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Published: December 23rd 2011
Pushkar
The highly religous Ghats... but we weren't going for a swim with the locals. We just found that the last couple of blogs didn't go out because we published them wrong. So this blog is going to cover the highlights of the last 10 days.
By now it's Friday and if anyone is still at work they will have a drink in their hand. We know Christmas is just around the corner. We are thinking about it and in some respects it couldn't be further from our minds in the sense that there is nothing here to mark the event.
So... Pushkar (1 night). We stopped here to break up the drive to Jodphur. Pushkar is a highly religious town of 15,000 residents. The centre point of the town is the 'Ghats' which sits on the edge of the lake and it said to have been visited by various gods.
Pushkar attracts and eclectic mix of visitors, including many Westerners who look as though like the 60's called and asked for their look back, others on a religious pilgrimage and those simply seeking a quiet retreat from the chaos that is India.
In Pushkar, alcohol, drugs, meat and physical contact such as kissing is strictly prohibited. If you want to partake
Horsing around
He was a lot faster than he looks. in these actvities, you need to leave the boundaries of the town.
The people were incredibly friendly and it has been the most relaxed place we have visited so far. With only one night and a half day in Pushkar, there wasn't a great deal of time however I (Jane) went on a 2 hour horse trek just outside of the town. I rode a Manwar / part arabian horse, known for their speed and endurance. I had an incredible time galloping through the hills surrounding the city - my horse was incredibly fast. I do wonder why whenever I go trekking I always end up with a horse named comet or lightening......
Udaipur (3nights).... was ok. We hadn't really wanted to visit here, we just hadn't been able to get to Ranakpur where we really wanted to go. Udaipur can be summed up by a highly underwelming hilltop fort with spectacular views. I (Russell) did have a crack and planking - yeah I think i'm a bit late for that buzz but I had to give it a go. We were here for three nights and while we definately ran out of things to do it was
Planking
Yes that is sooo last week but I had to. really good just to kick back and relax.
We were in luck though. One of the sights we wanted to see in Ranakpur was a Jain temple which Mr Singh took us to on the way to Jodphur. It was incredible. Construction started in 1343 and is built completely from white marble. In total there are 1444 pillars in the temple.
Jodphur (2nights) is probably going to be one of our favourite spots and a trip higlight. Jodphur itself is not that exciting and like everywhere else had a fort. The fort was one of the best preserved and managed forts we have seen and despite any predijuces we may have had there was a great audio tour. So we spent the morning looking at the fort and then we discovered.... a Zip Line. 1.8km of cable making up 6 flying foxes over the fort and lakes the longest being 300m. It was $25US each and we went at sunset. Seriously one of the best experiences yet.
Jodphur has also ruined every other Lassi we will ever have. We found this local Lassi bar which had hands down the best Lassi's of all time. They were not
Lassi
Can't talk. Eating Lassi. like normal and had the consistency almost of custard and definately had some kind of spice, maybe safron. You can't understand how good these are without trying and to emphasize their quality we would drive back to Jodphur just to have another.
An added bonus would be the Omlettes we found on the street for 25rupees (about $0.75NZ). These are kind of omlettes as we know them only served in a sandwhich. Sounds weird but go with it.
Jaisalmer. We came here for the camel safari and camel safari we did. We paid a bit more to take the non "touristic" option which meant that we had a private safari, went to the wopps outside of town and had our on trusty steads. Russell's was called Daniel and was the grumpiest thing we've ever met. Camels have the fowlest breath that even mentos couldn't fix and they fart consistently (Which provided good cover for Russell).
All that said the experience was awesome. Cruising around the desert on camels, campfires and sleeping under a beautiful star filled sky in the serenity and peacefulness of the desert. We even had a pretty good sleep with the exception of the
Zip Lining
Wait - so i can't come off right? farting camels and the wild dogs that kept trying to sleep by our heads.
So all that said..... if you get this before Christmas have a great one. We are thinking of you all and we'll definately miss you. Esecially the home cooking while we eat our Christmas curry.
Russ and Jane
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Wayne
non-member comment
India
Hi Russ and Jane, Missed you at Xmas, and envious of your travels. Spent many hours in an un-airconditioned plane at New Deli airport but hardly qualifies as being in India! Remember the people living right up to the airport perimeters though and reminds me now of Kevin McCloud's recent TV documentary on the Mumbai Dharavi 'slums' - now unfortunately probably bull dozed (see channel4 dot com) A very vibrant and viable self-contained community that has lessons for town planners and architects. Happy travels! Cheers, Wayne