Golden City
Trip Start
Sep 03, 2004
1
40
44
Trip End
Dec 22, 2004
Jaisalmer,
India
Monday, December 13, 2004
This is the stuff that dreams are made of. Jaisalmer, as it says in Lonely Planet, is a place which should exist only in the imagination. It is so surreal being here. It's all too much to take in, we don't know where to start with our travelogues of India, no words will ever be able to describe what we are experiencing here, this is the essence of travelling and discovering the world. India is truly amazing.
We drove form Bikaner to Jaisalmer and as soon as we saw the fort, we were so stunned. It just looks like a big sandcastle rising out of the desert - and don't mistake this as being an insult, for it is the most wonderful sight, something you wouldn't believe really exists in our day
Andy and Calu
. Of course, we had to stay inside the fort, and wow, what an experience! It's like being transported to another world, another time, where anything can happen, where the sights and sounds and smells just take you away. All of India, well the little we've seen so far, is the same, so exotic. It's magical, it's so rich in everything wonderful. We really love it - saved the best for last without a doubt.Our first night in Jaisalmer
After organising our adventure for the next two days(more on that later), we strolled around the narrow streets of Jaisalmer Fort, inside which we were staying, just had to! and dodging cows and rickshaws, promising vendors we'd come back later, shouting hello back to children, the normal things we're getting up to in India :-) Our hotel was lovely, brand new, and overlooked one of the old narrow streets and also a sandstone Jain Hindu temple, then on the roof, there was a most amazing view of the whole city and the fort. We went to a rooftop restaurant for sunset and again were blessed with the most magnificent colours which made the sandstone fort turn a bright gold colour, before a silhouette and finally when the sun disappeared, the fort was lit up with orange lights. We tried to take it all in while we ate our favourite food to the sound of traditional Indian love songs and a song calling for a monsoon (it hasn't rained for 4 years in this part of Rajasthan)
Another Holy Cow
. It was a truly beautiful evening in what is without a doubt our favourite place in the whole world (well, from everything we've seen so far!).The Adventure
We got up early and went to Ganesh Travel to meet the rest of our group. After breakfast in the German Bakery, we were squished into a jeep while trying to avert our eyes from the shameless dogs who were seemingly confused of their roles ;-/. So, where were we going??? Into the Great Thar Desert, no less! After 40 minutes in the jeep along dirt tracks, we met our next mode of transport. Andy's was called Calu and Jillian's was called Papu - camels! This was so exciting! Jillian's camel, Papu, decidied it would be leader, and so, off it went ahead of the rest, followed in suit by Calu and Andy and then 3 English folk behind us. It was really great to have such a small group, and we were all able to relate to each other's travelling tales of India! On top of a camel is such an experience, no, the best part of it is getting up or down. Think of how a camel stands up and gets down - yes, we were on the top while it was doing this - waa! Trotting along, bouncing about with the desert all around, the sun beating down and the smell of our flatulent camels wafting with the cool breeze :-) it was really brilliant
Beautiful Colours of Beautiful Sunset
.We stopped off at a few villages and this was quite sad. The children, pretty much in rags, begged for anything we would give them - pens, creams, clothes, even a piece of fruit. Jillian had 7 children swarming her, all fighting over an orange, whic she had to peel herself and share for fear that some poor soul wouldn't get a bit. There was this one wee boy, who was the one that asked her first, who cried his eyes out because she shared it and he didn't get a bit, but Jillian had kept a whole banana for him. It was quite heart breaking to see, but we don't think the kids were actuallt starvingm, it's just that they don't have much and so anything tourists might give them is a real treat. In return, a beautiful village girl in her bright ornage saree trailed Jillian into a yard and painted her nails red and put a hindu decoration on her forehead. So, Jillian gave her a lip liner and a blusher, then took out her perfume and gave them all a spray, but the clever little village children thought the perfume was so much beter and tried to swap the blusher for it - what an experience!!! We visited another village where we played with the children again, who are so street wise and well beyond their years.
Lunch was prepared under a huge tree in the desert by our lovely guides, our favourite being Naju
Desert Village
. It is amazing what they concocted out of a few ingredients. Well fed, we took a siesta in the shade before trotting off again on our adventure into the desert.As sunset approached, we could see our resting place for the night - isolated sand dunes with the softest golden sand. It was lovely to run up to the top and just look over the desert watching the sun go down. But, we hadn't even seen the best of it yet. As night fell, one by one the brightest stars we have ever seen appeared right above our heads. We could see the Milkyway as clear as in a science book, and the constellations we all know, but sort of see in our sky, were as clear as day. This was a wiondrous sight. Andy and me even got a bit of the Jingle Bells, sittin in sand, watcihng the bright stars with camels roaming about in the background - almost a nativity setting :-)
At a campfire, we ate well again, and then listened to hilarious stories about other camel trekking trips our guides had been on, heard about hteir lives, and some macho jokes about each others wives. They then sang some traditional songs, improvising by using a water cannister as a drum, and even threw in a couple of western songs with their own words, of course:
(To the tune of the annoying "Barbie Girl" by Aqua)
I am Camel Man,
In the bloody sand
Deserted Village
.Imagination,
Trekking my creation.
Come on camel, let's go desert, uh uh uh.
We laughed so much and had such a warm-hearted lovely evening around a campfire in the middle of the desert, under the stars. As I write this, I'm asking myself "Was it real???" After deciding it was time for bed, we all dispersed a few metres to where our guides had lain out blankets - no tents for the hardy camel trekkers. How wonderful... sleeping beneath the stars in sand dunes in a desert. We just lay there amazed, then all of a sudden we began to notice the amount of shooting stars - no joke there were so many we lost count. This little adventure was something else, we were looking forward to our camel trek, but just couldn't have wished for it to be as amazing as it was.
Next day, our new English friends had to leave early to catch a train, so it was Andy and me all alone with Calu, Papu and our guide Naju. Even better :-) There was no rush today, the adrenaline and pure excitement of the previous having calmed down a bit, we could properly relax and just take in what we were doing - appreciating the beauty and tranquility of the desert
Entertainment
. As Jillian's camel Papu had assumed the role of leader much to Jillian's approval, because at the front, you see nobody else, only the vast desert in front of you. You could be alone, just you and your camel in the wild and dry desert. As you climb hills, it's empty untouched ground you see, nonbody in front. So, to allow Andy the same experience, she asked Naju to make Papu stay behind, so Andy led the most of the second day and was able to experience the same honour. Lunch again was in the shade, then another siesta under a tree listening to the birds. What an amazing time. Although sad our adventure on the camel safari was over, we parted ways with Naju, Calu and Papu and back in a jeep, but it wasn't hard returning to Jaisalmer, the fort as impressive as when we first set eyes on it. We spent another great night inside the fort, before it was back in the car the next morning and off for some more of India, whatever will be next???
I swear, we'll burst with happiness and excitement before it's all over at all the amazing things and places this trip has enabled us to experience.
A&J
