Nothing like 5 hours in a non-AC bus to think back on all of the wonderful experiences, work, and people that rest fondly in my memories of Jodhpur. At 11am yesterday I hopped on a bus to Pushkar, a small town to the East of Jodhpur known for its peaceful lake, plentiful hummus, and packed market selling everything from spices to silks. One of the 7 Sacred Cities, Pushkar packed with pilgrims who come to bathe in the lake and pray on the holy ghats. Since it is a tiny little town, I had to take a bus to the city of Ajmer where I would then take a 30minute public bus to Pushkar. Despite the heat, the pounds of dirt that cling to my sweaty skin, and precariously dangling feet of those sitting overhead in the sleeper berths, I have become a huge fan of bus travel. We sped (and I mean, SPED) through dry barren lands home to nothing more than a solitary temple, thought small towns whose narrow roads tease the rather large bus, and past small farm plots where women in sparkling saris hunched over weeding the land. At each stop young boys climb aboard vending ice cream, drinks, and oil drenched samosas and mirchi bara. Men, women, and children pile in and assume seats on the hot floor atop sacks of flour or sticks. Upon leaving each stop, the air reeks even more of deep fry, masala, and body odor. Men sip chai in roadside stalls and cows are just about thing only thing that will slow the bus down.
Expecting to be dropped of in the center of the city, I was a little more than surprised when, on the side of a truck congested highway, the man shouted 'Ajmer! Ajmer!' Well it definitely wasn't the Ajmer I was expecting but, here we go. As expected the sight of a solo traveler weighed down by a large backpack attracted the many rickshaw drivers eager to bring me to the government bus stand.. for the 'very Rajasthani price' of rs. 500. HAH! Finally getting a reasonable price, I found my way to the local bus station and just made it on to a bus bound for Pushkar. The drive was beautiful- one that involved a voyage over what is called 'Snake Mountain' a peak that, not surprisingly, is made up of switch backs and hairpin turns all the way up aaaand all the way down. For a bus that was far too large and going far too fast, the amount of breath holding/praying to not die moments were few! Monkeys lined the street, looking to me like they were just about to hop on the bus and head to Pushkar. Little did I know, I would have more than enough monkey business (literally) during my trip.
Immediately after getting off the bus I met another girl about my age from Denmark traveling on her on as well. We instantly joined up, got the same guesthouse, and were hoisted into a bike- drawn taxi- my bag overhead on the tarp 'roof,' hers underfoot, and the two of us crammed onto a tiny seat peddled by a man who probably weighed less than me. We then made our way to the main ghat just in time for sunset and were led in prayer by a priest who promptly gave us our 'Pushkar passports' red strings tied around our unmarried right wrists. With plates of yellow flowers, red paint powder, sugar, and rice we stepped into the cool water and set our pooja afloat among the men and boys bathing in the evening heat.
This morning we woke up at 7am to beat the heat as we made the hour long climb to the Savitri Temple, a small temple located at the top of a nearby mountain. Along the way we were stopped by families to enjoy chai, take photos with them, and explain for the thousandth time where we are from, why were are here, and where our husbands are. About half way up we encountered a group of monkeys perched in the middle of the steep stone 'stair case' that we huffed and puffed our way up for the last 20 mins under the already burning sun- beating the heat didn't end up working out. The roads and ghats are filled with monkeys down in the market, so we figured that it would be safe to take a few pictures and talk about how cute the babies that clung to their mothers fronts were. Well, just as I opened my bag to take out my camera, one of the more sizable monkeys of the bunch stands up on its back legs and bore its very sharp, very creepy looking teeth at us. Uh-oh I've read that these little, seemingly cute, guys can be very vicious. It started making its way toward us at an uncomfortably fast pace- not giving me enough time to decide whether to start to run or not. It ran up to me and grabbed on the the strap of my bag (teeth still out by the way)and started pulling it from me! Scared out of my mind that the thing was going to bite me or wrestle me down I leg go of my bag and scampered behind one of the 5 men that had come to watch the monkey vs foreigner show down. It took out my camera bag and started inspecting it, at which point I started yelling to the men to 'get it away and get the bag!!!! One of the guys ran up and snagged the rest of my bag from the little monster when we realized that there was a bag of prasad or blessed sugary candies in my bag that I had intended to leave at the temple. I throw the bag of sweets at the monkey at which point it put down my camera bag and greedily took the whole bag into a tree. Phew!
We spent the rest of the day relaxing on various rooftop restaurants, eating more hummus, and getting lost in the winding pathways of the market picking up colorful prints, jewelry, jutis, and mango lassis on the way. At the end of the day we found our way to 'sunset point' a beautiful ghat from which we watched sadhus praying in their bright orange robes as the sun sunk behind the jagged white and blue washed horizon of the town.
Expecting to be dropped of in the center of the city, I was a little more than surprised when, on the side of a truck congested highway, the man shouted 'Ajmer! Ajmer!' Well it definitely wasn't the Ajmer I was expecting but, here we go. As expected the sight of a solo traveler weighed down by a large backpack attracted the many rickshaw drivers eager to bring me to the government bus stand.. for the 'very Rajasthani price' of rs. 500. HAH! Finally getting a reasonable price, I found my way to the local bus station and just made it on to a bus bound for Pushkar. The drive was beautiful- one that involved a voyage over what is called 'Snake Mountain' a peak that, not surprisingly, is made up of switch backs and hairpin turns all the way up aaaand all the way down. For a bus that was far too large and going far too fast, the amount of breath holding/praying to not die moments were few! Monkeys lined the street, looking to me like they were just about to hop on the bus and head to Pushkar. Little did I know, I would have more than enough monkey business (literally) during my trip.
Immediately after getting off the bus I met another girl about my age from Denmark traveling on her on as well. We instantly joined up, got the same guesthouse, and were hoisted into a bike- drawn taxi- my bag overhead on the tarp 'roof,' hers underfoot, and the two of us crammed onto a tiny seat peddled by a man who probably weighed less than me. We then made our way to the main ghat just in time for sunset and were led in prayer by a priest who promptly gave us our 'Pushkar passports' red strings tied around our unmarried right wrists. With plates of yellow flowers, red paint powder, sugar, and rice we stepped into the cool water and set our pooja afloat among the men and boys bathing in the evening heat.
This morning we woke up at 7am to beat the heat as we made the hour long climb to the Savitri Temple, a small temple located at the top of a nearby mountain. Along the way we were stopped by families to enjoy chai, take photos with them, and explain for the thousandth time where we are from, why were are here, and where our husbands are. About half way up we encountered a group of monkeys perched in the middle of the steep stone 'stair case' that we huffed and puffed our way up for the last 20 mins under the already burning sun- beating the heat didn't end up working out. The roads and ghats are filled with monkeys down in the market, so we figured that it would be safe to take a few pictures and talk about how cute the babies that clung to their mothers fronts were. Well, just as I opened my bag to take out my camera, one of the more sizable monkeys of the bunch stands up on its back legs and bore its very sharp, very creepy looking teeth at us. Uh-oh I've read that these little, seemingly cute, guys can be very vicious. It started making its way toward us at an uncomfortably fast pace- not giving me enough time to decide whether to start to run or not. It ran up to me and grabbed on the the strap of my bag (teeth still out by the way)and started pulling it from me! Scared out of my mind that the thing was going to bite me or wrestle me down I leg go of my bag and scampered behind one of the 5 men that had come to watch the monkey vs foreigner show down. It took out my camera bag and started inspecting it, at which point I started yelling to the men to 'get it away and get the bag!!!! One of the guys ran up and snagged the rest of my bag from the little monster when we realized that there was a bag of prasad or blessed sugary candies in my bag that I had intended to leave at the temple. I throw the bag of sweets at the monkey at which point it put down my camera bag and greedily took the whole bag into a tree. Phew!
We spent the rest of the day relaxing on various rooftop restaurants, eating more hummus, and getting lost in the winding pathways of the market picking up colorful prints, jewelry, jutis, and mango lassis on the way. At the end of the day we found our way to 'sunset point' a beautiful ghat from which we watched sadhus praying in their bright orange robes as the sun sunk behind the jagged white and blue washed horizon of the town.
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