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Published: November 11th 2005
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Brandon al-Smith
Donning native garb to ward off the elements. I'm back in Jaisalmer today after four nights in the desert. I think I finally have the camel smell off of myself. My clothes, however, are another matter.
Camel safaris are probably the biggest business in town here. Virtually every hotel offers them, and there are independent tour operators as well. I had met a German guy on the train from Delhi, and he and I signed up for the trip together. The company we went with claimed to follow a "non-touristy" route, heading south from Jaisalmer rather than north as most groups do.
To get out from the town a bit, we rode out into the desert for almost an hour in a jeep. I'm not sure how many people the tiny vehicle was designed for, but it certainly wasn't the ten of us that were crammed in there. We stopped a few times on the way out of town for provisions: five gallon jugs of water, rice, vegetables. Finally, we turned off the one lane road we had been following and into the sand and found our camels and guide just a short time later.
Having spent some time with the creatures, I think camels must
Dunes
Here I am my first night on a sand dune. My bed was one blanket laid on the sand, with another blanket to cover up with. It did get really cold late in the night. And of course, there were the wild dune doggies to be concerned about. All in all though, sleeping out in the open was great. be among the most flatulent animals on the planet. I wouldn't say that I really developed any affection towards my mount, Mandu, who seemed concerned with nothing beyond munching on plants and resting. Although I held the reins, there really was no doubt who was in control. The camel would let me turn her to the right or left if she felt like it, but generally she went where she wanted to, most of the time following right behind another camel's rump (i.e., the blast zone).
The Thar Desert is different from what I had previously thought "The Desert" would be like. Most of my desert imagery is of the Sahara, with endless waves of dunes, and almost no plant life at all. That was not the case here. There was vegetation everywhere. Mostly thorny briar bushes, but also some leafy plants with small flowers. There was straw-like grass in many areas too, and we often saw shepherds grazing their goats and sheep. Under the plants, the ground was sandy. And each night we were strategically taken to one of the large dune areas to camp. On the dunes, there were less prickly bushes. Instead, there were hordes of
Desert Urchins
One day at lunch, these four desert kids happened upon us. They were very keen to have their photos taken, and were obviously pretty familiar with digital cameras from the tourists they've met in the past. Unlike some of the folks we met, these kids were genuinely pleasant and didn't demand rupees or chocolate or anything else. black dung beetles that would come crawling out of the sand and descend on us during meal times. By day two, it was second nature to grab the bugs and chuck them into the distance as they approached.
Each night, I was with different people. The first day we were six tourists. Then the German and I went off for a day and night alone with a guide. The next day, the three of us met up with another large group. We camped that third day with them, and on the fourth, four of us and two guides set out for the last leg of the trip. People sign up for all different lengths of trips, hence the changing groups.
The food on the trip was simple, but pretty adequate. We had chai, a sort of Indian tea made with milk, ginger, and lots of sugar, with every meal. And we ate flat bread, rice, and vegetables in various forms throughout the trip.
We camped under a tree each day from about noon until three, when the sun was at its hottest. We would stop again, usually at a large sand dune, just before sunset. The nights
Daniel and Mandu
Here is my guide, Daniel, working hard as always. The camels carried around pretty massive loads, even before we tourists climbed aboard. My faithful steed, Mandu, sits with her usual look of dumb complacency. in the desert were really amazing. At times it is utterly silent, and the moon was so bright that the landscape could be seen quite clearly. Being away from the lights of a city, there were many more stars visible, and numerous shooting stars to watch each night as well. I looked the first night for the Big Dipper, which theoretically I should be able to see here. By the last night, I realized that it was there, but that some of the stars that comprise it are only faint specks of light here (I think) because I am thousands of miles farther away from the stars that are brighter at home.
The last night, we rode for a few hours after dinner in the dark. At one point, we rode past a perfect oasis: water left over from the one rain the desert has seen in the past three years pooled in a low spot. The pond was framed by two trees, the moon above, and its reflection in the pool. If it had been during the heat of the day, I might have thought I was seeing a mirage.
I could go on and on about things our camel driver told us, the lifestyles of the people we saw living out in small desert villages, or any number of things. But I'm feeling longwinded as it is, so I'll wrap it up by saying if/when I'm back in India, the desert trip is definitely an experience worth repeating.
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