Sandcastle in the sky

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After my rather disastrous camel trip in the desert I arrived in Jaisalmere a bit fraught and not in the best of moods. Consequently I headed to the one hotel that the lonely planet said would be hassle free (Hotel Swastika), which it was. It took me a while to find though because no one would tell me how to get there. Everyone told me it was either miles away or closed, and then all offered to take me to their brothers/cousins/uncles place instead (the whole of Rajasthan must be related). Thankfully a friendly Chai Wallah took pity on me and showed me the correct alley to go down and I arrived in time to watch the end of Sri Lanka’s innings in the world cup final. At which point I began to feel much better.

Jaisalmere is often described as a sandcastle and you can see why. It blends beautifully into the desert that stretches out all around and is a striking reminder of mans ability to overcome and adapt to the landscape. Unlike Jodhpur the fort at Jaisalmere is still inhabited, consisting of a maze of shops, restaurants and hotels (all very touristy). You can pay to go and look around the palace, which is well worth doing - especially to see the intricate sandstone carvings that cover many of the walls. The Jain temples are also well worth a look.

Jaisalmere does rate highly on the hassle factor though, everybody wants the contents of your wallet and the attention of the young guys can get quite wearing after a while. But it’s almost worth it worth it for the view of sunset from the fort walls.

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Photos

The fort
(it's a miniature, i'm not that tall)