Day 32 - Udaipur to Pushkar

Today we have been one calendar month on the road, since we walked out the door to the bus in Maiden Gully. Today also marks the halfway point of our tour around northern India, if you don’t count Day 1 and Day 22 which are really just for introductions and farewells.

Another early alarm saw us down in the hotel lobby packed and ready for a “short” train journey to Pushkar. We’ve sort of “bottomed-out” on our anti-clockwise circum-navigation of Rajasthan and we’re heading north again. Udaipur was pretty lively at 5:30am and despite the late arrival of our transport and a little tuk-tuk congestion at a roundabout we made it to the railway station in plenty of time to catch our 6:00am train. This time we’re in a non-sleeping carriage, just like a normal regional or interstate train carriage in Australia, if you will, with individual, high-backed fabric seats not the uncomfortable vinyl flat boards one gets in a sleeper carriage. Kerry has no problems falling asleep in the upright but laid back position. I wrote yesterday’s blog while listening to a bit of Jethro Tull.

The time went by quickly and we found ourselves in Amjer, our city of disembarkation as the train doesn’t go to Pushkar. Fortunately, our arrival platform had an escalator up to the bridge that crosses the tracks so that made getting our suitcases up there easy. A family at the bottom of the escalator had never seen one before, the mother and a child very unsure about stepping onto the moving platform but with some physical persuasion they eventually did and the quickly building jam on the platform began to clear. Unlike for the ascent, the descent had no escalator. Can’t work out the logic of just one escalator. Oh well, that’s India. Anant carried Kerry‘s case down for her to our awaiting private transport.  Our bags secured in the roof of the cars we set off for Pushkar. Amjer is bounded by a very large and impressive mountain range on one flank, the vegetation on the lower slopes giving way a rocky summit along its entire length which is somewhat reminiscent of the view one gets of the Grampians from the plains on the western side. In the centre of the city is an expansive lake. The mountain range, the lake and the city buildings around it make for one of the most attractive vistas I have yet seen in India. Over a low pass we went to the other side of the range where at the bottom we found the town of Pushkar.

Our hotel is on the edge of town down a dusty dirt road as are many other large hotels. The hotel is circa 1960’s and in need of some TLC. It does have some nice gardens and a swimming pool (not that I would risk putting my hand in it) which make for pleasant surrounds. It’s actually nice to see some green lawn as I haven’t seen any worth mentioning since we’ve been hear. All that’s missing is a cricket bat and a ball. We ate a simple lunch in the dining hall, relaxed for a couple of hours and then headed off back down the dusty track as a group for a walk through town. Pushkar is small with nit a lot going on other than a couple of temple and the main street market. I think this city remains on the tour because of it’s association with camels. I suspect that Intrepid used to encourage their guests to take a camel ride here but thay no longer support that idea. The Pushkar Camel Fair, held in November, is a big deal in Rajasthan. Everywhere there were camels hooked up to drays carting tourists up and down the roadways. The camels didn’t look too unhappy but there’s no telling how they’re treated when not working. Around the small lake we went and found ourselves in the main street, which is just one great, big, long market selling all the usual market trinkets and tourist souvenirs, interspersed with the odd hotel here and there. There is an important Brahman temple at the top of the street which we’ll check out tomorrow. From here we went down to the lake-side to view the sunset. The lake is very important to Hindus a a place of worship as well as a jumping off point for spirits into the next life. There are 50-odd ghats around the lake where devout Hindus with bath to cleanse body and soul.

We retired to the Sunset Cafe, right by the lake, to view the sunset accompanied by the sound of a couple of chaps sitting under a tree playing drums, and enjoy a coffee and cold drink. After an hour the drums fell silent so we decided to remain for dinner. Kerry and I both had a vegetarian Tibetan dish called Momos – sort of like a dumpling or dim-sim – mine were steamed, Kerry’s were fried. Both were very tasty. In the dark we took the 25 minute walk back to the hotel and hit the sack.