Jaisalmer is an incredible little city which rises up from the middle of the desert. Built around a brilliant, inhabited fort, the narrow, golden sandstone streets of Jaisalmer Fort are mirrored by the busier streets down below in the surrounding town.
Our first few days exploring the city were great fun as we wandered around the streets both in and out of the fort with our great friends from Goa, Lauren and Markus. The shops were all selling similar products to every other Indian shop, but being set in the amazing, carved sandstone of the desert gave them a beautiful aesthetic, and exploring them with Lauren and Markus meant we did not stop laughing the whole time!
Outside the fort were some incredible desert havelis which were stunning sandstone mansions built by extremely wealthy merchants who needed more space than the narrow streets in the fort could provide!
As well as wealthy merchants and camels, Jaisalmer is home to a very special doctor - Dr. Bhang. A wise old man of medicine, Dr. Bhang prescribed us with our first ever dose of Bhang lassi.
Our first days in Jaisalmer were very fun and we loved the city, enjoying our time with Lauren and Markus in the relative peace and quiet compared to other Rajasthani cities. Unfortunately it was interrupted when the camera broke beyond easy repair, meaning we had to get an overnight bus to the nearest Nikon repair shop all the way back in Jaipur! After two nights in Jaipur and with a good-as-new camera, we returned to Jaisalmer just in time to see Lauren and Markus again before they headed off.
Our last evening together was spent at the Gadsisar Lake on the outskirts of the city with a few beers and some speakers, sitting around the lake among the numerous temples and shrines as the sun came down. A really peaceful, funny evening it was probably the highlight of our time in Jaisalmer.
Our time in Jaisalmer was longer than first intended as a broken camera and illness delayed our leaving, and we ended up staying two weeks in the desert despite the city’s relatively small size. This gave us plenty of time to explore every corner of the historic city.
By the time we had recovered from illness and finished the camel safari (see next post) we were very ready to leave and explore somewhere new!
