Spellbinding Jaisalmer

Day 2

I am again tiring myself, getting into a schedule and fixing deadlines... Bad-office habits die hard I guess. I have to force myself, even to unwind! 'Take-it-easy' doesn’t come so easy to me.

Today is the grand finale of the Jaisalmer Desert Festival and my hotel has organized a jeep to take our hostel group to Sam sand dunes, where it is to be held. Sam is 45km from Jaisalmer and there is only one single lane road to reach there. But in spite of the festival there is not much traffic on the road.

When we reach Sam the scene here is out-worldly! I am reminded of ‘Road Movie’ starring Abhay Deol, where in the middle of the endless, dry desert suddenly there is a carnival. In the movie I thought it was Deol’s fantasy or dream, but no! I see it for real today. He wasn’t dreaming, it happens for real!

The place is heaving with people decked in bright colors standing out vividly in the barren desert of Thar. Elaborately adorned camels at your service ready to gallop with you for the sun set view. Heartrending music and breath-taking dance performances. Kill Me Now!

At Sam I make friends with Joe Parker a kind-hearted primary teacher from New York who has come with our group. And he invites me to join him and his friends for a 2 half-days and 1 night camel safari. It’s nice to know people you’re going camel safari with and I gladly accept his invitation.

Day 3

Desert Safari

The safari is organized by Adventure Travels, highly recommended by many travel magazines, and they blatantly cash their popularity. I recommend that travelers to do some research of their own and get the best deal. It’s better to give baksheesh to the camel-men than to pay extra to the travel agencies. But in any case no camel safari is bad-camel-safari…. It could be some hundreds here or there but if you like quiet or you have a group of friends you cannot not enjoy it. It will be stupid to go to Jaisalmer and not do a camel safari!

We started around 2 in the afternoon by jeep, which dropped us 40km away from the city. There we find our camels and camel-men waiting for us there with welcoming grins. The jeep driver warns them against using any foul words for the tourists as I am an Indian who understands Marwari (their dialect) well. I feel powerful and in control. J

We are given one camel each and riding instructions.

- Tich tich tich tich to start.

- Je je je je to stop.

- Kick on the stomach to make it run.

Mine abruptly stood up without my tich tich tich scaring the hell out of me. Mental beast. Finally I understood it’s not the language or words they understand but the sound, the accent of camel men!! Although I was the rider, it was still manipulated by its original masters. Huh!

My female friends do not ignore LP's recommendation to wear a sports bra for it's one hell of a bumpy ride.

We ride in the quiet of the majestic Thar, cross a village, a lake and a small dune. Our camels are moving at different paces and mine is the slowest. No tich-tich works and I am too kind to kick it in the stomach. I am left far behind to converse with the other riders, once in a while I hear from the camel man (Subhan Khan), “All ok everybody?!” And we ride again quietly admiring the beautiful golden landscapes… Don’t expect vast, treeless undulating expanse of sand in Thar. The desert is not an endless stretch of sand dunes, bereft of life or vegetation. Thar Desert is highly ‘generic’ for it becomes lush green with slightest precipitation.

We have been riding 2-3 hours and my back is threatening some serious pain. All I want is to get down and sit and stretch on the soft unmoving desert. Every time there is a slant and the camel jerks going down, I screech like a little girl. I will be grateful to walk on my two feet now, I beg Shubhan to let me down! Finally we halt on a small dune and join our friends already camping and gathering fuel for dinner.

It is such a relief to step back on the ground from a 10 feet tall galloping giant! As we stretch there is hot chai freshly brewed for us…such luxury in the desert. All my firnagi friends are addicted to chai by now. Join the club!

I talk to the camel-men in broken Marwari and they are cheerful around me. I help them cut vegetables and understand my firangi friend’s queries about their lives and rural India.

We assemble around our mini-bonfire for dinner and a story-telling session. Subhan and his men tell puzzles and some really juvenile ghost stories, mostly funny. Here is one puzzle for you… A camel is carried in a boat to someplace, and the boat is so small that any extra ounce will sink it. If the camel has to crap, how will the camel-man manage? The boat is closed and no, he can’t throw the shit out!

Sleeping time. We had to sleep in the open there were no tents. We spread ourselves in different directions under the open sky and curl-up in our beds. I was dreading the cold in the desert but thankfully the bedding provided by the travel agency is adequate for February’s mild cold. It is a full moon night with clear sky and all visible constellations. It’s more romantic than adventurous!

I set my phone alarm for 6.30, so that I don’t miss the sunrise. When my alarm rings in the morning, nobody is awake and there is no sun in sight, I keep snoozing it and peeping out of my blanket every ten minutes hoping to see sunlight. It is 8 and there is no sun still.

It’s freezing out here and to make it worse it’s cloudy. I pray my Gods to give me courage to face the cold, windy morning. Suddenly there is light in the sky. Sun? No it is lightening & thunder. No prizes for guessing. It starts raining!

We run to cover our bags, cameras and ourselves but to no use. While we are busy saving ourselves from the rain, hiding unsuccessfully under a big tripal Subhan and his men cook breakfast for us. Don’t forget to tip them generously!

After 15 minutes of the rain drama the sun shines through. No sun-rise for us no pictures for you. L The camel-men perform magic out of bare minimum utensils and basic ingredients. We are served breakfast of porridge, fried-eggs, toast, jam, fruits and tea. The desert is full of surprises! And you are right. I don’t lose any weight in Jaisalmer!

After breakfast it’s time to head back… I am much more comfortable on my camel now and can race it on my command. Now when I have almost tamed it, it’s time to say good bye.

Day 5

I decide to do nothing but sleep, eat and sleep some more.

Day 6

Kuldhara

Now I have 2 girl-friends from the camel-safari and we mostly hang-out and make plans together. They are very happy to have me for I order good Indian food, answer their curious minds about Indian culture, translate them to the shopkeepers and shoo away chichhoras on road. And I am happy to have them coz I want them to have a good time in my country. I enjoy their company and learn the nuances of travelling.

Flavia is a dentist in Brazil (Sao Paulo) and she is on a world tour. She saved money to buy a house and chose to travel the whole world with it than getting stuck with a house and all that which comes with it. Truly inspiring! Mar Lous is a strong German girl. She is always so confident coz she is taller than most Indian guys! She is on a world tour too and loves to do everything alone.

We plan a trip to Kuldhara, a deserted village (read legend) 20km from Jaisalmer on bicycles. We rent 3 bicycles from Naryan Cycles (Gandhi Chowk) and start our crazy-adventure around 12 O’clock. Paddling and singing “Main herz tantz” we ride… I have never felt so light and happy. Such rapture! My heart is actually dancing. This is it! I know am born to travel J

It’s a lonely road with a couple of houses sited at far distances; we hear hisses of desert-snakes and ‘sheela-ki-jawani’ playing loud on passing tractors once in a while. But mostly it’s quiet.

Phisssssssssssssssssssssss………………….. Naah...Not a snake! Marlous’s cycle has a puncture! We are not prepared for this.

We walk for a km and find a cycle shop. But her bicycle is broken beyond repair, the tube is busted. L Flavia and Marlous decide to hitch-hike back while I continue alone…

The road to Kuldhara is made on the dunes so it’s up-down-hill. I am full of energy and excitement… singing and riding I am having a gala time. But the real deal is yet to come and that is coming-back!

Deserted village of Kuldhara

Coming-back...

Backbreaking! Am glad the girls have gone back and escaped this torture. I eat 5 oranges, 1 kit-kat, chana and drink 3 bottles of water and I am still hungry and thirsty. I have no energy left to ride uphill; I get down and push myself and the bike every time there is an ascending ride. Still I refuse autos and tractors offering to give me and my bike ride home. For I had to do it by myself!

My legs are shaking and my mouth is dry…. Panting, trembling I keep riding, thinking about how am going to brag it to my friends! That’s my only motivation.

I reach the bicycle shop with my head high in pride and legs shuddering in pain. I can hardly walk. Dragging myself to the hotel, I knock at Flavia’s room, “I did it” I announce!! “And I am hungry.”

I polish off 1 plate palak paneer, 2 rotis, 1 chai, I packet of glucose cookies all at once and my stomach still feels empty!

The eventful day is not over yet. When I reach my hotel there is a Sufi Dervesh singing on the rooftop. Is there anything else you can ask for in life?!!

Listening to him play Algojaa, I feel God with me. Simply divine! My body and soul both are overwhelmed with satisfaction today. Mind? I left it home.

Day 7

Last day in Jaisalmer. I devote it to my friends and shopping.

Jaisalmer has amazing leather bags and mirrored bed-covers. Though I have no budget to shop, I still buy a pretty hand-bag for my lovely sister. J

Pushkar next.

Jaisalmer

17^th Feb 2011

Day 1

I board 6.30am bus from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer. It is a 5 hour ride and I sleep the whole time. Somebody pokes me on my shoulder and yelps, “Where you stay. Hotel. Good. Fort view. Come madam.” I know I am in Jaisalmer.

Tourism is a major source of income in Jaisalmer, there is high pressure on hotels and travel agencies to get business. Jaisalmer’s bus stand is always swarming with tourist-pickers literally pushing tourists into their jeeps and booking camel safari, basically trying to smother your entire budget right there! It is always better to book your hotel in advance and get a pick-up.

My hotel La Mystica is located near Gadisar Lake, a little outside the old city, 5 minutes from the bus stand. I check into a spacious double room on the ground floor but sadly with no view. I ask the manager/owner Mr Ashraf Ali if he could shift me to the top floor. Thankfully he agrees. I am looking forward to the desert festival in the evening and to see world famous Kalbelia dancers perform magic on stage.

La Mystica offers rooms to fit in all kinds of budgets. You could stay in a single room for Rs250, pay Rs150 for a dormitory or hang about for Rs80 only if you are ready to sleep in the common hall and share common loo. It is quite a popular option with hippies, bag packers and frugal travelers. The roof top restaurant at the hotel has a great view of the fort and serves great fried eggs. Other services like jeep safari and camel safari are claimed to be best in the city but it’s always good to explore yourself, and talk to fellow travelers and find out the best deals.

Jaisalmer is a tiny city and can be walked through all in 1 hour. No place is more than Rs40 by tuk-tuk.

The crowd at Poonam Singh stadium is peaceful without the cops outnumbering them. I can’t imagine such big crowd in such discipline anywhere else in India, with foreigners in sight. I found Rajastani people to be generally nice without north-India’s brashness or south-India’s snobbery.

Elaborately decorated and skillfully trained camels were paraded and performed by BSF jawans. I never had any special liking for the big smelly animal but I was pleasantly surprised to see their elegance in the parade. Who would have guessed that one day I will race these farting giants! (read camel safari :)

The giant beast squats on front legs and spreads its neck on the ground to greet the audience. Very touching.

We rule the desert together

After the show finished at 5.30 and I stroll towards Gandhi Chawk to rent a bicycle. Narayan’s bicycle shop gives bicycle on rent for Rs40 a day. As it’s mostly plains in Jaisalmer, bicycle is a good way to get around.

I return to the stadium on my cycle for the evening festival of Rajastani and Gujrati folk dance and music program. The stadium is jam-packed, bluffing as a VIP tourist I march straight into the special placed reserved for the media and foreign photographers with big cameras. I have a small camera but big luck maybe!

I feel fortunate to be able to witness such incredible performances by the local artists. I am touched to see their dedication towards the local art, which is kept alive only by their hard work and devotion.

Mesmerizing Kalbelia dancer

Kalbelia dance is of the kalbelia tribe of rajasthan, the snake charmers. It is a vigorous dance form, performed by women embellish in traditional black skirts with silver embroidery. They dance to the folk songs, reminding the graceful movements of the snake. They sway sensually to a loud chant, which increases in tempo and vigour with the increase of the beat. Their dance movement resembles that of the snakes.

My limited vocabulary and hazy photographs can never explain how mesmerizing it was. The agility and elegance with which the dancers performed can never be conveyed through these pictures.

Many other traditional dance forms were also performed, equally bewitching.

Mayur Nritiya (Peacock Dance)

Legend behind the peacock dance goes something like…. Radha beloved of Krishna was very fond of peacocks and would play with them in the garden every day before she eats anything. One day she does not find any peacock in the garden, so she is sad and refuses to eat. Lord Krishna gets upset to see his dearly loved sad and to please her disguises as a peacock and dances for his beloved!!!! Such love, such devotion, such reverence was created by the dancers on the stage, the legend came alive.

Jaisalmer splashes its colors on me, I am spellbound.

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