I took the bus from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur this morning. It was interesting because the bus was to leave at 8:15. By 8 there were a couple of people ready to board. I had bought a "sleeper" ticket, which gave me a 6 foot long, 2.5 wide and 3 foot high cabin. It had sliding doors and privacy curtains. The foam mattress was nice, and there was a pillow. By 8:30 we hadn't left, but a lot more people showed up, with their luggage. Because of the sleeper compartment there is no luggage rack, so it stays in the aisle. We left at 8:45, but made a couple of stops on the way out of the city. By the time we left, the bus was packed, and there wasn't even any standing room. I was very happy to have my private sardine can inside the bigger sardine can.
The bus ride took 5 hours, and I read my Kindle and slept.
Jodhpur is a big city, with another impressive fort. I am staying in a guest house in the old part, with a beautiful view of the fort from the roof top of the guest house.
I have a great room; it even has a foam mattress. The couple running the place are lovely.
I started to walk around, and spent a couple of hours at the market. This is, by far, the nicest and biggest market I have seen so far. The usual number of cows, but a lot to see. Jodhpur is noted for its spice market, and that is very colorful and aromatic. It's nice to smell something besides cow shit, urine, and exhaust fumes.
Till tomorrow
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Jan 8 My last day in Jaisalmer
Jaisalmer's fort is different than any of the others I have seen. The forts in Agra, Jaipur, and Bikaner have all been turned into tourist sites. At one time they were all functioning forts, and they were mainly fortified cities. Once the British controlled the country, these forts remained in the private hands of the local princes. They started to use them as private residences and built palaces within the fortifications. In Agra, for example there were more than a dozen palaces in the fort.
Jaisalmer is different in that it is still a functioning town within the fortified walls. There are 3000 inhabitants living inside the walls, with numerous hotels, restaurants, and shops. There is one palace, and several Jain temples.
The fort sits on top of a triangular hill, with steep side all around. I would guess the perimeter is about 2 to 3 km.
All the buildings are made of sand stone, which is easily carved. The carvings in the temples and the houses are fantastic. Unbelievably beautiful, in their honey colours.
Another nice thing is that the lanes and streets are very narrow, they haven't changed for 400 years, so there is no car traffice, just the occasional motorcycle. It is actually peaceful and laid back. It's the first place where I have been able to browse without someone on your back.
I think I mentioned that there is a German bakery. I have shopped there every day; they make lovely brown bread buns, and cinnamon rolls.
The outside of the walls is full of shops of every kind. The problem is that they are all very small, and they all basically sell the same things. No variety. For example I have only seen one store that sold butter, and it was a1 lb size, not too convenient for me.
I should mention there are lots of stalls selling fruits and vegetables. Bananas, pineapples, apples, papayas, oranges, and grapes. I haven't seen a head of lettuce, or peppers, except for chili peppers, and beans. Some stalls will sell a fruit salad in a bowl. They have a variety of fruit, but also cucumbers and radishes. It took me about a week to try one, but I have been eating them regularly since.
Luckily I haven't had a case of Delhi Belly yet.
Tomorrow I am off to Jodhpur.
I should mention another "Indian" moment. I was at a restauranr in Bikaner, and one of the items on the menu was "Diet Cock"
Now there is an idea whose time has come.
Till later
Jaisalmer is different in that it is still a functioning town within the fortified walls. There are 3000 inhabitants living inside the walls, with numerous hotels, restaurants, and shops. There is one palace, and several Jain temples.
The fort sits on top of a triangular hill, with steep side all around. I would guess the perimeter is about 2 to 3 km.
All the buildings are made of sand stone, which is easily carved. The carvings in the temples and the houses are fantastic. Unbelievably beautiful, in their honey colours.
Another nice thing is that the lanes and streets are very narrow, they haven't changed for 400 years, so there is no car traffice, just the occasional motorcycle. It is actually peaceful and laid back. It's the first place where I have been able to browse without someone on your back.
I think I mentioned that there is a German bakery. I have shopped there every day; they make lovely brown bread buns, and cinnamon rolls.
The outside of the walls is full of shops of every kind. The problem is that they are all very small, and they all basically sell the same things. No variety. For example I have only seen one store that sold butter, and it was a1 lb size, not too convenient for me.
I should mention there are lots of stalls selling fruits and vegetables. Bananas, pineapples, apples, papayas, oranges, and grapes. I haven't seen a head of lettuce, or peppers, except for chili peppers, and beans. Some stalls will sell a fruit salad in a bowl. They have a variety of fruit, but also cucumbers and radishes. It took me about a week to try one, but I have been eating them regularly since.
Luckily I haven't had a case of Delhi Belly yet.
Tomorrow I am off to Jodhpur.
I should mention another "Indian" moment. I was at a restauranr in Bikaner, and one of the items on the menu was "Diet Cock"
Now there is an idea whose time has come.
Till later
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Feb 7
I am still in Jaisalmer, and I am enjoying myself. I have decided to stay here an extra day, and catch my breath.
I lucked out with my hotel. This is the tenth hotel I have stayed at, and it is the nicest, by far. The owners are a couple, he is Indian, she is a Kiwi. They have been very helpful and it's been peaceful.
Yesterday afternoon I watched a camel tatoo, like a RCMP musical ride, only with camels. It was spectacular. The camels were decorated with very colourful pomoms, bells, even the tails were braided. The riders were as colorful as the camels. It was a great display of precision riding.
The only problem was the crowd. I have discovered Indians are quite pushy. When I am in line to buy a bus ticket, I have had people push right in front of me, push their money through, and order a ticket. The amazing thing is that no-one complains. This aggressiveness is how they drive, just plain nuts.
I have been stopped at several railcrossings. Rather than waiting in their lane, everyone drives up to the front. On a two lane road there will be four vehicles lined up. The same is on the other side. When the barriers go up there is a mad dash across, trying to get into the correct lane. It is hard to describe the experience.
Speaking of traffic I have not seen a set of traffic lights since Jaipur. And there it was only one. Everything depends on how aggressive you drive.
A couple of other observations. This part of India is flatter than the prairies; no rolling hills. It is desert country, miles and miles of brown earth, only scrub brush. Very, very few hills. The last time it rained was months ago. This explains why the further west you go the more camels you encounter. The camel is the beast of burden here.
Another thing that has struck me is the absence of what we would call a grocery store. Hundreds of stores line the streets, but they are all tiny; maybe 15 across and 20 feet deep. Some do sell the basics, like rice, out if big bags, and they all sell large cans, 15 kilos, of cooking oil. Trying to buy anything besides the basics is impossible. I did discover a "German" bakery that sold real bread. I have yet to see anything like cheese. Meat is also absent, there is a large Muslim minority, so no pork, and Hindus think cows are sacred, so no pork. The only meat is chicken, goat, or mutton. The chickens are pygmies. I have ordered half chicken a couple of times, and there was less meat than on a drum stick at Swiss Chalet. The sauces are good though.
I have spent a lovely afternoon on a roof top restaurant, sipping chai, which has nutmeg and cinnamon, looking out over the city and desert.
This is as relaxed as I have been on the entire trip.
Just lovely!!!
I lucked out with my hotel. This is the tenth hotel I have stayed at, and it is the nicest, by far. The owners are a couple, he is Indian, she is a Kiwi. They have been very helpful and it's been peaceful.
Yesterday afternoon I watched a camel tatoo, like a RCMP musical ride, only with camels. It was spectacular. The camels were decorated with very colourful pomoms, bells, even the tails were braided. The riders were as colorful as the camels. It was a great display of precision riding.
The only problem was the crowd. I have discovered Indians are quite pushy. When I am in line to buy a bus ticket, I have had people push right in front of me, push their money through, and order a ticket. The amazing thing is that no-one complains. This aggressiveness is how they drive, just plain nuts.
I have been stopped at several railcrossings. Rather than waiting in their lane, everyone drives up to the front. On a two lane road there will be four vehicles lined up. The same is on the other side. When the barriers go up there is a mad dash across, trying to get into the correct lane. It is hard to describe the experience.
Speaking of traffic I have not seen a set of traffic lights since Jaipur. And there it was only one. Everything depends on how aggressive you drive.
A couple of other observations. This part of India is flatter than the prairies; no rolling hills. It is desert country, miles and miles of brown earth, only scrub brush. Very, very few hills. The last time it rained was months ago. This explains why the further west you go the more camels you encounter. The camel is the beast of burden here.
Another thing that has struck me is the absence of what we would call a grocery store. Hundreds of stores line the streets, but they are all tiny; maybe 15 across and 20 feet deep. Some do sell the basics, like rice, out if big bags, and they all sell large cans, 15 kilos, of cooking oil. Trying to buy anything besides the basics is impossible. I did discover a "German" bakery that sold real bread. I have yet to see anything like cheese. Meat is also absent, there is a large Muslim minority, so no pork, and Hindus think cows are sacred, so no pork. The only meat is chicken, goat, or mutton. The chickens are pygmies. I have ordered half chicken a couple of times, and there was less meat than on a drum stick at Swiss Chalet. The sauces are good though.
I have spent a lovely afternoon on a roof top restaurant, sipping chai, which has nutmeg and cinnamon, looking out over the city and desert.
This is as relaxed as I have been on the entire trip.
Just lovely!!!
Monday, February 6, 2012
Feb 6 Jaisalmer
I met a couple of lovely American ladies from DC at breakfast at my hotel. We went to the Desert Festival together.
It was held at a stadium, and they had a special seating area for Foreign Tourists, right on the 50 yard line.
The first event was the camel decorating contest. The camels and their riders were spectacular. It was a real show. One of the Americans was asked to be a judge.
There were several other events. Some rather weird. There was one contest where camel riders dismounted. They took off the saddles and placed them about 20 feet to the back. Then they took their camel blankets and placed them another 20 feet back. Another 20 feet back they untied their turbans. Finally, at another 20 feet off came their trousers. So, starting in their underwear, at a whistle they raced to put on their pants, then their turbans, and so on. I am not sure how the winner was decided. It wasn't the first one on the camel again.
There also was a local game that looked like tag, only a lot more physical.
Then there was a camel polo game. Quite funny watching the camels romp around.
The highlight was a Tug-of -war, first pitting foreign men against Indian men. I actually had a spot on the team, but gave it to a Belgian, who was really keen on participating. The foreigners won 2 out of 3. Then came the ladies, foreigners against Indians. Both of my new acquaintances were on the team. After two hard fought pulls, they won. It was impressive.
Later this afternoon we are off to a Camel Tattoo. Sort of like a desert version of the RCMP musical ride.
Should be interesting.
There sure a lot of photos for me to sort once I get home.
Tata
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Feb 5 Jaisalmer
I left Bikaner yesterday morning, and took a bus to Phalodia. All that was going was a local bus, very basic. None of these local buses are less than 40 years old, and they show it. The seats are cracked, the whole bus rattles continuously. Luckily it wasn't completely full, and I had 2 seats to myself.
I arrived in Phalodia in the afternoon, and spent the day walking around. I do like these smaller towns, no real hassles with salesmen. My hotel was another dump, but cheap. The only place the Lonely Planet recommended was 80 dollars, so I cheaped out again. The beds here are generally very hard, the matresses have given up on having any lift decades ago.
The reason I stopped in Phalodia was that it was near the village of Kachin. Kachin is the place where Demoiselle cranes winter. These are very graceful birds, about 75 cm tall, gre, with short peaks. They actually fly over the Himalayas from their breeding grounds in China and central Asia. The villagers have been feeding the, on a daily basis, for the last 150 years. There are supposedly several thousands, but my guess would be several hundred. At day break they swoop in and feed. It is quite a sight, and the noise is unreal.
After visiting Kachin this morning I took a bus to Jaisalmer. This happened to be a luxury Volvo bus and it was a world of difference from my other buses. The other interesting fact was that there were other Western tourists on this bus. On all the others I was the only foreigner.
Jaisalmer is as far west as I am travelling, and the reason I chose to go there is that the next three days there is the Desert Festival.
This afternoon I was in time to see the mustache competition, and the Mr. Desert competition.
It's like a county fair, rides, even things like corn on the cob, cotton candy and popcorn in addition to Indian specialities.
It should be a lot of fun, tug-of-wars, camel races, camel decorating, and fireworks.
I am looking forward to the next few days.
By the way the hotel I am staying in lovely, clean, quiet, and the even the bed is comfortable.
Till later
I arrived in Phalodia in the afternoon, and spent the day walking around. I do like these smaller towns, no real hassles with salesmen. My hotel was another dump, but cheap. The only place the Lonely Planet recommended was 80 dollars, so I cheaped out again. The beds here are generally very hard, the matresses have given up on having any lift decades ago.
The reason I stopped in Phalodia was that it was near the village of Kachin. Kachin is the place where Demoiselle cranes winter. These are very graceful birds, about 75 cm tall, gre, with short peaks. They actually fly over the Himalayas from their breeding grounds in China and central Asia. The villagers have been feeding the, on a daily basis, for the last 150 years. There are supposedly several thousands, but my guess would be several hundred. At day break they swoop in and feed. It is quite a sight, and the noise is unreal.
After visiting Kachin this morning I took a bus to Jaisalmer. This happened to be a luxury Volvo bus and it was a world of difference from my other buses. The other interesting fact was that there were other Western tourists on this bus. On all the others I was the only foreigner.
Jaisalmer is as far west as I am travelling, and the reason I chose to go there is that the next three days there is the Desert Festival.
This afternoon I was in time to see the mustache competition, and the Mr. Desert competition.
It's like a county fair, rides, even things like corn on the cob, cotton candy and popcorn in addition to Indian specialities.
It should be a lot of fun, tug-of-wars, camel races, camel decorating, and fireworks.
I am looking forward to the next few days.
By the way the hotel I am staying in lovely, clean, quiet, and the even the bed is comfortable.
Till later
Friday, February 3, 2012
Feb 3 Bikaner
I had a good sleep, the wedding guests were not noisy at all.
One thing I learned, the entire city shuts off its electricity between 8 and 10 am every day. If you want to make coffee or take a shower it better be done before 8.
I spent the morning visiting some Jain temples in the old city in Bikaner. The old city dates back to the 15th century, and if you were to remove the motorcycles and tuk-tuks, you would be there six hundred years ago. The streets are lanes, going everywhich way. There are open sewers along all the streets; I even saw some women washing clothes in these sewers.If you could see a google view, it would look like a plate of sphaghetti. I had intended to walk around, but there was no way I could find my way out again. I used a tuk-tuk to take me to the temples, and then home again.
Jain is one of the old Indian religions. They belief it is wrong to kill any living thing, even mosquitoes. When you enter one of their temples, no leather is permitted. No shoes, no belts. It would be interesting to see a group of Satans Choice riders in one of the temples, down to their underwear.
The thing is that going in your socks, or even without, is fine as long as you are inside, but there are smaller temples on the grounds, and there are pigeon droppings all over the place. I have washed my socks on a daily basis.
In the afternoon I took a car, with driver to the village of Deshnok, about 30 km south of Bikaner. It is the location of a famous Hindu temple, the Karni Mata Temple. Karni Mata was a Hindu saint who lived in the 14th century. She performed several miracles for the local ruler, who rewarded her with a temple in her honour. It has beautiful solid silver doors. The claim to fame though is the she made a deal with one of the gods. For the return of her son, who drowned, she would promise that she and all her descendants would be re-incarnated as rats.
I am not making this up.
So there is this temple, which is teeming with rats running all over the place.You have to watch where you step. They are fed and looked after. There are several hundred of these little furry creatures running around. Indians come from all over the place to ask favours from Karni Mata. They make offerings to her, and feed the rats. This is probably the most popular temple I have seen, there is a continuous line of locals going through the temple.
Another experience was the drive home, in the dark. I think to drive in India you need a drivers licence and a death wish. I haven't figured out the rules of the road yet. All I know is that cows have the right of way, every time. The highway from Deshnok back to Bikaner is a major road, which means it is paved, two-lane, no paved shoulder. At night everyone drives with their high beams, unless they don't turn on their lights at all. Cows come without lights. It's quite an experience driving along and meeting a big cow slowly ambling across the highway. You also have tuk-tuks, top speed about 20 km/h, bicycles, trucks, buses, camel drawn carts, and dogs and goats. I think the only reason there aren't many accidents is that the speed are low. In the city you don't go over 15 km/h, on the highway, 60 is the top.
I was very happy to return to my hotel
One thing I learned, the entire city shuts off its electricity between 8 and 10 am every day. If you want to make coffee or take a shower it better be done before 8.
I spent the morning visiting some Jain temples in the old city in Bikaner. The old city dates back to the 15th century, and if you were to remove the motorcycles and tuk-tuks, you would be there six hundred years ago. The streets are lanes, going everywhich way. There are open sewers along all the streets; I even saw some women washing clothes in these sewers.If you could see a google view, it would look like a plate of sphaghetti. I had intended to walk around, but there was no way I could find my way out again. I used a tuk-tuk to take me to the temples, and then home again.
Jain is one of the old Indian religions. They belief it is wrong to kill any living thing, even mosquitoes. When you enter one of their temples, no leather is permitted. No shoes, no belts. It would be interesting to see a group of Satans Choice riders in one of the temples, down to their underwear.
The thing is that going in your socks, or even without, is fine as long as you are inside, but there are smaller temples on the grounds, and there are pigeon droppings all over the place. I have washed my socks on a daily basis.
In the afternoon I took a car, with driver to the village of Deshnok, about 30 km south of Bikaner. It is the location of a famous Hindu temple, the Karni Mata Temple. Karni Mata was a Hindu saint who lived in the 14th century. She performed several miracles for the local ruler, who rewarded her with a temple in her honour. It has beautiful solid silver doors. The claim to fame though is the she made a deal with one of the gods. For the return of her son, who drowned, she would promise that she and all her descendants would be re-incarnated as rats.
I am not making this up.
So there is this temple, which is teeming with rats running all over the place.You have to watch where you step. They are fed and looked after. There are several hundred of these little furry creatures running around. Indians come from all over the place to ask favours from Karni Mata. They make offerings to her, and feed the rats. This is probably the most popular temple I have seen, there is a continuous line of locals going through the temple.
Another experience was the drive home, in the dark. I think to drive in India you need a drivers licence and a death wish. I haven't figured out the rules of the road yet. All I know is that cows have the right of way, every time. The highway from Deshnok back to Bikaner is a major road, which means it is paved, two-lane, no paved shoulder. At night everyone drives with their high beams, unless they don't turn on their lights at all. Cows come without lights. It's quite an experience driving along and meeting a big cow slowly ambling across the highway. You also have tuk-tuks, top speed about 20 km/h, bicycles, trucks, buses, camel drawn carts, and dogs and goats. I think the only reason there aren't many accidents is that the speed are low. In the city you don't go over 15 km/h, on the highway, 60 is the top.
I was very happy to return to my hotel
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Feb2 Bikaner
India strikes me as a street lined with piles of garbage, where, every once in a while, you find a special diamond among the rubble.
You walk along a dirty street, an open sewer beside the road, and you turn into a fort, and you are in a different world. Inside there is no garbage, no animals, no noise. It's magic!
That's what happened this morning when I visited the fort in Bikaner.
All forts have things in common, but the amazing thing is that each one has some feature which makes it unique and special. This one has some of the most beautifully decorated interiors I have seen so far.
As I said MAGICAL.
In the afternoon I visited the Bikaner Camel Research Institute, just outside Bikaner. It is home to 360 camels, and is a breeding facility. I learned a lot of interesting things about camels, but I can see your eyes glaze over.
It was neat seeing new born camels. They stand 2 hours after being born, and by 10 days they are going gang busters.
During the day the camels are led into the country side to feed. At about 4 in the afternoon they all return for more feeding. It is quite a sight to see several hundred camels run towards you, eager to hit the trough.
I did a short camel ride, about 10 minutes. A bit scary, especially when they stand up, because they do the back legs first, and you feel like you will be projected forward. Then the front legs rise, and you are off. It's quite a bumpy ride, and I hung on for dear life. I really didn't want my obituary to say "Died from falling off a camel"
Another demonstration we saw was the mating of two camels. Local farmers can bring their females to the center and, for no charge, one of the male camels gets to do the job. They seemed to enjoy the experience, lots of grunting; it lasted about 5 minutes, and then they went off their separate ways, never looking back. I don't think they even knew each others names.
Another funny thing happened. An English group was there to film a documentary, and they asked me if I minded whether they shot me buying a camel milk ice cream cone. Their treat! How could I say no for free ice cream? The icecream was actually quite good. I might even make BBC.
I don't think I am going to sleep well tonight. My hotel is hosting a large wedding party. I think I am the only non wedding guest here.
We'll see
Till then
You walk along a dirty street, an open sewer beside the road, and you turn into a fort, and you are in a different world. Inside there is no garbage, no animals, no noise. It's magic!
That's what happened this morning when I visited the fort in Bikaner.
All forts have things in common, but the amazing thing is that each one has some feature which makes it unique and special. This one has some of the most beautifully decorated interiors I have seen so far.
As I said MAGICAL.
In the afternoon I visited the Bikaner Camel Research Institute, just outside Bikaner. It is home to 360 camels, and is a breeding facility. I learned a lot of interesting things about camels, but I can see your eyes glaze over.
It was neat seeing new born camels. They stand 2 hours after being born, and by 10 days they are going gang busters.
During the day the camels are led into the country side to feed. At about 4 in the afternoon they all return for more feeding. It is quite a sight to see several hundred camels run towards you, eager to hit the trough.
I did a short camel ride, about 10 minutes. A bit scary, especially when they stand up, because they do the back legs first, and you feel like you will be projected forward. Then the front legs rise, and you are off. It's quite a bumpy ride, and I hung on for dear life. I really didn't want my obituary to say "Died from falling off a camel"
Another demonstration we saw was the mating of two camels. Local farmers can bring their females to the center and, for no charge, one of the male camels gets to do the job. They seemed to enjoy the experience, lots of grunting; it lasted about 5 minutes, and then they went off their separate ways, never looking back. I don't think they even knew each others names.
Another funny thing happened. An English group was there to film a documentary, and they asked me if I minded whether they shot me buying a camel milk ice cream cone. Their treat! How could I say no for free ice cream? The icecream was actually quite good. I might even make BBC.
I don't think I am going to sleep well tonight. My hotel is hosting a large wedding party. I think I am the only non wedding guest here.
We'll see
Till then
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