Day 1
Jaisalmer “the Golden City” located in the Thar Desert of Rajasthan furthest west reaches. We arrived to the smallest station I’ve seen during the trip, just one track, a dead end and nothing but sand to show for. On the way to the hotel we met a lovely couple named Kim and Jason from the United States. The connected was instant, both sharing our the knowledge of traveling the globe gave a chance to learn off each other. As we arrived at the guesthouse, as a group we decided to booked our camel tip together for tomorrow.
Mel and I took separate ways in exploring the city today. The thing about Jaisalmer is, it’s a small desert city known best for it’s silver, camel leather/bone designs. Everything leather, wallets, bags, books, footwear, etc, it’s all made here. The city is comprised of two really famous attractions, the fort which towers over the town and the beautiful sandstone mansions of the Havelis. The Havelis were build in 1885 by rich merchants with intricate detail carvings right into the sandstone – for more info about them visit here. The city is also split into three sectors; outer wall, inner wall and the fortress itself. The outer wall is made up of all local shops/vendors and by venturing out further, it gets you away from the touristy spots. The inner walls are made of a lot of the hotels, stores and tourist safe dinning. The fort is a lot like the inner walls but built within the narrow paths of the fortress. You get lots of shopping to choose from, but don’t worry about the sellers, they aren’t as pushy as for example Agra or other major cities.
Met this cute boy wielding a broom as I made walked around the fort. He was nice enough to pose for me a couple times I bought him some candy just around the block. Communication was difficult but the both of us managed, which got me the photos I needed in the end.
Venturing outside the tourist zones is something I love perusing regardless. Indians are really friendly and open, they love asking you questions or even just being beside you. At first glance they might be staring you down but really just need an approval that you’re ok – the simple head booble will do. It’s also not uncommon to find a English speaking Indian either. The adults are final, it’s the younger kids who are more difficult to speak to. My favourite part, very quickly picking up on all the good stuff in town; what’s a good deal, where to avoid, costs of goods and even getting shown the scenic view of the city. It’s good to pick up on these tips as the guide books won’t tell you every bit of detail.
Once I finished my tea with some of the gents, I ventured even further way from the outerwall. Doing so I was quickly abused by kids asking for rupees or their photo taken. Once I started giving out both, there was no surprise it was like a flock of seagull waiting for handsout. The trouble-some crew followed me up the moutain, but at the top once I started ignoring them they all scattered – finally left in peace to enjoy the sunset.
Make no mistake, It was a long day walking around the city since 7 that morning. Now I’m the type of person which observes and interacts with all the types of individuals but by the end of the day I remember walking back to the hotel dragging my feet like a zombie and swaying back and forth till finally hit the bed. Glad I came home when I did because eating one of those Samosas from the vendors outside wasn’t playing nice that night :/
Day 2
You guessed it, it wasn’t a good morning for my stomach as it felt like bath of hot chillies. Didn’t make it any better when the honey banana crape took well over an hour to make. Not blaming the chiefs, but no fresh bananas were delivers that morning so he had to run outside the fort to purchase some. Fresh as you order it I tell ya. After breakfast the stomach acids finally settled, there was no better feeling knowing I didn’t have to skip out on the camel trip.
The first leg of the trip was a little boring, no camels and we stop at a couple temples along the way. I’m going to leave them out because there was no comparison to all the other amazing places I’ve already written about. We’ll except for the sign, how embarrassing must it been for some women. Lets just skip to the camel riding because once you see them in person, you can really appreciate their size!
Here’s a fun fact: Did you know camels from India only have one hump, while Egyptian camels have two? We all knew it was for storing water so there’s a little food for thought. Couldn’t help watch them constantly chew on something either. Learned that after they swallow, it just comes back up to be re-chewed some more. With all this chewing and bad breath, should we be offering them some sugar free extra gum?
After about an hour of bouncing around on a camels back, I had a enough. The novelty wore off pretty quickly actually. We finally reached our destination along a “desert”ed strip of rolling sand banks which stretched for miles as the eyes can see. The camels were then unloaded, feet tired closely together, cow bell hung across their neck and let go to wonder the desert. First thing they do, wonder to the closest bush and eat.. the good life! You can hear them all night with that cow bell, easier to find the next morning it’s said.
As the sun started slipping from the sky, we sprung into action with the cameras. We all took turns as Kim pulled out a couple of her Yoga poses, Jason also jumped in to create a duo with Kim for a pretty cool todum pole figure. Mel did a couple jumping shots while I on the other hand pulled a couple karate kid moves. We all took our turns, feeding each other bigger and cooler things to attempt. With the sun down, the desert turned instantly got colder. The staff prepped our beds and started cooking us a meal. On the menu, Rajesthani Thali, all freshly cooked food right on the spot. These gents were skilled cook artist, preparing food in pitch black and without any modern gadgets either.
After dinner we all snuggled under the blankets with some warm tea and admired the night sky. The starts were scattered across the endless sky, all within a few inches apart across the black space. As we went through naming all the constellations, Jason emphasized how he’s never seen Orion so prominent before. I’m no expert except for pointing out the Dipper and Orion’s belt, but you could probably find everything across this sky. We all stayed up as long as we could before one by one we all started drifting asleep under the sky.
Day 3
I remember being covered under three blankets wasn’t enough. Even curling up in a ball and spending a portion of the night trying to seal up all the pockets with my feet to keep in the heat. We set our clocks to get in the a.m and catch the sunrise. Surprisingly the staff were up earlier then us preparing my favourite breakfast, Jam toast and fruit.
Photographer Tips/Hint; You’ll only read it here because I won’t spill the secrets anywhere else but sometimes you have to setup a shot. If it doesn’t happen naturally, then you must. Like these camel photographs. The staff were to busy so I got Kim to lead the camels around. I don’t always do it, but sometimes when an idea comes to your mind I have to “set it up”. On the way back we were handed the reins and giving permission to steer the camels. It defeated the purchase of steering the cameras when these camels were trained to follow one another in a straight line. Only the lead driver got the privilege of controlling the whole pack. I got to break out of the pack a few times but the camel would just draw himself back in like a magnet – no fun!
Back at the hotel we were able to take a shower, repack, fuel up on food and say our good byes! Kim and Jason were staying another night while Mel and I were catching the next 18hr train ride back into Delhi.
Once back at the house there was nothing like a wonderful home cooked meal though – always a pleasure coming back to that. The repack for the next 4 days was significantly lighter compared to the two week trip we just managed to come back from. For the next leg we planned to see the Golden Temple and head up the Himalayas to Dharamshala. Packing a couple warmer clothes as we knew there was going to be a difference in climate too. In the evening, Chinmoy invited us to his favourite Indian/Asian mixed restaurant. For the price, the lamb dish couldn’t be beat back home. Even the sweat and sour was to drool over. I even got my hands on their countries domestic beer, Kingfisher – which was went down real nice.
We hit the bed early and set our alarms for a 6:30. Next stop, Amiristar in Punjab.
Great PJ work there Tom. Love this series.