(6) The Rajasthan Desert
Gazing through the windows of my passing train, the amazing transformation of the Indian landscape is really a sight to behold – from the green hues of Kerala, to the beaches of Goa, to the concrete jungles of Mumbai, and now to the forbidding desert panorama of Rajasthan. It is really a profound sight.
The silence pierces through the air, stiflingly hot and bereft of moisture. I cannot believe how Rajasthanis can survive in this place, just breathing through the window makes me thirsty – my bottle of mineral water is always nearby. Water is very scarce in this part of India. In remote villages, water wells have to be dug and most often is not enough to support the villager’s needs and they have to trek to far away villages in search of water.
Against this stark landscape, the women of Rajasthan are vivid and colorful in their day-to-day sarees. They look so beautiful with their multi-colored sarees draped around them, I think, by far they use the most vibrant colors around India for their sarees.
I bought a ticket to Jaipur but I wanted to make a stop in Ajmer and visit the popular village of Pushkar – the site of the Pushkar Camel Fair.
Pushkar
I got off from at the Ajmer station (about 2.5 hours away from my ticket destination – Jaipur). That is what’s so nice about travelling solo, you have the freedom to change your plans at your whim and fancy. Wala lang, I saw a TV special kasi sa National Geographic about the Pushkar Camel Fair and feeling ko nasa desert dunes with the Bedouin tribes of the Middle East. Its mystical allure is so mesmerizing, it draws you in its web.
When I arrived at the Ajmer train depot, I immediately searched for the tuktuk queue. By now, I can be considered an expert on this. I know how to spot annoying hacks who will try to follow you around and pester you out till you bend to them and take their taxis or tuktuks. I was told that there is a bus leaving in 20minutes for Pushkar and I was pointed to the bakery in front of the train station – that is where I should wait.
It’s a 45-minute ride through the Nag Pahar or the Snake mountain (feeling ko, we are going to the bowels of the earth, as in wala ng bahay na makita sa daan) and when we got to Pushkar, it was really a village affair complete with an ox cart waiting for passengers and their luggages to transport. No way! As in, can you imagine, inalok ako na sumakay sa cart na yun! Susme, bahala na kung bitbitin ko ang bag ko till makarating ako sa village center (it’s a good 25minutes walk – and after a bruising 45minutes standing in the rickety bus coz no one offered me a seat kasi super puno sya!).
I was amazed, the place was full of hippies. As in, ang dudungis ng mga itsura na nila. Some of them had stayed there for a month or two. I stayed in the top floor, with two screened windows facing the Sadar Bazaar Road and when I open my door, it immediately faces the holy lake (the main attraction of the village). 
The whole village is clustered around the Pushkar Lake, even the prices of the guesthouses differ according to how far you are from the lake. The place I stayed at, Lake View hotel, is a real steal at 200 rupees per night for a single room with attached toilet coz it is overlooking the lake (the sunsets are awesome!) and when you come down, it immediately opens to the bazaar area with its tourist-oriented shops.
I trudged through the Holy ghats (even some of Gandhi’s ashes were scattered here), there are about 52 bathing ghats surrounding the lake for the pilgrims to go and bathe – the water is considered sacred. On my last day, I decided to go to the Brahma temple (its just annoying coz there are a lot of “students” and “priests” loitering the place who will try to offer you a “puja” at the ghats and gift offerings and then later on will charge you 200-400 rupees!!!) and prayed for my family and friends (ewan, basta feeling ko spiritual ako that day) at the Varah Ghat complete with a bindi.
I am so frustrated with the people here! They really expect the tourists to cough up money just because they are
poorer than me! I know…I am being irrational but God! The nerve of the kid to tell me that he needs AT LEAST 100 RUPEES to eat and NOT 10RUPEES!!!! Can you imagine a beggar telling me how much to give him! I got so enraged, I just ranted nonstop at him. This is too much! The beggars here are spoiled brats – too spoiled by tourist money!
One thing that I cannot live with is vegetarianism --- Rajasthan is a Hindu state. Can you imagine what it did to my carnivorous appetite! Wherever I go, the menu is always full of “vegetable burger”, “Vegetable fried rice”, “vegetable spaghetti”…. As in, kaya siguro ako nag-aamok doon on my last day eh dahil sa gutom! I tried eating the vegetable burger – nasusuka ako at lasang gasolina sya kasi nga naman puro na nga vegetable ang laman niya, niluto pa sya sa vegetable oil in a kiln….in a matter of days, nangayayat talaga ako ng husto! Susme, whoever has dietary problems punta lang sila dito at I promise, in a week’s time they will lose the poundage.
The place is magical -- but I cannot imagine staying for more than 3 days in Pushkar. After saying my prayers at the Ghats (can you imagine, there are even cows lying around sometimes kasi nga they don’t kill them or shoo them out di ba kasi nga cows are sacred for them!), I think I have finished what I have came here for – to pray and to live near a desert.
On the 3rd day, I left for Ajmer and will be staying there overnight before I push on to Jaipur.
Ajmer
There are only 3 notable places to visit in Ajmer – the Dargah, Akbar’s Palace & the Nasiyan (Red) Temple --
and the place is small so you can go around the sights in the area in half a day.
Sa sobrang pagtitipid, I stayed at the Bhola Hotel (there are only a few rooms above a restaurant with the same name) medyo nagulat pa ako coz the rooms are bolted inside. Well, I’ll be staying for a night lang naman.
Donning my head scarf (from my multi-faceted scarf, minsan nagiging bag décor pa nga eh!), I went to the Dargah – one of the holiest places for Moslem Indians. It’s a whole complex of temples and is the tomb of a Sufi saint. Its interesting inside because the architecture reflects the ruler who made it, one mosque was done by Akbar in the 16th century and another by Shah Jahan.
Its fascinating to take part in different religious rites, before it was usually Hindu rites kaya this time talaga I also went to say my prayers the Moslem way --- I touched my forehead on the ground while praying.
The other 2 sights are medyo boring after the Dargah trip, the Nasiyan Temple has golden models of a Jain ancient world – as in gold-plated lahat talaga nakakasilaw ang kinang! The Akbar’s Palace is also now converted into a government museum with stone sculptures and some paintings. Di ko talaga sya na-appreciate!
I decided on taking a bus to Jaipur later in the afternoon as it is cheaper and faster, only 2.5 hours as compared to 4 hrs by train.
The silence pierces through the air, stiflingly hot and bereft of moisture. I cannot believe how Rajasthanis can survive in this place, just breathing through the window makes me thirsty – my bottle of mineral water is always nearby. Water is very scarce in this part of India. In remote villages, water wells have to be dug and most often is not enough to support the villager’s needs and they have to trek to far away villages in search of water.
Against this stark landscape, the women of Rajasthan are vivid and colorful in their day-to-day sarees. They look so beautiful with their multi-colored sarees draped around them, I think, by far they use the most vibrant colors around India for their sarees.
I bought a ticket to Jaipur but I wanted to make a stop in Ajmer and visit the popular village of Pushkar – the site of the Pushkar Camel Fair.Pushkar
I got off from at the Ajmer station (about 2.5 hours away from my ticket destination – Jaipur). That is what’s so nice about travelling solo, you have the freedom to change your plans at your whim and fancy. Wala lang, I saw a TV special kasi sa National Geographic about the Pushkar Camel Fair and feeling ko nasa desert dunes with the Bedouin tribes of the Middle East. Its mystical allure is so mesmerizing, it draws you in its web.
When I arrived at the Ajmer train depot, I immediately searched for the tuktuk queue. By now, I can be considered an expert on this. I know how to spot annoying hacks who will try to follow you around and pester you out till you bend to them and take their taxis or tuktuks. I was told that there is a bus leaving in 20minutes for Pushkar and I was pointed to the bakery in front of the train station – that is where I should wait.
It’s a 45-minute ride through the Nag Pahar or the Snake mountain (feeling ko, we are going to the bowels of the earth, as in wala ng bahay na makita sa daan) and when we got to Pushkar, it was really a village affair complete with an ox cart waiting for passengers and their luggages to transport. No way! As in, can you imagine, inalok ako na sumakay sa cart na yun! Susme, bahala na kung bitbitin ko ang bag ko till makarating ako sa village center (it’s a good 25minutes walk – and after a bruising 45minutes standing in the rickety bus coz no one offered me a seat kasi super puno sya!).
I was amazed, the place was full of hippies. As in, ang dudungis ng mga itsura na nila. Some of them had stayed there for a month or two. I stayed in the top floor, with two screened windows facing the Sadar Bazaar Road and when I open my door, it immediately faces the holy lake (the main attraction of the village). The whole village is clustered around the Pushkar Lake, even the prices of the guesthouses differ according to how far you are from the lake. The place I stayed at, Lake View hotel, is a real steal at 200 rupees per night for a single room with attached toilet coz it is overlooking the lake (the sunsets are awesome!) and when you come down, it immediately opens to the bazaar area with its tourist-oriented shops.
I trudged through the Holy ghats (even some of Gandhi’s ashes were scattered here), there are about 52 bathing ghats surrounding the lake for the pilgrims to go and bathe – the water is considered sacred. On my last day, I decided to go to the Brahma temple (its just annoying coz there are a lot of “students” and “priests” loitering the place who will try to offer you a “puja” at the ghats and gift offerings and then later on will charge you 200-400 rupees!!!) and prayed for my family and friends (ewan, basta feeling ko spiritual ako that day) at the Varah Ghat complete with a bindi.I am so frustrated with the people here! They really expect the tourists to cough up money just because they are
poorer than me! I know…I am being irrational but God! The nerve of the kid to tell me that he needs AT LEAST 100 RUPEES to eat and NOT 10RUPEES!!!! Can you imagine a beggar telling me how much to give him! I got so enraged, I just ranted nonstop at him. This is too much! The beggars here are spoiled brats – too spoiled by tourist money!One thing that I cannot live with is vegetarianism --- Rajasthan is a Hindu state. Can you imagine what it did to my carnivorous appetite! Wherever I go, the menu is always full of “vegetable burger”, “Vegetable fried rice”, “vegetable spaghetti”…. As in, kaya siguro ako nag-aamok doon on my last day eh dahil sa gutom! I tried eating the vegetable burger – nasusuka ako at lasang gasolina sya kasi nga naman puro na nga vegetable ang laman niya, niluto pa sya sa vegetable oil in a kiln….in a matter of days, nangayayat talaga ako ng husto! Susme, whoever has dietary problems punta lang sila dito at I promise, in a week’s time they will lose the poundage.
The place is magical -- but I cannot imagine staying for more than 3 days in Pushkar. After saying my prayers at the Ghats (can you imagine, there are even cows lying around sometimes kasi nga they don’t kill them or shoo them out di ba kasi nga cows are sacred for them!), I think I have finished what I have came here for – to pray and to live near a desert.
On the 3rd day, I left for Ajmer and will be staying there overnight before I push on to Jaipur.
Ajmer
There are only 3 notable places to visit in Ajmer – the Dargah, Akbar’s Palace & the Nasiyan (Red) Temple --
and the place is small so you can go around the sights in the area in half a day.Sa sobrang pagtitipid, I stayed at the Bhola Hotel (there are only a few rooms above a restaurant with the same name) medyo nagulat pa ako coz the rooms are bolted inside. Well, I’ll be staying for a night lang naman.
Donning my head scarf (from my multi-faceted scarf, minsan nagiging bag décor pa nga eh!), I went to the Dargah – one of the holiest places for Moslem Indians. It’s a whole complex of temples and is the tomb of a Sufi saint. Its interesting inside because the architecture reflects the ruler who made it, one mosque was done by Akbar in the 16th century and another by Shah Jahan.Its fascinating to take part in different religious rites, before it was usually Hindu rites kaya this time talaga I also went to say my prayers the Moslem way --- I touched my forehead on the ground while praying.
The other 2 sights are medyo boring after the Dargah trip, the Nasiyan Temple has golden models of a Jain ancient world – as in gold-plated lahat talaga nakakasilaw ang kinang! The Akbar’s Palace is also now converted into a government museum with stone sculptures and some paintings. Di ko talaga sya na-appreciate!I decided on taking a bus to Jaipur later in the afternoon as it is cheaper and faster, only 2.5 hours as compared to 4 hrs by train.
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