Ahhh, now that’s more like it! I have returned to Delhi after an outstanding 2 weeks of adventure, new and old friends! Clearly, India had missed me during my unfortunate hiatus as much as I missed her, because she welcomed me back with open arms and surprises at every stop!
*Reader beware, this is a lengthy one so if you would like the summary, skip to the last paragraph :) Pictures to come soon.
I hopped on a night bus (the first of many) to Jodhpur, Rajasthan's blue city and arrived about 14 hours later. I hadn’t left the bus the entire time and hadn’t 'used the restroom' in about 17 so I was ready to burst! India doesn’t really cater to female travellers that way. As is common, the private bus stopped in the middle of nowhere so travellers are forced to hire a rickshaw. I refuse to lose that game so I usually get to amble in a direction chosen by my instincts or maybe a whiff of samosas until I shake the last tout from my trail. This time I wandered past a 5star hotel and decided that would be the best and probably only place to find a "public" toilet. The woman at the front desk gave me and my backpack a disapproving look but the man pointed me down the hall and I had a brief glimpse into a gorgeous hotel where other more, fortunate, travellers stay (they even provided toilet paper - what luxury!).
My friend in Pushkar had already phoned ahead so I had guesthouses expecting me in my next two destinations. I was given a nice room at the base of the beautiful Meherangarh Fort, ordered lunch from the rooftop cafe and then rested from the midday heat before getting out to explore. Despite the fact that it’s Oct, the temperature is still regularly around 33/92 degrees!
Since I was on my own, I had a couple things on my To-Do list, like get my hair cut and try to finally find a tailor who could make the top I designed. While wandering towards a market, I stopped in a spice shop and was pleased to get more than a sales pitch but actually a lesson on Indian spices from a girl about my age whose family had been in the spice business for decades. I bought a few of their special mixes and as I left asked her about a place to get my haircut. She wouldn’t recommend any in the area and said they would charge me an outrageous tourist price anyway so if I came back the next day, her mom would be happy to cut my hair. What luck!
In the market I found a fantastic little juice shop that sold a special "Makanhiya" Lassi for just Rs10 (about 25c) that was thick and sweet and delicious, now my second favorite treat in India (not including anything from Mcleod Ganj)! Then, on my way to a temple that I had seen from my roof, a shopkeeper, who I was originally sceptical of, accompanied me and ended up inviting me to his brothers wedding that night! Not only that, but he would take me to his family's tailor, who he promised would give me an Indian/honest price. My first day back in India proper and I can’t believe my good fortune. I was brought to his mother who gave me a Khagra to wear, the Rajasthani dress of a skirt, top and large scarf pleated and wrapped around me.
I am not sure I can properly put into words the menagerie that took place that night! I felt something like... part Disney Princess, part NBA Cheerleader. All the men wanted their picture taken with me and to dance with me. I was ushered into the photography session with the groom who grinned proudly as I, someone he has never seen in his life, stood next to him in front of 7 or 8 still and video cameras. Next, the women and darling little girls wanted to be in a picture with me, one even pulling me down, crowning me with her tiara and then each one dragging me in a different direction to meet someone or stand where they thought I should be standing.
The groom was finally draped with a huge vale of flowers, perched upon a white horse and led out into the streets, around the reception. Every 5 minutes or so the whole line would stop, the men in the front, the women in the back, the sweet little lower caste girls hired to carry lights on their heads and the band would intensify signalling a time to dance. More than once I was called back to my "proper" place with the women when I tried to sneak around and take pictures - silly foreign girl, get back here where you belong - and almost every time I was cajoled, sometimes tugged into the center of the circle for a performance which I must admit,
lost its novelty after the first 3 or 4 rounds. The last stop, back inside, I’m pretty sure that drummer would have burst through his drum before stopping if I hadn’t insisted I was finished! I only have so many bollywood and Punjabi moves in my repertoire!
My new friend, who had anxiously shuffled between the men’s and women’s groups to make sure I was being taken care of, warned me not to talk to any other men and also proceeded to introduce me to every family member and friend that he could possibly find. After the food was served, people seemed to trickle out pretty quickly as the groom sat with other men on the stage apparently waiting for the bride to come at the auspicious hour chosen by the family astrologer sometime later that night. We too left in proper Indian style, I rode on a motorbike behind two men, side-saddle with my scarf fluttering behind me. What a brilliant day!!
I awoke early the next morning to get an omelette from the famous omelette-shop down town and then hike up to explore the fort. Admission was free for Indians and Rs 250 for foreigners but I had heard the audio guide was worth it and they were right. Chock full of information, I spent the whole afternoon wandering around and learning interesting tidbits about not only the forts history but also about many other places in Rajasthan. Jodhpur's maharaja still lives in one part. Afterwards, I went to get my haircut which was everything you could expect from a free haircut :) and then picked up my brand new Korta top which had been stitched as well as a separate undershirt as the material is see-through for the grand total of Rs60 (about $1.50) when I had previously been quoted Rs500 or the rock bottom price of Rs275. India can be very frustrating sometimes, so I was absolutely tickled to have accomplished so much in my first two days - and so successfully!
7am found me on my next bus towards Jaisalmer, Rajasthan’s golden city, sand-swept on the edge of the Thar Desert. About 5 hours later, I arrived and somehow news had already spread of my arrival, so a man boarded the bus a stop early with my name on a sign. I had not been able to get ahold of my contact in Jaisalmer so to make things easy, I just joined the man that had a jeep waiting for us to another hotel. I didn’t know that this decision would give me such an insight into what makes the underground tourism in Rajasthan tick! Suffice it to say, the manager of the place was quite the playboy and had touts everywhere. My friends all the way back in Pushkar, who are not connected to this gossip-ring mind you, even heard through the grape-vine about who I had been spotted with! The drama in Jaisalmer is a good story for another day, but I did indeed learn a lot about how things work here. 
I also ate dinner on the roof with the glitter of fireworks in my eyes as the end of a 9 day festival was celebrated all over town. More gifts from india :).
After researching prices, hemming and hawing about the possible uber-touristy-ness of a camel trek, I found a good price from a reputable agent and decided to go for it. It was absolutely the best decision! At 8am I met the other 9 riders from Argentina, Canada, Ireland, Israel, Germany, and Spain and we took a jeep about 50k from town to thankfully get away from the beaten track. After meeting our new steeds and mounting up, (my favorite part of the whole ride was when the camel would stand up! They are so tall, it’s almost like an amusement park ride! :), we set off into a landscape of barren plains and faded bushes. Truly, it was hot, but we were told that in the summer it can get up to 60/140degrees!! We stopped at a tiny village, which I must admit was not all that spectacular. The few people around stopped what they were doing to gaze at us or ask us for something (money, pen, my watch... one woman even took it for a while acting as though she would keep it. My Hindi came in handy!) and we moved on fairly quickly.
Lunch was taken under a small patch of trees while the camel’s ankles were bound and allowed to forage. We had fresh cooked veggies, chapatti and as much warm water as we could drink. For 3 hours, we waited for the sun to inch across the peak. I tried to get out and explore but there wasn’t much to see and the burning sand was quite cunning at finding flesh.
More camel riding, I would try to inch my camel into the lead, which from what I could tell she liked but was quite lazy about. Our last stop before camp was another small village that had an actual refrigerator, which means COLD drinks! It was the closest thing to an oasis that I’ve ever found and paying 3times the regular cost was well worth it!
Along the way, I was extremely tempted to stand up in my saddle. I don’t know why had such a strong urge but I believe mostly it was the challenge. It took me quite a while, Ill admit, as the gate of a camel through sand is not very smooth or regular but soon I had the other riders and even the camelmen cheering me on and then - I was up! And then down :). I could only ever stay standing for maybe 5-10 seconds before dropping back to my seat for fear of falling what must have been at least 10ft to the ground. What a thrill though! I loved it!
Camp was setup on rolling dunes just before sunset and a few of the boys and I had jumping contests in the sand while dinner was prepared. The camelmen sang for us (including one in English to the tune of Barbie Girl, something like - I’m a camelman, in a desert laaand... I only wish Id memorized more of the words through my laughter ;) and we swapped jokes and travel stories - always my favorite. I learned the two Israeli boys would be on the same bus to Udaipur with me so I would have some good company for a change.
After a crisp night in the open air, I awoke to a gentle pink sunrise, spotted with camel silhouettes and fresh chai delivered to my mat. It doesn’t get much better than that! Everything was gathered up and we to my delight we trotted the camels back towards the jeeps. My delight for all of about 30min and then I missed the smooth(er) sauntering of the pervious day. The more competitive of us wrested the lead from each other most of the way and I think we were all happy to see the jeeps come into view and take a last picture or two. Roi, Amir and I had just enough time to shower and have a bite for lunch before we took a sleeper bus to Udaipur in the south of Rajasthan.
Our schedules being fairly tight, after arriving in Udaipur, we decided just to stay the day and take night busses again to our respective destinations. With another recommendation from a friend, we kept our things and freshened up in the guesthouse with the highest rooftop in town. The three of us and about a dozen monkeys ooohed and ahhed at a rosy-bronze sunrise that glazed several palaces, a lake, waterways and a couple temples. Lovely! We spent the day touring the town, running errands and having a general good time. They were great travel buddies and it’s a shame we had to part so soon, but as things go, our busses were leaving at about the same time from the same station so we bid each other fond farewells. I had a somewhat uncomfortable ride to Bundi including my wallet being taken (or perhaps falling out of my bag) which is a first and a man behind me sneaking his hand through the side of my seat for a feel which not even close to a first.
In Bundi, I was heartily received and more people than I expected recognized me and invited me for a chai. I visited my favorite tailor who was too busy since it is Diwali season to fix a top of mine but obliged in embroidering my name in Hindi. It turned out marvellous and he even made me a little gift of a hankie with a rose and my name in English, from what he could tell from the Hindi, "Jusi". I love it!!
Pushkar was more catching up with friends and an invitation to my friend's family's home where I met his adorable parents and got to learn a little about what it’s like in an Indian Christian home. I certainly have met some wonderful people on my trip, especially in Rajasthan!
*So, in summary, I spent 11 days picking up major sights in Rajasthan, including the blue city of Jodhpur (with its impressive fort, spice market, lassis and omelettes and dancing the night away at a fabulously frenetic Indian wedding), the golden city of Jaisalmer (fireworks all night, all over town, taken in from my rooftop and an exciting camel safari/campout under the stars on the dunes), the fairytale city of Udaipur (watching the sunrise and sunset from the highest rooftop in town over two palaces on the lake and the gorgeous city palace and Jama temple) and then two too short stops in Bundi (to visit my adoptive Indian family) and Pushkar (to visit friends as good as family).
I know this has been a fairly verbose blog entry, but I still feel like I have left out so much! Every day here is a mixture of amusement and wonder - I only wish I could share more of it with you all!
fun and to spite the heat outside, our place was a refrigerator, well stocked with fresh fruit and water. My favorite part was the outdoor shower that was a fantastic experience the one night that it rained (the hot and cold water combining to make a most relaxing clean! We feasted on Balinese Barbecue and watched golden dancers twist and weave to the eery bells and flutes of local music. We drove through local artisan villages to visit silversmiths and woodcarvers and ate another delicious meal with a view of the islands main volcano. On our last day, we snorkeled in the reef and fed the fish with bread. They ate right out of our hands and I absolutely loved it! That was the pinacle of the trip for me - there in the open water with both of my wonderful parents feeding exotic fish an afternoon lunch :). We also stopped on Turtle Island and fed sea turtles, held a couple exotic birds and I even played with the cutest bat you've ever seen and a giant snake!
We returned to Singapore for some shopping and a night safari which was quite fun. I got to try out a therapy that is banned in the states by putting my feet into an aquarium full of nibble fish that feel like little vibrations and suction eating your dead skin cells. Your feet emerge smooth as can be! Very cool. It was a sad goodbye when I boarded my next flight to Phuket, Thailand, but it made my holidays complete. This is my first Christmas away from home and spending time with my parents was much needed!! I love you Mom and Dad!
Kerry!) and with the theme of a tin mine that used to exist there, the attention to detail was incredible. With 3 pools, 2 of which were adults only infinty pools and shops, several restaurants and bars, big grassy areas to lounge on and 
right across from the beach, you couldn't ask for much more. We had a great time lighting lanterns at night, sending our wishes into the starry skies and playing on the beach. We snorkeled in even clearer water than Bali and this time the fish favorite was bananas - I must have fed thousands! They crowded in, an inch from my face, nipping anything they could get close to, I even held one by its tail! Ha, brilliant.
