Jaisalmer (2 nights)

I returned to the desert city via bus from Khuri and managed to find a reliable rickshaw driver (perhaps the only on in India) who took me to hotel area for a good price and without fuss. I fumbled around and got my bearings, compared a few guesthouses and settled on Hotel Swastika! Of course the Swastika has a rather different meaning to that in Europe and I am nearly 100% sure that the grumpy looking, but friendly and helpful, man running the place was not a Nazi.

I must admit that I did very little that first day besides eating. I found a nice German Bakery and indulged. In the evening I gave into temptation and had a pizza. One can only take so much Indian food. Also, in my defence, the view of the illuminated fort from the itallian restaurant was marvellous. Unfortunately, the romance of the candlelit dinner, in such stunning surroundings was wasted on me as I dined alone ('Aw').

I intended to be up early the next day to go and get some snaps of the giant, 99 bastion, fort in the early light, but the bed was rather comfy. I set out somewhat later than planned and searched, in vain, the maze of backstreets for the citiy's famous ornate havelis (private mansions). However, the adventure was still enjoyable as I weaved my way through the alleys, skirting around the cows and being wary of the motorbikes, saying hello to the kids on their way to school. The buildings of the city are built in yellow sandstone, giving rise to the title of the 'Golden City'.

After my 'failed' expedition I successfully made it into the fort itself. I also found the magnificent Jain temple complex without much problem. There are 7 temples each with beautiful carvings and wonderfully ornate ceilings. I had a great time admiring them as the sunlight trickled in through latticed stone windows giving the whole place a thrilling mystical feel. Of course there were plenty of 'priests' loitering about trying to wangle a donation out of me, but I was careful to point out to them the notices asking for donations to be made only to the official donation boxes, and I didnt let them ruin my experience.

That evening I returned to Indian cuisine and had the most fantastic all-you-can-eat Thali. The word simply means 'plate' and, though it varies from region to region' usually it has a few bowls on a round tray, containing dhal, veg, curd, chapatis, and sometimes rice. This one was excellent value (Rs60) and excellent quality...yum!

The next day I was less lazy. I jumped out of bed nice and early, walked down to the lake north of the city and then around to the far side where I took a few nice pics of the fort and lake together. Back to town for breakfast and then, as I walked back through the touristy shopping streets, a voice called out 'Liam!'. It was Rachel who I had spent a few days with in Pai, Thailand some three or four weeks earlier! She was there with a tour group and I joined them all for lunch. Sometimes I moan about being on my own, but I think it is preferable to being in a group of 14 people. To be fair, most of them seemed quite nice, but I took an instant dislike to some and was glad I only had to spend an hour with them.

Before I caught my afternoon train back to Jaipur, I tried again to find the havelis and this time I did :-) Grand houses, squashed into the narrow lanes, delicately carved from the glowing sandstone. They were worth the effort.