watching /
Finding these felines in Southern Spain

For most of my life when I’ve thought of Spain, Barcelona, bars and beaches have come to mind. My parents had a flat in Denia for many years, so holidays there, plus visits to friends in Sitges in more recent times, fuelled that rather limited view. I have now finally found that Spain has the most amazing nature reserves. And in certain places you can even spot the most elegant wild cats imaginable: lynx.

I had the thrill of seeng lynx in Andujar Natural Park in January with my usual great gang of wildlife watching friends. Iberian lynx used to be fairly common in Spain and Portugal but, as with lots of wildlife, their numbers diminished through habitat destruction, disease, hunting and road accidents. At one time they were on the verge of extinction; thanks to conservation efforts, they are now listed by the IUCN as vulnerable – a small but significant improvement. Spotting them would be a challenge, but we were optimistic.

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