The Holy Lake

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Manage to find ourselves an excellent hotel here, its called the Seventh Heaven and it really lives up to its name! The roof top restuarant has amazing sunset views of Pushkar and the mountains and we get to lounge around on swinging seats!!!

Anyway Pushkar - its beautiful - probably the nicest place we've been to in India so far. Mum and Tim, i'm sure you'd love it here! Its quieter than most places we've been to and the shopping hehe don't get me started!! Has a slightly hippy feel about it, though don't panic don't think i'll succomb to the dreads and weird hippy 'nappy' trousers!!

Our first outing in Pushkar and theres a festival going on, think its the Hindi festival, the streets are packed with people dancing, and theres a proccession with horses all laiden with bells and drapes dancing in the street! Its also filled with sly gypsies! They come up to you all friendly and then try and grab your hand and put henna all over it - after that they demand money from you, whether you wanted the henna or not!! Unfortunately Michelle didn't manage to get her hand away in time, when she didn't pay up the disgruntled gypsy, in an act of defiance, smudged all the henna she'd just put on Michelle's hand!!! Michelle was mortally wounded!!

Anyway lots of sights to see in Pushkar. Here is the home of the only Bramha Temple in India - the story goes that Brahma went with another woma and his wife was so enraged that she said that Pushkar would be the only place in India where Brahma could be worshipped - why didn't she just ban worshipping him all together!!!
Theres also a holy lake in Pushkar as well and is the place where Ghandi's ashes were scattered - so we've seen the place where he died and the place where he was laid to rest!!
Down by the lake, are lots of 'priests' who take you down to the waters edge and get you to recite a bunch of prayers for the health, love, wealth etc of family and friends! They also try and get a big donation out of you for the pleasure!! Apparently some tourists give 100s of pounds!! Sorry i guys, i love you and all - and i did say prayers for you all but you were only worth 100 rupees!!!

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