A Month in Rajasthan
From India 2007 in India on Sep 30 '07
Our route in Rajasthan: Delhi - Jaipur - Jaisalmer - Jodphur - Udaipur - Mt Abu - Delhi
"No chapati no chai, no woman no cry"
Here is a brief summary of some of the things we saw and did during our month in Rajasthan. The climate is hot but dry so once in the shade you can cool down quite easily. It is a difficult place to travel in the sense that it is draws many tourists so there is a lot of hassle and demands to 'shop, buy, look, eat' etc. Conversely, the buses and trains are easy to use and quite comfortable (as long as you don't get a dodgy bus - sometimes hard to avoid) and there is a good range of accommodation options with quite good standards of quality even in the budget end.
At times, It is hard to get off the tourist merry-go-round and interactions with Indian people unfortunately often seemed to be centred around some sort of commercial transaction (unless of course they wanted to chat about cricket and Ricky Ponting). This is fine when you are in a shop or hotel, but there were enough times when an apparently 'regular person' would start to chat and we thought there was a genuine human interaction occuring, only for it to lead to an invitation to shop or buy a service. This wears you down after a while and we found ourselves closing our hearts and minds and becoming mistrustful and cynical. An Englishman we met recently summed it up well: you start being horrible to nice people and nice to horrible people. So - if you come to Rajasthan, be prepared and have a nice hotel room to escape to.
Camel Safari (Jaisalmer)
"No chapati no chai, no woman no cry"
and another gem:
"No hurry no worry, no chicken no curry"
These are a couple of the poetic snippets we were treated to by our camel driver, Sardjan, as he led us on a three day meandering stroll through the Thar Desert in Western Rajasthan. What's it like to ride a camel? Well, on our first day, I reckon we lasted about 45 minutes before getting off and walking. Walking was our preferred mode of transport except in sections of desert landscape where a particular kind of grass grew which brandished the most evil prickles we'd ever encountered. Nasty little buggers that required use of tweezers to remove or the sharp little tips would get stuck in our fingers. This prickle grass grew in a lot of places, so our tolerance for camel riding developed quickly and we soon found ways to minimise the discomfort. Also, it was bloody hot. We asked ourselves a few times, what are we doing here? It's a hot dry merciless landscape with no water holes and we have paid to come here and walk around in a big circle for three days. How ridiculous! Of course the redeeming feature of this camel safari came in the late afternoon as we climbed dunes (usually prickle free places) and bunked down for the evening. Sleeping on the dunes, under the stars was magical and completely made up for the daytime endurance test. On our second night as we watched the sunset, a small boy appeared carrying a sack of cool bottles of softdrinks and beer (they wet the bottles, put them in the sand to cool). So, we sat and sipped softdrinks as we watched the sun go down and the stars emerge.
Sardjan loved Peter and nicknamed him 'Baba'. He was always checking that 'Baba' was alright and even began to suggest that he wanted 'Baba' to come and live with him and continue trekking the desert together. At one point when Peter had wandered off a short distance ahead, Sardjan turned to me and said "Where's your boss?" I had to point out to him that Peter wasn't actually my boss (it's fun being a woman in India).
For Other Travellers: We did our camel safari out of Jaisalmer with Ganesh Travels as per Lonely Planet. It was good except for the promise of 'clean blankets' (read: blankets that have been draped over a camel's back all day, possible for weeks) and the advice we didn't need to take our sleeping mats because they would provide 'comfortable mattresses' (read: thin blankets - you can see a picture of our camp). Three days was a bit too long for us - 2 days one night would have been perfect - but then some people apparently love it and go for a fortnight plus.
Encounters with Culture
Last year we travlled to Buenos Aires. There is a lot of dogshit on the streets of this city. When we commented on this to a dear Argentine friend she said, "but that is part of our culture." So, here are a few of our experiences with Indian culture.
- In Jaipur, downtown, riding down the main street in an auto-rickshaw, traffic jam, complete grid-lock. The rickshaw driver next to us will not take his hand off the horn. It is shrill and extremely annoying. Peter screams out "shut up!" The traffic begins to move and we continue driving. Suddenly the horn-addicted rickshaw driver has caught up with us and says to Peter, "Why did you tell me to shut-up?" Peter tells him there had been no point at all to him blowing the horn since the traffic was not and could not go anywhere at the time. The driver's response? "But this is part of our culture. We are famous for this in Jaipur!"
- In Japiur at the Amber Fort, I suddenly realised I was under the scrutiny of an older Indian man who was standing a couple of feet away, looking me up and down. Then he said to me, "Mmmmm, I very like" and nodded in an approving fashion. What else could I say except, "Thank you," in a very bemused way.
- Again at the Amber Fort, in a narrow corridor, we enountered an Indian family who stood and stared at us, obviously discussing us (language was no barrier here) and then burst out laughing. This lasted a couple of minutes until they got bored and walked off. What a strange experience - I felt transfixed, like a rabbit in a spotlight.
- Another Jaipur moment (what is it about Jaipur?). We were sitting somewhere outside when a couple of young lads (from Agra) squeezed in beside us and started asking questions along the lines of, "Do you drink champagne?" (they picked the right girl!). They then commented how foreigners always laugh at Indians. I told him Indians also laugh at foreigners, but he wasn't so sure. I said, "Well then, Indians stare at foreigners." and with this he could only agree.
Forts, Temples and Palaces
Have seen lots of beautiful architecture. Visited Jain Temples in Jaisalmer and Mt Abu, forts in Jaipur and Jodphur, palaces in Udaipur and have seen lots and lots of temples. The Manengarh Fort in Jodphur was definitely a highlight, and the entry fee includes an interesting audio guide. The Jain Temples were also fascinating - such beautifully carved buildings made from rock/stone. We also saw many Havelis - houses - that employed similar carving techniques. I'll let the photos speak for themselves.
Retreat from Udaipur - Mountain Lodge.
Udaipur is pitched as the most romantic city in India. Hmmmmmmm...if you like your romance tinged with a slimey green lake strewn with rubbish, then I guess they are right. At sunset it does take on a certain charm and the surrounding hilly landscape was really different from other parts of Rajasthan. From our hotel window (Kumbha Palace) we had a lovely view of a beautiful green garden filled with flowers and a sense of peace away from the noise of the roads. In the tourist section of Udaipur there is one horrible long street where you learn, once again, that pedestrians are the lowest form of life on an Indian street. We were there post-Diwali when many Gudjarati families are on holiday so there were lots of jeeps to contend with as well as the usual beeping rickshaws, honking motorcylces, horn-happy cars, cows and elephants....yes - some poor elephants are made to wander around the streets for tourists' riding pleasure. Peter did get out and explore the old bazaars of Udaipur and really enjoyed the atmosphere away from the main tourist throng.
It was in Udaipur that Larah needed an escape from India. Pete with his usual knack from getting off the beaten track, found us a retreat option. About 20 minutes out of the town in the hills is Mountain Ridge in Sisarma Village, run by Piers - a welshman who has based himself in India. He has a lovely home, with a few guestrooms and swimming pool. The nepalese chefs cooked delicious food and Piers was very generous with his whiskey and stories. He also organises treks into the surrounding hills and villages.
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