DAY 9: Jaisalmer, Hotel Swastika

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After moving out of the crack den we made our way to a spanking hotel just over the road- just over a fiver a night between us. It didn't smell of a sewer and had a mirror- bonus! As usual, the city is built round a fort- only in Jaisalmer there's shops and hotels within the fort, rather than it just being used as a tour/ museum/ monument place. So, we went into the fort for the day and we found where all the tourists were hiding! Not that it makes much difference, me and Laua are not the most sociable on this holiday- the type of tourists that India attracts are the type of people that we tend to avoid!

Within the fort it looks quite European- Italian even. Tonnes of Italian restaurants! Got some good pics of the views from the fort and around it in general. Teatime was nice- we sat on a rooftop of the fort and ate some spaghetti (no girls, I didn't have bolognaise this time)- Nice break from the curry. It's worth mentioning (and preparing Martin and Dan) that me and Laura will be the only ones who come back from India bigger than we got there. We're eating a 3 curries a day and still no sign of Delhi belly. We secretly wanted to get it a little bit so that we could look half decent on the beaches in Brazil. We'll have to settle for the 'white whale' look instead.

I got some henna on my arm by a woman named Bobby- who insisted that my white skin was 'white like an angel'- the worst thing you could say to a St. Tropez addict like myself- I had actually forgotten what my natural skin colour was until this holiday. The clothes situation has got better (well, ish). Laura's finally matched my spending and bought a few dresses- I went mental and bought a navy blue t-shirt with an elephant on it. Ok, I bought a white one as well just to spice up my wardrobe.

I should probably give credit to Laura here for planning this route. Every time I look at her she is thumbing her way through the Lonely Planet like a woman possessed. That said, our travelling between places has been fairly seamless when it could have been much worse- so thank you Moz! I do have my uses however; I'm doing enough bartering and business dealings to make Alan Sugar proud! Every price I am given I automatically try and halve. Doesn't seem to work in restaurants though...

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Photos

Me and Bobby
I am donning the new T-shirt here. My hand is cleverly hiding the elephant logo.

View from the fort
Jaisalmer is surrounded by the desert which you can just make out in the distance