There are lots of instances when we crave to do things that are so important to us. I am visiting Jodhpur since the year 2006. Being an active travel writer and photographer I have read/seen so much about these Safaris, which takes place nearby Jodhpur villages. Bishnoi Village got its fame due to Mr Salman Khan’s Black buck killing episode. Its around 35 kms from Jodhpur. My trip actually happened courtesy the owners of Mandore Guest House who organize such safari. We left the guest house at 5.30 Am so as to reach on time. It took us almost 30 minutes in a low traffic condition to be there on the villages. On the way I could also manage to capture a brilliant moment of Sunrise. Just after we left the main highway we could spot the difference. The roads were almost empty and there were only peacocks and other birds for company. Little bit more in the interior and I already had my camera with a zoom lens powered on. There were herds of deer on both the sides. As we were riding my Innova the sound of engine was not too load to disturb them (as against the Jeep which is generally used for Safari). It was only when we stopped & opened the gate that deers realized our existence. Deers have got such a beautiful eyes that when they look at you its a extremely soothing feeling. When I walked slowly towards them with camera they started running in opposite direction. And do they run, no they just start galloping. We proceed in much more interior of jungle where we spotted a herd of Black Bucks . Black Bucks are the most preserved animal is this belt. It is said that Black buck have got a very weak heart & they can even die with sound of a horn or a touch of human. It is this very reason that the villagers worship them so much. It is also the reason that Mr Khan is facing more punishment then any other hunting he would have done in his entire life. After taking some amazing shots of black bucks we proceeded to the actual village. The time was around 7.00 Am and the ladies of houses were already busy preparing the meals. This was because the males are supposed to leave for farms by 7.30 Am. Even at 7.00 AM in the morning the ladies were all dressed in the traditional costumes with heavy local jewelry. We visited 2-3 houses and were offered Tea/Gud/Beedi/Afeem at all the respective places. There were old men who were so affectionate and lovable that they treated me like I was one of them. The villagers do not care a damn about what you wear and what you do. They would treat you equal only if you talk with them and sit with them. I sat with them on their own handmade Camel wool’s carpet and drank tea made of goat’s milk. I also met one old man aged 78 years who still makes these carpets though his eyesight has given away. It was such a fantastic feeling to meet people who are so transparent and caring. For the time I was with them I just lost every thing about my business, the bank balance and what not. It was worth a visit and I am really enlightened with the experience of meeting such a beautiful animals and even beautiful human beings.

I fell in love with this 500 year old family run guest house nestled at the base of the Mehrangarh Fort in the old town. Full of character, it has been restored to a very good standard with modern amenities. Clean, comfortable rooms are available for varying budgets with traditional decor, fans and A/C. An ample menu of tasty local cuisine and restaurant A La Carte for the less adventurous is available in the restaurant, on the terrace or via room service. Services including trips, laundry and massage are available. Very friendly and helpful staff make for a very pleasant experience for overnight or longer stays.

A true home far away from home. Since many years I know Yogi's Guest House. Every time I visit India -I go to India at least once a year- I return to my home that awaits for me there in this still well preserved middle-aged atmosphere of Jodhpur that is still far less spoiled by tourism than most of other places around in Rajasthan. The hotel which is an original 16th century Havely is simply but charmingly decorated by Yogi himself who is a really nice young Indian man who succeeded to quit harceling the tourists in the street by opening his own hostel when he was only 20 years old. The rooms are confortable and a good value for your money: till now I never found another hostel where I feel more confortable than this one, and it's nice to see year after year how Yogi and his older brother still improve their place to ensure the best stay they can offer to their customers. In many places in India you'll find this sign on the wall: "Come as a visitor and leave as a friend". I don't know any better place than Yogi's Guest House where this phrase gets is full meaning. Surfing on the web, you may find some rude comment about this place. I doubt that the worst ones about the quality of the rooms or the services are original: I suspect that they were posted by jealous owners of other guest houses around who envy Yogi's success. Otherwise, how can you explain that despite refusing to give commission to rickshaw owners and some extremely bad comments on internet this hostel is full almost all year long? But the hard comments on Yogi's behaviour when he is drunk are certainly true: he is to be avoided on those occasions. So, I would recommand to travellers going to this guest house for the first time to contact his brother only when it is important and to not talk to Yogi when he is not in a good mood. To my opinion, Yogi has a real heart of gold, and is not hungry for money unlike most of Indians in the tourism business. Truly a place worth to visit!

Excellent hotel with all amenities, including a beautiful swimming pool. 950 INR (about 18 euro) per night for large double room with attached bathroom. Very nice garden. Very good restaurant - however, menu was limited, very much so at lunchtime, and service at lunchtime was very erratic. Hotel is in a nice suburban location but there is nothing of interest in the vicinity so you will need to hire an autorickshaw to go anywhere.

This place was tough to get to, far from everything else. It had a great view and was directly at the base of the fort. Because the owner refuses to pay touts and rickshaw drivers to deliver guests (which he is very proud of) they will drop you off and make you walk a ways, so don't go if you have much luggage. Accomodations were average, but priced slightly above average, probably due to the listing in Lonely Planet. The only time in five weeks I got sick was from a case of food poisoning the one night I ate here. Highly recommend Saji Sanwri Guest House instead. The family is very helpful and delightful and will cater to you like a 5 star hotel. While in Jodhpur don't miss Jaswant Thada, maybe the coolest temple in India in my opinion. And the audio tour of Meherangarh Fort was AWESOME! Kalinga restaurant was far better than the way too packed and trendy On the Rocks. Jodhpur was surprisingly one of my favorite places in India.

After much contemplation, I decided to head back to Jodhpur for the Holi Festival.  My friends in Jaisalmer warned me that being in a crazy city like Varanasi, my original plan, could be overwhelming for a woman foreigner like myself.  Something about the men getting all high and drunk and then groping women on the pretense of simply applying coloured powder on everyone in the spirit on Holi, aka, the Festival of Colours. 

The whole deal with this festival is everyone plays in the streets covering each other in powder of bright pinks, blue, greens, etc. etc….hence the popularity of this event.

Here is how my day went:

Got up.  Changed into crappy clothes.  Headed down the alleyways with the kids of the family who ran my guesthouse along with my Kiwi friend Rod, and Tiffany who was also staying at Heaven Guesthouse. 

Got pelted with handfuls of powder and water from kids with water guns.  Raced down several more alleyways avoiding larger gangs of teens armed with bags of powder roaming the streets on motorbikes.  We rounded a corner and got drenched in water from a bucket tipped from the roof of one of the buildings. 

Got pelted with more colours.

Finally arrived at Heaven Guesthouse’s sister guesthouse, The Blue House.  Met up with more family members of the guesthouse owners and proceeded up to the roof of one of their buildings.  Got smothered by a smelly Indian man’s hand smearing fuchsia pink colouring all over my face.  Spent the rest of the morning doing battle with a bunch of Indian kids and their parents. 

Lost terribly.

When we finally finished up playing Holi with the kids, us foreigners figured it was time to head back to Heaven Guesthouse for a long shower and fresh change of clothes.  The walk back was surreal.  The old city of Jodhpur where we were staying is composed of lots of alleyways that seem like a giant maze of endless walls and random wandering cows.  But since it was Holi, all the shops were closed and the usual throngs of people were tucked inside their homes for the day.  The streets were covered in pools of water coloured pink or purple or bright yellow and there was still the occasional water balloon thrown at us from some of the rooftops. 

It was like we were returning home from battle through a town made silent by the horrors of war.    

My battle scars consist of pink stains on my arms and the bottoms of my feet.  I can’t freakin’ scrub hard enough with laundry grade soap!  I’m going to be fuchsia pink for days. 

And so I woke up in Jodhpur this morning! The train from Jaipur was ok, despite been 6 hours late (what happens when you travel on a Sunday!). Jodhpur is  a lovely place, and people are genuinely friendly here, very nice place to be and visit! Saw the Clock Tower and markets today so many fabrics, spices and fruit'n'veg! I visited the Mehrangarh Fort and Museum this afternoon- wow!! The fort is so impressive and a recommend that you take advantage of the free tour headsets when you go, they are so informative - there is even a palm reader Mr Sharma there!

I really enjoyed Jodhpur, it has a lovely old-town feel to it, with really narrow streets, shops for everything you can imagine and fab food and drinks available!

I left the following afternoon to ctach a bus to Jaisalmer in the day time as I wanted to see the changes in the landscape - was such a nice journey!

Most people come to Jodhpur to see the impressive Meherangarh Fort perched high on a hill in the middle of the city. From here you can check out the lovely palaces within the fort walls and enjoy the great views across the city……that just happens to be painted blue.

The audio guide that comes along with entrance to the fort explains that the reason why so many of the buildings in Jodhpur are painted blue is because the blue cools the city during the hot summer and detracts mosquitoes.

Not so sure about the scientific basis for the colour blue keeping mosquitoes away, but at least it makes the city look pretty.

Anyways, the fort was cool, the buildings really are painted bright blue, but the best part about Jodhpur was staying at Heaven Guesthouse.

Nisha and her family treated me like family. Since they also lived at the guesthouse, I really was staying in their home. Nisha made the best Indian food I’ve had on this entire trip and her kids were absolute angels. Her 8 year-old daughter drew a picture of a lion for me while the rest of us chatted away after eating dinner together on the first day I arrived. There was no official dining area for the family. Instead we would gather in any available room and sit on the floor while eating with our hands.

So other than the whirlwind tour I did of the main sites in the city with a pair of Americans I met at the guesthouse, I didn’t end up exploring much of Jodhpur during my short stay. I just stayed in and hung out with the family.

After not having really got on with Jaipur, despite seeing some fantastic sights, we felt much more at home in Jodhpur. The centre of the city is composed of such small roads that it's not all clogged with traffic like Japiur, and so you can wander about and soak up the atmosphere. The market is very interesting, with a proliferation of spice shops, all with suspiciously similar names (they've all copied the one which is actually good and recommended in a lot of the guide books). Near the market we popped into a couple of tectile shops where they have four floors of handmade bedspreads etc - some fantastic things to be had, although you have to be prepared to haggle hard for a good price.

We stayed at a place called Yogi's guesthouse. I think that the owner was probably just as much on the make as anyone else running a guesthouse, but his take on it was to play the part of defending the poor westerners against the thieving locals, so even if he was deceiving us at least he treated us well! The place did great breakfasts on the rooftop terrace, with wonderful views of the fort.

The fort itselt is a magnificent thing, both inside and out, and a must visit. The palace inside contains displays of all sorts of things, but it's the palace and the fort themselves which are the star attractions.

We ended up only spending a couple of days in Jodhpur, because we were keen to get to Jaisalmer for Christmas, and regretted not having spent an extra day here. We thought that we might return on our way back towards Delhi, but in the end it didn't happen.

...I saw the usual assortment of cows, goats, pigs (and piglets), cats, dogs, monkeys and donkeys, all foraging for food; children squatting on the side of the road trying to take their morning dump; men standing for all to see, pissing into the wind; an outdoor classroom of children neatly seated in rows on the ground; a woman taking her morning bath, naked from the waste up, in full view while others sipped chai nearby; lots of colorful turbans, with one man accessorizing his with a snazzy pair of goggles (oh, if I only could've grabbed a photo of him!); children barely clothed, dirty all over, begging for any scrap of food they could find; women carrying two or three pots on their head as they went to collect water for the family; cow carcasses being picked clean by vultures; trash, trash and more trash; and an endless number of autorickshaws, cars, buses, lorries, motorbikes, bicycles, carts and pedestrians, all busy about their day. 

12/1/07

I arrived in Jodhpur after the sunset.  We took a rickshaw to the Clock tower, a great central location, and essential to thwarting commission scams from taxi and rickshaw drivers.  As we stood there, bags in tow, Lucy, our friend from Pushkar, appeared just leaving to go to Jaisalmer.  We exchanged hugs and told her about our camel experiences.  We parted and settled into Sunrise Guesthouse, a clean, simple room with no frills.  Dan spotted a 24 hour internet and we hit it up till about 2:30 a.m.  There was a lack of decent Internets in Jaisalmer, and this was my first chance to connect with anyone, though it was short.  After a late start in the morning, I set off to arrange travel to Agra to see the Taj Mahal.  Dan was internetting.  The train station was a 20 minute walk away, but I wanted to set off on my own.  To some extent Dan and I have traveled inseparably and this was my first solo excursion into Indian craziness.  The train station was a ways away, few spoke English, but I finally found it.  The station sent me to another location for reservations, so I trekked there.  As it worked out the train that day to Agra was totally booked.  I returned to the hotel, where I started, and booked the sleeper bus, 1 person per double bunk ~ a huge luxury especially on a 14 hour bus ride. 

 Much in India seems to return you to where you began ~ almost always leaving you exactly where you started, but with more information. 

 I met up with Dan and we walked to the Fort together.  So much in India is aggravating and frustrating.  The shopkeepers calling out, the rickshaws stopping and asking where you want to go, people begging, cow-shit and garbage everywhere, the incessant horns and traffic.  But as we walked up the steep stone walkway to the Fort, the back alleys and maze of modest sparsely stocked shops, we came upon hoard of 10 or so children; ages 4-12.  They ran up to us with smiles and eyes alight.  I subtly reached to cover my wallet pocket.  Lifting up her arms, one girl said "pick me up."  Obliging, I lifter her into the air as she giggled.  Suddenly we were surrounded, "Me next."  For several minutes, we lifted each child, twirling them, listening to laughter and calls for more.  I was touched by the simple pleasure and laughter.  I walked away with a warm heart as the children laughed and waved goodbye.  And sometimes India can be so warm, wonderful, loving, and accepting. 

The Jodhpur Fort is beautifully well preserved.  For Rs 250 we took a headset and did the self tour.  It is one of the few times a tour involved any real historical information.  Unfortunately, time was limited and we finished with just enough time to return to Sunrise, grab our bags, and race to the bus depot. 

Hospitability, honesty and an open heart! This is what you get in Sarvar Guest House! Definitely one of the best places I stayed in while in India. Extremely friendly family run a guest house with clean spacious rooms that are a good value (250 rupee for a double room with a bathroom). What i liked most about this guest house was the feeling of familiarity. They made me feel like a member of their family. Great place with a professional service!

Today we had an organised trip to the surrounding villages of Jodhpur to see a potter the weavers and the Bishnoi.  Our transport was open sided army jeeps. The trip out through Jodhpur was once again like any Indian city or town, full of colour and movement. The surrounding countryside was dusty with fields being worked by the local villagers in a very traditional way.  Our first stop was the potter, we were invited to sit around and watch him demonstrate his pottery skills. He then invited one of us to have a go so Melissa volunteered! It wasn’t as easy as it looked, first you had to get the pottery wheel going and this is done by rotating the wheel with your hand then getting a stick and locking it into the only hole on the wheel and spinning it really fast using the stick. Well, getting the stick in the hole while the wheel is moving is not an easy task as Melissa found out!  Once you get the wheel to a sufficient speed then you can throw on the clay and start your moulding! Melissa did OK; she came out with something that resembled a plate!  After the demonstration you were then invited to look around his creations which were also for sale.  There was some amazing stuff but I didn’t buy anything because I don’t think it would of made it back home in one piece!  Our next stop was the Bishnoi, a tribe of people that are the protector of animals and trees so they are strictly Vegan.  We went to the house of an old man who lived by himself, he had lost his son in an accident so his daughter-in-law, who lived in the village, would come over every day and look after him.  The old man demonstrated the use of a device that allowed him to smoke opium! We were not allowed to video or take pictures of the process as it was against tour company policy.  The contraption looking like balancing scales with a couple of skin bags either side that was used to filter the substance.  Opium smoking is part of everyday life to the Bishnoi and not considered an illegal drug.  After the demonstration we were given chai by the daughter-in-law who then showed us around the house.  It was all very open, simply furnished with no mod-cons like electricity or running water. The buildings were made of mud brick with carving of animals and trees.  It was a nice insight into how the Bishnoi live and probably much the same for other villages as well.  We said our goodbyes and moved on through the dusty countryside to our next stop, the weavers.  Here we got a demonstration of rug weaving by hand which all very fascinating.  They told us it can take anywhere from 10 days to 6 months to make a rug, depending on the size and pattern. Rugs were either woven from cotton or camel wool.  The village worked as a co-operative, local market sellers and shop owners would come every week to purchase rugs.  All sale proceeds would be distributed amongst the co-operative.  They showed us a book where famous people like Richard Gere and other famous names had bought rugs from them. After the demonstration it was time to get our rupees out because like all demonstrations they always end up with a sale!  Rugs were laid out and the temptations began!  I couldn’t resist, there was a rug that caught my eye, it would look great in my bedroom and it had a wonderful camel design on it so I bought it.  After we all spent up it was time to head back to Jodhpur for lunch so we went back to Pizza Hut again after which we packed our bags and was driven in private jeeps to a place called Nimaj Bagh. The jeep ride wasn’t particularly comfortable as I was squashed in the back with the tour guide and Kim. Nimaj Bagh was a small little town and here we stayed in a lovely whitewashed mansion run by a family.  We were welcomed by ladies who put red dots between our eyes and sang to us.  The hotel was lovely and Sandra and myself got an enormous room which we nicknamed the penthouse suite! The bathroom was bigger than my bedroom at home!  Before dinner our tour guide wanted to give us a walking tour of the town.  As with every Indian town it was alive with market and food stalls, comings and goings of people, women carrying loads on their heads, cows wondering the streets.  We walked down one narrow street and suddenly we could hear these kids and before we knew it there we were surrounded! It was like running of the bulls in Spain, kids were running from all directions and yelling with excitement! It was overwhelming. You tried to take pictures of them but they wouldn’t keep still and they were pushing and shoving each other as they jostled for best position in front of the camera!  I lost count the number of times I was asked my name and where I was from!  It was all too much in the end there must of been 200 kids! We walked fast and escaped down another street and after a while they stopped following us!  So after another 15 minutes or so wondering the town and watching the locals go about their daily business we headed back to the hotel where we enjoyed music from and IPOD, a home cooked meal and alchohol of which I had some Indian wine which wasn't too bad!

On our way from Jaisalmer to Agra, we spent the night in Jodhpur.  This is our last stop in Rajastan.  We climbed up to the fort and spent some time wandering around this amazing complex of the Maharajas of Rajastan.  Jodhpur is known as the "Blue City".  Look at the photos and you will see just why.....