Pushkar

Day 118 - 122.

Today we rode general class on the train, given the class system of carriages this put us well and truly down at the bottom, behind only 1AC, 2AC, 3AC, Sleeper, 2nd Seating and 2nd reserved - so it was to be an interesting ride..

That being said it was the equivalent of £1.10 for a 6 hour jouney so we couldn't complain. As usual personal space is non existent here, looks like a decent size seat for 1 person - make it 3, luggage roof rack - pffft that'll fit 3 grown men, hold your bags.That being said our co passengers, although slightly bewildered by our presence & a tad over curious were very freindly and always looked out for us, the ride was finished off with a gorgeous sunset as we rode through the desert!

We were greeted into Ajmer, the gateway to our destination Pushkar by the first real rain we've experienced in India, a refreshing surprise. After battling through the usual Rickshaw hustle and bustle we negotiated our way through the 10+ drivers (using the now go to threat of calling an Uber) to secure a ride to the hilltop town.

Pushkar turned out to be the town that kept on giving, our initial planned 2 day visit turning into 6. The town itself sits surrounded by empty hilltops (or vegetable koftas if all you think about is food), the town sits in it's entirety around a holy lake, surrounded by Ghats on every side - some 50 in total! These make perfect spots to watch the world go by with Hindus from across India making pilgrimage here to bathe.

Pushkar to some is little except a hippe retreat, but to us it was great food, bargain accomodation, amazing sunset spots and unlimited ways to get creative so it was just what we wanted. This meant for us it was a town of new skills, for me completing my first acrylic portrait (with some help), for Limbster it was the basics of silver jewellery making and the art of rolling her first joint.

^ Worth noting this isn't a theme across India, however almost everyone in this holy town is smoking hash and also rather generous with it, from the old holy men conversing with us on the ghats to the jewellery smith himself, mid class too. It's still up for debate whether the 3 hours spent self teaching this skill was worth it but it was an hilarious afternoon nonetheless.

It wasn't all highs mind, limbsters first trial of the budget jewellery class option wasn't quite so smooth, refusing to continue and walking out 5 minutes through didn't bode well for the mass production of her own silver rings. Sometimes you just gotta pay that extra rupee.

It was certainly a hard place to leave, if not just for Raju's cashew nut curry & veggie kofta alone! But as always there comes a time to move on and so with our bags slightly heavier (once again!) We waved farewell to Pushkar & head for Bundi.

P.s rather oddly we found limbsters pj top on our penultimate day, in the middle of the street 1km from the hostel covered in dirt. Still can't for the life of us determine how it got there. Sad times.Läs mer