Midnight at the Oasis...I Mean, Tent City

We arrived in Pushkar about noon, not a bad drive actually, but the police had closed the main road for crowd control and we had to re-route, eventually arriving at Camp Royal Safari about 1:30. It may not be the desert, technically, but it is hot, dry, sandy, barren, and there are camels everywhere, mostly pulling carts to take residents of this and adjoining tent-cities into town.

Camp Royal Safari consists of perhaps 75 tents, plus a reception tent and a dining hall tent (and several smaller tents for souvenir merchants). Our tent, #33, is actually larger than some hotel rooms we have inhabited recently, perhaps 16x24 feet, carpeted, two beds, chairs, table, nightstand, and an easy chair out under the porch awning; the full bathroom is within the main tent, but separated off by another tent wall. It is all actually better than feared, although the HVAC is lacking, as are TV and wifi. There are two electric lamps, however.

After settling in, we took the 4:25 PM camel cart into town, about 2 miles south. Vicki had had an unpleasant camel-riding experience many years ago in Egypt, so we did not go for the ride-your-own option. Pushkar is basically an Indian state fair, featuring all kinds of livestock, but mostly camels. (The highest auction sale this year, we read in today's India Times, fetched 51,000 rupies, not a whole lot of money, actually, but then camels are not good for very much as far as I know). Mostly it is block after block of souvenir stalls, small exhibits, cheap goods, food, drink, a lot of carnival stuff, three ferris wheels, but no roller coaster, no tilt-a-whirl, and no yak-lady. Also no blue ribbon apple pie, 600 lb. pumpkin, corny dogs, cotton candy, nor lemon shakes. (Nothing could compare with the Ohio State Fair). Anyhow, we took all this in for a while till it started getting dark and we realized we hadn't a clue where to catch the return camel cart. Eventually we followed some other tourists and wound up at the central camel loading port, where a driver identified himself as Camp Royal Safari. We rode back under the full autumn moon. (I get very up-tight in these situations, so it was not quite as pleasant as it may sound; Vicki later teased me by claiming she saw a scorpion in the bathroom). We finished the evening with a dull Indian veg dinner (buffet in the dining hall tent, with other guests, mostly snooty French, who, ha!, got no wine with their nan) and then, by campfire, watched the “cultural” program, dancing and drumming (our third such program in two weeks, fourth if you count Varanasi). A tent and a camp-fire program...just like back home.

Vicki adds:

Pushkar, November 13

It is 8:30 in the morning and I am lying in bed in the tent at the Royal Safari Camp. The Pushkar camel fair, or melee, brings over 150,000 visitors to a small town in Rajasthan. This of course is way too many to house and so there are at least 15 tent cities, each with 75-100 tents. Our tent is quite large, divided into two parts with full bathroom and flush toilet. No camp-cots here, full wooden beds, table, chairs and kerosene lanterns with electric lights inside. The only thing missing is AC, which is only needed in the afternoon. Last night we took our first sojourn to the fair, which is about 2 miles away across desert dunes, by camel cart. The fair is 95% Indian and the rest foreigners. Most of the camel and cattle-trading is over as these are the last days. There is a midway, 3 ferris wheels, and some very strange kiddie rides. But mostly of it is stalls set up flea-market fashion selling camel saddles, pots and pans, dishes, etc. Unfortunately the fair is not that interesting, and the second you show any interest, the shopkeeper, cousins, friends, assorted hangers-on, are all over you, touting the wonders of their wares in broken English. We intend one more foray to the fair this morning.

The camp include all meals, all vegetarian, as Pushkar is the the holy city of Lord Brahma and allows no alcohol, tobacco, or meat within its environs. Lord Brahma is the least popular of the three main Hindu gods and basically only worshiped here. The reason for this is long, complicated, and as in all religions, completely ridiculous to non-believers. Look it up on the Web.

Tomorrow we have a guide to see the religious parts of the place.

PS. Two days ago we succombed and purchased a hand-knotted Indian carpet—what every homeless person needs. We are having it shipped to daughter Rebecca's house. It is a small one and is quite beautiful and inexpensive.