I have always wondered what has fascinated me about road trips, and each time I get into a little introspection, there are different answers to the same question. I have already given a detailed explanation of my journey to Rajasthan along Pushkar, Ajmer and Jaipur… but I had left the Jaisalmer part of my journey off for a little while, because there are so many several elements to it that I wasn’t sure where would I need to begin with.
My journey to Jaisalmer was rather tumultuous and winding in the least to say. It began late in the night from Pushkar, on a rickety ‘luxury bus’ … I remember the night vividly as the desert winds were biting cold and I was cursing myself for the nth time for not taking my warm clothes along! Fortunately I had two Israeli backpackers along with me for company; they definitely helped me take my mind off the biting cold.
Conversations and piping hot masala chai kept me going me for a while, till the brash horn of the ‘luxury bus’ driving cut through the silence of the cold desert night… strapping on my rucksack, I got on to the rickety and shaky bus. Here is the thing about bus rides, I simply love them, especially when I get the window seat… I love gazing out of the window and watch the world buzz past me…. This time on I got the window seat… but the window was shut and surprisingly I liked it that way! Unfortunately this window had a small opening through which the cold air kept coming in… the night passed in with people filling the bus to its seams. There hardly was any space, people were lying down on the floor of the bus for the night… the journey went on and so did the night.
The morning came with the rays of the sun trickling in through the small opening of the window, bright and shiny… and yet cold. We stopped at Pokhran, a village of the Jaisalmer district… the village is infamously known for being the site of the nuclear test. I would like to associate Pokhran as the land of five mirages… While I was set to head to Jaisalmer soon, I decided to spend the day at Pokhran, on checking with the driver I knew that there would be buses to Jaisalmer every hour or so.
Surrounded by sand, rock and 5 salt ranges, the stark and raw landscape of Pokhran truly mesmerized me. The rugged and earthy peaks of Aravalli ranges and the sandy moulds of the Thar Desert can be a truly captivating scenery. Short shrubs and sandy terrain, there is a beauty in the desert that cannot be described in words. My half a day in Pokhran was possibly my first solo trip to an Indian village after almost 10 years… and there isn’t much that has changed in villages.
There is this warmth and friendliness in the people that simply cannot be duplicated at any cost or circumstances, nor can it be found in any of the cities or towns. Sipping chai with villagers and enjoying the sun rise over the horizon. I silently watched the sun steadily rise up through the horizon and fill the quarters with golden light… for the first time in my life I had begun my breakfast with chai, hot jalebis and samosas! Till now I had only seen women carry pots of water on their head in movies, today I caught it all live… it seemed to be a day of many firsts.
Time rushed past and it was soon time to take the evening bus and head to Jaisalmer… but I did not take the bus, there was this old lady I ended up talking to and her tale kept me intrigued through the evening and I spent the night at her hut… she was talking about her life and how much has changed in her small village. It was interesting to get a different perspective on something, till date, everything was restricted to my limited understanding of the village life… but her words shed new light on various different aspects. The effects the nuclear testing had on our own villagers, the change in life they have had since and how difficult it is to get by even with a day’s meal.
Spending the night in a small hut, where I have been given all the wares, made me feel small and truly humble. I realised the true meaning of hospitality… the morning sun woke me up and after freshening up with little water and a breakfast of hot chai and poha I walked into the bus stop to take the next bus to Jaisalmer.
I left Pokhran feeling completely at ease, another ride down and I hit the city of Jaisalmer… the early morning cold wasn’t helping me again. But I was lost in my thoughts and soon I saw the bright golden fort of Jaisalmer (one of the rare living forts of the country). Fortunately the hotel I was staying over at was just a few feet away from the Fort… I just rushed inside my room, after ensuring that hot water was available… after refreshing my stiff muscles and joints with hot water and hot chai (Rajasthan seemed to have made me an fervent tea drinker)… I decided to get a little sleep… considering I had choppy sleep over 2 nights.
Awaking refreshed and energized, I walked up to the terrace of the Hotel, we had a roof top restaurant I simply sat watching the sights around me. I had coincidently chosen the perfect time to head to Jaisalmer – the annual desert festival was on! I decided to peacefully roam the regions of Jaisalmer; I was planning a desert safari that day, so I was in the mood to take things easy that and light that day.
Roaming around the streets of Jaisalmer, I soon realised why it was called the Golden City, the sands and the sunlight, the forts and the buildings all had a golden aura to them. The day passed in quiet silence… I realised that Jaisalmer was more of a tourist town, which came to life during the tourist season. Nevertheless the life in Jaisalmer was a mix of several different things and people, nomadic tribes, olden day kings & nobles, Rajputs, BSF… the list simply goes on and on.
There is colour everywhere you go, women and men brightly dressed, the women in tie & dyed cotton lehngas with heavy and thick silver jewellery, the men with their turbans and petas… and the golden light bouncing off all the quarters. There is some kind of contentment in roaming along the town without aim… and that is exactly what I did. Walking deep into markets that were dotted with stores that sold leather, silver and cotton wares.
Walking along winding streets I couldn’t help but notice the German bakeries dotting the different corners of the fort markets… clearly Jaisalmer is another popular destination among the western travellers. Time flew past and it was soon time for me to explore the famous Thar Desert… located around the periphery of the desert, I personally think Jaisalmer is one of the most beautiful destinations in Rajasthan… pure and unadulterated with the chaos of city life, Jaisalmer takes you back in time.
The ride from the hotel right into the deserts was through a beautiful straight winding road that cut right across the desert landscape. The 40 km drive took me about an hour… and soon I was surrounded with golden sands and the sun racing to set along the horizon. It was my very first time in the desert and very first camel ride (not sure if camels are one amongst my favourite animals, considering how moody they actually are…) the ride was as rickety as weird as you can imagine.
There is a serenity and beauty in the desert which simply cannot be compared to any other landscape. The cool breeze and the scorching sun… the dusty roads and the pristine skies. That day in the desert with campfires, and tents, there is this stark beauty of the deserts that are completely mesmerising. There is beauty to the rugged and untouched landscapes, which leaves the traveller completely enthralled. A warm campfire, rustic folk music playing in the background, and the cool desert sands and freezing breeze… all this along with spicy Rajasthani food and hot chai.
Time simply stops when you are lying down on the bare sands with the stars overhead. It was the second time within a matter of 24 hours the landscape around me truly left me at a loss of words. I reluctantly walked into my tent… (While I would have loved spending the night right under the desert skies, the extreme weather warned me that it would be a rather foolhardy thing to do!)
The sun rays crept slowly through the mesh windows of the tent, filling all the quarters with its rose hued golden lights… it was only 5:45 in the morning… I nevertheless warped myself in a rug and walked out to soak up the sun. If the desert night had captivated my soul, the early morning rays of the desert was something else altogether. I sat down right on a sand dune with a cup of hot chai and soaked up as much of Vitamin D I possibly could and headed back to the Golden City of Jaisalmer.
The drive back was as straight laced as the previous mid-day ride, one of the pre-requisites of driving in the desert is that ensure you have the right UV protected glasses along with you. Soon I touched the city of Jaisalmer. Since I was back in Jaisalmer pretty early, I had a whole day to myself… reaching my room, I took my much needed rest and got out again… that day was dedicated to Jaisalmer and its many wonders.
The best part of Jaislamer is that, it still holds its ancient old world charm, the several havellis, forts and palaces of Jaisalmer are living. Walking through the tiny gullies of Jaisalmer, the thing that stumps you the most is the beautifully ornate pathways and homes designed in old day’s haveli style. It is like the city was forgotten in the foreign invasion and from a Royal lineage it passed on to a democratic India. The architectural magnificence with its beautiful carvings and ornate sculptures is truly spell binding. The thing with Jaisalmer is that it is small and can be covered in no time… the locals in the town are one of the best, extremely warm and friendly and the town is filled with stories.
It was one of these stories that led me deeper into Jaisalmer and its border… the Tanot Mata Temple. For those of you who are unaware of the story of this temple – the Tanot Mata temple is situated close to the Indo-Pak border. This temple is the last destination before you reach the border, if you want to have a look at the Indo Pak border, you need to get all the documentations and paper in order!
Legend has it that during the Indo Pak war of the 70’s, the Pakistani Army had dropped several bombs targeting the temple, but none of these touched the temple and even a large number of the bombs did explode… the BSF Jawans manage and man the temple, and it also has a museum with a collection of these unexploded bombs…
It took me all of 2 hours to reach the temple… located bang in the middle of the Thar Desert, by the time I reached the destination it was noon and it turned out to be a day of contrasts with the burning sun overhead and the cool desert breeze… the Tanot Mata temple is a rather open area and unlike most Indian temples, it also has an Islamic shrine with the temple complex… the BSF guard proudly told us, that this was the perfect vision of true India.
Everyone in the region has strong reverence to the Goddess, especially after the Longewala incident, the BSF guard told us “Mata protected and saved all of us, especially those of us who sought shelter in her shrine. Hidden under a mask of serenity is the fact that it is nevertheless close to the Indo-Pak border… both countries have planted land mines in the area and the caution mine-field sight is a rather sobering effect. While a few hapless villages have lost their limbs and lives with this, (sadly, collateral damage) the worst affected are the animals and plants of the area.
There is this uneasy silence and tension in the area, which only left me feeling highly sorry and miserable… I think this was one of the first places in Rajasthan that had made me feel so. The temple is beautiful and serene but it is the underlying tension around depresses me.
It was probably the first that I left the Thar Desert as soon as I could, and headed back to the confines of Jaisalmer… the evening sun was setting in by the time I reached the city and I decided to have a dinner at this peaceful place inside the Golden fort… (Possibly one of the few forts that have people and businesses residing inside!) … I spent the evening gazing at the clear desert skies and the setting sun.
Post by: Devendra Singh
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