Lu's Days ...

So ..... now the desert post that you've all been waiting for.

Some background info about the area where the desert is. The desert is located in the state of Rajasthan in India. It is near the border of Pakistan. For those who dunno about world affairs, India, a Hinduism country, and Pakistan, a Muslim country, don't like each other. So that adds to the excitement of the whole trip. Especially when our bus ride from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer passed thru the army camps, 3 army guys jumped on the bus to hitch a hike. Man, those dudes look scary. But maybe I'm just a wuss.



This map should be clear enough.


Rajasthan itself has a very distinct culture apart from the rest of India. This can be seen by the people's clothing. Even the auto-rickshaws are different from the rest of India.



Auto with style.



Women here tend to cover their faces.


Anyways .... enough of the boring textbook crap. Lemme jump directly to what we did.


After Taj Mahal in Agra, we toke a 12 hrs night train to Jodhpur. Then we toke a 5 hrs bus (where we encountered the army) to Jaisalmer, the city that is closest to the desert. Since we were pretty exhausted from the Delhi and Agra trip and also from the continuous travelling, we decided to stay at a 5 star hotel for the first night in Jaisalmer and take it easy. (Personal note to mom and dad: Thanks for the financial support ... hehe)



Wanna take a swim in the middle of the desert ?



Musicians and dancers hired by the hotel.



Wow .... holy ..... she picked up the 2 rings on the ground using her eye lids ..... we tipped them 100 rs ($3 Cdn) for that show


The next day, we checked out of the hotel, jumped on a shared auto, and headed to the sand fort - the core of the city.



In the shared auto with the locals ...


Upon entering the sand fort, once again, the only thought that crosses my mind is .... wowww ......



Approaching the fort from far.



Entrance of the sand fort.


The fort inside is amazing !! Have you guys seen movies like Black Hawk Down, Bourne Identity, or Indiana Jones, where the main characters have to find their ways in those ancient middle east cities while looking out for dangers ? That was what this place is about. But instead of looking out for dangers, we had to look out for all those cow shit that are sprinkled everywhere in the small alleyways of this magnificent city.



Moooooo ...


Despite of the cow shit, everything in the city is amazing. There were no big roads, only small alleyways. Each house there is carved with beautiful carvings. I don't really know how well to descibe it, so I'll just show you guys the photos.



The whole city itself is a piece of beautiful art work.



The outside of the temple located inside the fort.



Textile is big in this city.



Little shopkeeper.


We ran around the whole fort like children playing in a huge playground. We eventually got to the side wall of the fort and got a view of the city below.



Places immediately below.


The whole city from above.


I think these rocks are used as a defensive mechansim ..... hey, this place is ancient as I've told you.




Pigeons all along the side of the fort.



Hmmm .... will they shit on my head ?


Well, don't let the ancient touch and its remote location tricked you. This place is filled with modern stuff. There were long distance phone booths (which was where I call you guys, dad and mun), internet cafes, and ..... authentic italian gourmet pizza !!



Mmmmm ...... italian in the desert .....



Modern washing machine.


After having the home-made pizzas ..... we headed out to the sand dune for a night of camping in the desert !!