Last weekend, thirteen of us currently residing in the Channel Youth house ventured to Jodhpur, the Blue City. It's also the warmest city of all of Rajasthan. But more on that later.
We left Friday afternoon very excited for the weekend ahead. We then boarded a bus for 7 HOURS, with no airconditioning, arriving in Jodhpur at around 9pm local time. It was at least 35 degrees. We woke the next morning, still sweating. It was HOT.
We woke for breakfast (which fortunately arrived a little quicker than dinner the night before) and packed up, hoping to do our first spot of sightseeing. Our first stop was Jaswhant Thada. Its big and white, like lots of buildings in India but has an amazing view of Jodhpur, showing why it is called the Blue City! After sweating it out there, we headed to Mehrangarh Fort to see it in the daytime. It sits in the middle of the city, looking over the hundreds of blue houses, making sure noone invades. Well, that's what it was built for. We walked through for about 2 hours, giving up on the audio tour halfway through (it was too hot to wear headphones...) and instead marvelling at the intricate glasswork and other fancy things.
After Mehrangarh came the highlight of nearly everyone's day - MACCAS!!!! Udaipur doesnt have the golden arches, so for us Australians, who had gone without a burger for 6 weeks, this was going to be heaven. Shelby had even been dreaming about a cheeseburger. Going through the security machine (yes, they have a security machine to get to Maccas) we entered airconditioned heaven. However, once we got to the counter, we realised a very sad thing - there was no beef or pork on the menu. NOOOOO!!!!
15 mins later and we'd recovered from the shock. We probably should have been more realistic,considering we'd never been able to find beef before, cows being sacred and all. Anyway, large McChicken meals were ordered, and we revelled in its junkfoodieness. It was amazing!
Still revelling in Macca's goodness, we boarded a very small jeep for a 2 hour journey to a Hindu temple, on the way to the desert. The village around it was created for the sole purpose of servicing the temple. The temple had fantastic glasswork, light reflecting off every surface. A few of us also picked up some simple beaded bracelets, that bring good luck. Here's hoping!
Hopping into another equally small jeep, we continued our ridiculously bumpy ride into the actual desert. The desert is very different to that in Australia - it's got a lot more vegetation and animals and isnt as red. We arrived, again, dripping with sweat and happy to get into a cooler environment. The place we were camping out for the night was a basic brick structure, with one or two rooms, but no bathroom. Hello squatting. Outside was coolest so we relaxed on the camp beds and then went exploring around the area.
Dinner was on the roof, watching the sunset. It was gorgeous, and most importantly, cool! After dinner entertainment consisted of a little band with traditional Rajasthani instruments (including a piece of string that a man blew, making a very odd but nice sound) and two dancers. We danced the night away!
Camping under the stars was definitely a highlight and with surprisingly little bugs, it was a sweet sleep. Not that we got much, considering we were talking for a while and had to wake up at 4:30am.
Sunday started at 4:30 when we were woken up by the sounds of camels being tethered to poles right near us. The camel safari had begun! Camel riding is one of the MOST PAINFUL EXPERIENCES OF MY LIFE!
Imagine sitting on a horse for a few hours, you don't really feel the pain until you get off. With a camel, you feel the pain from the point you sit on the camel until the point you get off. My legs died. However, it was still lots of fun and definitely scary. The angles at which the camel stands up should not be allowed.
Two hours later, after a beautiful sunrise, we ate breakfast - the first Indian breakfast we'd had. It was a little weird having Parantha and lentils but we dealt. We arrived at Jodhpur 3 hours later. Whilst doing a quick sightseeing tour in the area around our guesthouse, we coincidentally ran into Lauren's twin sister Ash, who was travelling around India with her friends Jess and Soph. It was an awesome coincidence and great for Lauren and Ash to catch up after 4 months apart (She did the Antips program in Nepal)
On Saturday, a large group of volunteers (and Ravi) ventured to Kumbalgarh Fort, one of the largest in Rajasthan and Ranakpur Temple - one of the largest Jain temples in India. Kumbalgarh is HUGE! It has a wall whose sheer length is only beaten by the Great Wall in China. The fort itself is massive and gives a great view of the green hills of Northern Udaipur. We staggered our way to the top (too many chips and biccies!) and sang in the echoing rooms - I think India has now been introduced to Disney songs by us!
Ranakpur was anothe hour away and simply put, is amazing! It has 1444 marble pillars, each one different. They are intricately carved and demonstrate fine marblework. The Jains, interestingly, are much more strict about visitors - women who have their "mense period" are not allowed in and photography of the main idol is strictly prohibited. Leather is also prohibited.
It has been a week of exciting trips and next weekend, we head to Rathambore National Park for a Tiger Safari and Agra, for, of course, the Taj Mahal. We cannot wait!
Emily
Thanks!
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