Shekhawati to Bikaner - My Birthday

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My birthday was a very full day, in the way that only travel can make it. We began in Jhunjhunum, skipping the western breakfast our hotel offered, and drove to Mandawa. Here,we saw so many crumbling havelis and we asked our driver to stop so that we could take pictures. We did not go into these because he did not know the owners. I suspect that we could have knocked, but I am ever polite. In Fatehpur, we did stop to visit an old haveli in the process of restoration.

A wizened old man in a green shawn with a white turban allowed us into the enclosure. The first coutyard has beautiful paintings of elephants. One goes through an elaborately carved wooden door into another courtyard. Traditionally, visitors would have to wait in the outer courtyard, and have a cup of tea before entering the haveli itself. Women in this area live in purdah - seclusion from other men. The merchants who built these palacial havelis would not have wanted all their visitors to enter that inner sanctum.

Very small rooms surrounded the courtyard, and it is difficult to believe that people lived in such tiny spaces. There is a room for storing water, important in the desert. Another room is a kitchen, tiny with blackened ceilings from smoke. One bedroom had a loft for the children to sleep in. Another bedroom had stairs that led up to a tiny alcove, just large enough for Alli to go up and sit down. This was an observation room where women could look on the outside world and get some sunlight. In the olden times, there were no bathrooms within the house, but as these were inhabited up into the early part of this century, a small bathroom had been built as well as other running water and primitive electricity.

We gave the guard 200 rs and drove on. It was kind of him to allow us into the home and show us around, even if it is one of his major sources of income.

We stopped for lunch at another Midway restaurant. It had nice bathrooms, a gift shop and the requisite garden restaurant. The food was better today because we requested it to be spicy. I even had a lassi, very daring of me.

Later on, we reached Bikaner and checked into our hotel. Luckily, our travel agent was unable to change our reservation, because I really wanted to stay at Bhanwar Niwas despite his objections. We passed his recommendation - Bikaner Palace - on our way - a concrete block monstrosity painted orange. Somehow they think that we would prefer the new construction as they do, but I would rather have an old charming haveli in the middle of town than a brand new building on a highway.

To get to our hotel, in an 19th century haveli in the center of Bikaner’s old town, we had to drive through crazy, narrow streets. Many were too narrow for an American car. All the while, our driver dodged rickshaws, bicycles, cows, dogs, and camels. Finally, we turned the corner in this decrepit neighborhood and see the beautiful haveli, Bhanwar Niwas. The inside is all marble, with an Indo-Western look dating from the British Empire. It was built in 1926 by a textile merchant family - the Bhanwars. The room was one of the most beautiful I have ever stayed in, with tiled floors, high ceilings, and a huge four poster bed with stairs up. From our room, you pass through double stained-glass doors to a balcony. You can open the wooden doors to see the outside, a view of pidgeons squawking and laborers taking a smoke break. From the balcony/hallway, you can open another door and either go into the bathroom or the toilet room. The carved furniture, artwork, carpets - it is all so beautiful and elegant here. Meanwhile, outside there is a brownish landscape of mud houses and workmen in dirt-stained dhotis and cows lying in the street. The smell of sewage arrests you when you open the windows and even seeps into the room itself. Quite a contrast.

Before the end of the day, we went to the fort in Bikaner, Junagarh. Supposedly it’s one of the best forts in Rajasthan, but I wasn’t all that impressed. We were meant to have a government guide, all visitors do, but none came to get us and we began to wander around on our own. It reminded me of the Doge’s Palace in Venice, oddly enough.

Next, we went to the Camel Research Center. Here we did get a guide, who took us to see the baby camels. He was very informative about the breeds of camels and the purposes of camels. Camels’ milk may be able to treat tuberculosis. Camel skin, camel meat, camel hair - it’s all good for something. Seeing the day-old camel was quite a treat. We also had the luck to see mating camels! Our guide heard the unique bellowing of camels in love and called us to run through a dusty camel enclosure to see the mating camels. Several workers were assisting in the process. The male camel was producing a great deal of froth from his mouth, which periodically dripped down onto the female camel. It looked somewhat unpleasant, but drew quite a crowd. I was blushing immensely, feeling that perhaps we should not be watching the camels at a moment like this. The guide thought my reaction was hilarious.

When we drove back to our hotel, I was itching to get out and walk around, to see the old walled city on foot. Our driver said he thought some boys had said bad things specifically about us, and told us not to walk around. I am not encountering the true India, I suppose. I have never felt so unsafe in a country, but perhaps when we travel on our own, no one tells us where it is safe or unsafe.

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Photos

Junagarh
Interior of Junagarh fort in Bikaner.

Miss Jaisalmer 2005
Winner of a camel beauty contest :-)