After returning to Jaisalmer for a couple of hours, we got on a bus to Jodhpur for the night of Diwali. We ended up staying in a guest house recommended by the Jaisalmer hotel called “Hotel Heaven” that was run by a Jain family. Diwali is really a family holiday so it was great that we were actually with a nice Indian family instead of just alone in a hotel. They showed us their Puja and then we spent the night lighting firecrackers. For the next 2 days the city sounded like a warzone. They were all lighting these extremely loud firecrackers that hurt my ears so bad. I was covering them every time I saw one being lit, and eventually I just had to go inside. Between that and just all of the honking that goes on, I think everyone must have damaged hearing. This was about when my camera ran out of batteries, so no more photos, but trust me it’s a beautiful city. The city all painted blue and from the fort, there is a stunning view. The fort is the best maintained one that I’ve seen in India because it is privately owned by the maharaja and because it was actually being lived in until fairly recently. It’s kind of like a museum inside, with some beautiful collections of weapons, elephant seat things (what they ride in on elephants), and other artifacts. All of the other forts I’ve been in here were looted long ago so besides the structure, they are empty.  I would highly recommend a visit to Jodhpur, and a stay at Hotel Heaven.

Since the break, I’ve been working a lot (more on that soon). Next weekend were going to Pushkar (also in Rajasthan) for the yearly camel fair. Its supposed to be a really cool festival. People come from miles around across the desert to trade goods and livestock. Theres camel races, a moustache contest, and thousands of camels. Should be a really cool place to take photos.