Travel Agent Runaway Bay

India - Rajasthan

My favourite landscape in the whole world is the desert. It may have been my upbringing in the country that I love those wide open spaces and ruggedness that deserts have. Some people may think they are too boring with not enough to look at but that's not the case at all. There can be amazing mountains, rock formations, a lush oasis or incredible sand dunes that take your breath away. Not to mention the town is full of mystery and history.

So when an opportunity came up to visit the desert state of Rajasthan in India I knew I would have an incredible experience.

Rajasthan is famous for its towns with massive forts and palaces. There are huge forts at the more tourist frequented towns of Amber, Chittorgarh, Jodphur and Jaisalmer as well as other less visited towns. All demand many hours to visit. At Chittorgarh I spent a whole day and hired a bicycle to ride the 6kms from the train station.

Jodphur known as “Sun City” is also referred to as the “Blue City” due to the blue tinge of the whitewashed houses around the Mehrangarh Fort which dominates the centre of town.
Jaipur is known as the “Pink City“, due to the pink sandstone used to build the old walled city. The most impressive building is the Palace of the Winds which is just a façade and was where the ladies of the court could watch the activities without being seen themselves. In Jaipur the observatory is also impressive.

Udaipur is very lovely place and although I could not afford to stay at the fabulous Lake Palace Hotel in the middle of the Lake I did have afternoon tea from a café on shore looking out to it. Pushkar was my most desirable town as a laid back place to stay, and would like to go back sometime to see the yearly great Cattle Fair.

But the must see place to go is Jaisalmer. The fort on the hill in the centre of town is majestic and you can see it from miles around. But my favourite thing is that it was from here I took several camel treks into the surrounding desert.

What fun we had. I am not much of a horse rider but I found riding a camel easier and less scary even though it is so high. Perhaps it was the camels owner sitting with you giving you that confidence. There were times we did go by ourselves though and perhaps the desert air saw me more courageous and had me galloping over the dunes with wild abandon!! Scarves wrapped around our faces to keep out the sand and flies, sunglasses for the glare and long trousers and shirts to protect against the harsh sun it was hard to see who actually was under all the garb.

At wells in the middle of nowhere we would vie with others to give the camels a well deserved drink. We visited tiny villages where the huts have walls that are covered with a plaster of clay, cow dung, and hay, making a facade that blends in with the sand of the countryside around it. The local women were always delighted to see us to show off their colourful saris.

We were well looked after, riding early in the morning and late in the afternoon. During the heat of the day we would relax under the shade of one of the sparse trees and at night we camped out under the stars. I just loved the atmosphere especially in the evenings when we would sit around the camp fire and tell stories or listen to the high pitched fever of Indian song. I always looked forward to our meals as we would have a very tasty dahl [lentils] and a bread cooked directly on the camel dung which is a great fire starter. My “dahl and dung damper for dinner” tales don’t appeal to all but they really were delicious albeit simple meals!!

This is a place I believe will keep its magic and appeal and be unspoilt for years to come. Let’s hope so.