Jaisalmer Things to Do

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The camel safari should be a long one. I had been taken to a spot from where the Sam desert was about 9-10km. So it was a bumpy camel ride, but a fascinating one. I also tried a camel race. The best part was that my camel was kind of extreme friendly with any camel that passed by, and tried to snuggle a bit, which I thought was his way of kissing! It was great fun...

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The fort is the biggest tourist attraction of the city, it houses a quarter of the population in this city, this effectively ensures that it is badly maintained, with cattle plying the narrow alleys as well as umpteen beggars!
There is a jain temple, the maharaja and rani palaces- now converted into a museum, loads of shopping and restaurants inside this fort. We visited the same last in this city, we liked the Mehrangarh Fort of Jodhpur more than this one.

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A lake in the middle of the desert!! You bet we were surprised!! What's more, it was a clean lake with loads of water, geese and boating!! We spent a very memorable new years eve evening here, a paddle boat ride for half an hour, a close encounter with geese in the lake and a memorable last sunset of the year 2008!

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It has a beatifully arched roof, built by the prime minister who had differences with the king. Originally planned to be connected to the fort, when the king decided against it 2 storeys of this haveli were brought down. Inside there are myriad forms of intelligent architecture all built with the intention of thwarting enemies who may enter from outside. Uneven steps, narrow entrances that ensured the enemies could enter only one at a time so that the women of the household could defend themselves.
The roof is made from multiple parts that are only mechanically joint together. Very ornate and quite spectacular.

All of these Havelis are within walking distance of each other. So after getting done with the Patwon ki Haveli we walked up to the Nathmalji ki Haveli. It's facade is a riot of ornamentation. However we didn't go in.

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This is one of the largest and most elaborate Haveli in Jaisalmer and stands in a narrow lane. It is five storeys high and is extensively carved. It is divided into six apartments, two owned by archaeological Survey of India, two by families who operate craft-shops and two private homes. There are remnants of paintings on some of the inside walls as well as some mirror work. The intricate work on the walls of the Haveli are absolutely out of this world!! You can see a lot of this replicated in many houses across the city.
patwa was a wealthy merchant who had many trading centres from China to Afghanistan. His haveli is truly an embodiment of his wealth and sucess!! The 5 storeyed building with it's myriad chambers are definitely worth a trip across the country!

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Sam dunes are some 40 odd kms away from the Jaisalmer city, as we had come from Jodhpur by car we drove straight to the Rajasthan Desert Safari camp for our desert experience. As soon as we arrived we were served some piping hot tea- most welcome as the camp was really cold what with a steady gust of wind blowing all the time! Quickly we got out our jackets and headed for the camel safari. We found out our camel's name was Bablu Bhai, who quickly dispensed us of our romantic ideas of a camel ride. Camels are all about snorts and farts really!! :O After a nice bumpy ride to the desert the guuy who owned the camel started regaling us with stories of how the camp owner hardly pays him enough and so expected some cash from us. This was the only irritating experience of this desert safari. We gave him some cash and asked him to please leave us in peace as we settled down on a nice dune ready to catch the sunset!
The sunset was beautiful however the pesty camel owner was back to take us to the camp. All the way he kept telling us he was expectig more money, however this time round we told him to just talk to the camp owner if he were not happy with his remuneration as we had already paid the same a heady amount for this experience.Once back, they had lined up a series of rajasthani dance and music performances some of which were truly fantastic!! As women danced with fire, coal and various other items neatly balanced on their head we watched dumbstruck. Truly amazing to be able to watch people who were so talented. We had our buffet dinner and settled by the bonfire till late in the night.

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You have to go through formidable gates before you hit the main centre of activities inside the fort of Jaisalmer. In sequence, these are named Akshay Prole, Ganesh Prole, Suraj Prole and Hawa Prole. The way each of the gates are placed in the overall structure is quite scientific (from the point of view of their functionality in thwarting raiders). After you cross one gate, you get a clear run of maximum 50 metres before encountering a hairpin bend. Tackling this bend, you immediately hit the next gate. The rationale behind such placement was that the enemy raiders would never acquire the requisite momentum to charge the fort because of these bends, compounded with the solid structure of the gates.

Walking on the cobble-stoned narrow lanes inside the fort is an experience by itself. Almost all houses that you see around you bear intricate carvings on sandstones amidst the jharokas. One such sample is appended.

Exquisite carvings on several temples in the fort are also noteworthy. One, specifically, dedicated to Jain tirthankaras, built around 700 years ago, is jaw-dropping.