Rajasthan 13 january 2010

Rajasthan 13 January 2010
The 6am train leaves at 6.15! We are in comfortable class, so I sleep for much of the 5 and half hours in the train to Aimer. Here we climb into a small bus, our bags are on the roof, just. Soon we are in a traffic jam. Streets are closed because the Prime Minister of Bangladesh is in town. Eventually, and via Snake Pass, we arrive in our hotel in Pushkar. This is a holy town containing India's only Brahma Temple, a holy lake, pilgrims from all over India and hippies from Hastings.
Our 'orientation' walk takes us through.............hundreds of small shops! There is a difference though, many of the 'locals' are westerners, presumably settling in Pushkar to find enlightenment, helped by the puffing of these long pipes so popular in India. I don't think they contain shag tobacco.
Next, back at the hotel, we are joined by 11 camels. One for each of us. Mounting a camel (to ride) is not easy. As my regular readers will know, I am an experienced rider of exotic animals, having already ridden a camel in Dubai, an ostrich in Africa and a Dartmoor pony in Devon. However, on this camel, there is only a small 'pommel' to hold onto, positioned at the front of the saddle immediately in front of one's groin. It is disappointing that, after centuries of using these animals to transport people and goods, no-one has bred or trained camels that can rise from the kneeling position on all 4 legs simultaneously. I think it's the back legs that go up first, they tell you to lean back and you jolt forward into the pommel. Ouch. Then the other two legs go up and you rise to a ridiculous height above ground level. The camel starts walking and I hold on tightly to the tiny pommel, trying to stay on board and protect my unborn children. Each camel is led by a minder, and the safari takes us in single file on an hour's walk through the town and out into the desert where we stop for tea. Anmar our guide follows the camel train in a camel drawn cart. This is obviously for collecting group members that have fallen off their camels. I picture the cart at the end of the safari, piled up with injured tourists, broken arms and legs hanging out in all directions and Anmar still drinking the last of his tea. Fortunately, we all make it to the half-way tea stop with no casualties. Nobody has fallen off, but now we have to dismount. Ouch. The tea and biscuits are good, but we are serenaded by the musicians from hell. I am chatting with two of the girls and before we realise it, we are surrounded by three of them. I don't know how she does it, but Sarah-Jane escapes, ruthlessly abandoning me and Kylie to the strains of the most ear piercing tuneless scratching and scraping noises from stringed instruments constructed in a scrap yard by the devil himself. Kylie recovers her senses more quickly than me and pays them to go away.
For the ride back, we have to re-mount. Another ouch. This time, I make myself relax in the saddle and not hold on to the pommel so tightly. This makes the ride less uncomfortable and more relaxed. I take some good photos, risking total letting go of the pommel and twisting a bit to take photos. A couple of times, the minder makes my camel run, and after the initial shock, I realise that this is much more comfortable than walking. It is also an exhilarating ride.
Actually, the whole experience is amazing. The camels are serene, the desert landscape is stark and beautiful, and the sunset is incredible. A highlight of this trip and all my travels.
All the Best, John