Not 5 minutes outside of Jaipur and I was in the desert! Hot, dry, dusty sandy desert. (Camels included) Instantly all my negativity evaporated (probably due to the extreme heat being blown on me!) I was headed for a small town, Pushkar, just west of Jaipur.
My arrival in Pushkar was a true Indian experience. The bus packed full to capacity (probably more then capacity...) Swerved off the road hit an electrical pole and hung just over the edge of a small cliff. If it weren't for the pole I think we'd all still be in the river! "WELCOME TO PUSHKAR" the bus driver said to me once everyone was out safely. (Huge smile on his face) Haha What a welcome indeed!
Pushkar is a little slice of heaven. With not much to do except see a few temples, the holy ghats (where people bath) and SHOP (my main interest!) Its pretty much all you can handle anyways since its 40 something degrees ALL the time with NO escape. The closest thing to an air conditioner would be to stick your head a fridge! And with power not the most reliable thing here, neither fans or fridges can cool you down! Like I said...there's NO escape!
It's so refreshing to come to a town where everyone you pass greets you with "Namaste" and whether you are shopping, just walking by, sight seeing, eating you are always offered free chai! PSH! Who wouldn't love a town that constantly offers you free CHAI! Brilliant! Even if it's a billion degrees outside "Yes! I'd love some CHAI!!!" I think all places in the world should take note and start doing this! (Side note: it has recently been brought to my attention that CHAI actually means TEA in Hindu, and is not a TYPE of tea! Oops...no wonder I get weird looks when I order chai tea! What I mean to say is chai MASALA! Lesson learned!).
I can't help but smile from ear to ear when I walk down the streets (Whilst listening to the Aladin soundtrack of course!) and pass a camel! I LOVE camels! For me to see them everywhere like this is so surreal! And they are everywhere! Kids are riding them, they are used to pull wagons, sometimes they just hang around the streets, I swear some are even pets!? I WANT A PET CAMEL! Cows are also EVERYWHERE here...but I don't want a pet Cow...just the camel will do :)
After what has been a really enjoyable and relaxing few days I am heading further into the Great Thar Desert where I hope to see more camels and to sweat even more then I already am! (Not sure if it's possible but from what I hear...Jaisalmer is HOT) Leave it to me to head to the desert in the hottest month of the year! :p
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