‘Kesariyaa balam, aao ni, padhaaro mahare des….’ with this song resonating in the air, dli-jsm express pulled a halt in the golden city of Jaisalmer. Our second destination is a total contrast to the cool snow capped valley of Kashmir, as we stepped into the heart of the Thar Desert. While we drove down to ‘the circuit house’ my father regaled me about Jaisalmer that the length of its’ international boarder is 471 km, it is the largest district in the state of Rajasthan and third largest in the country but ironically it’s scarcely populated, and on our drive down we witnessed vast expanse of land that lay dry and barren. If Jaipur is called the pink city, Jaisalmer is rightly called the golden city as every building; every myriad structure is made of sandstone. Sand and sand everywhere, so is there anything worth a visual treat?
After breakfast we all were geared to stride and discover this city of sandstone. Our guide Sumer Singh Sodda, introduced us to the majestic Fort of Jaislamer. Apart from its architecture, the outstanding observation is that it’s the only living fort, i.e. people still dwell in it. From houses, Raj Mahal, Jain temple, Laxminath temple, shops, restaurants, tourists and the narrow lanes in the fort are jammed with cows too! Along side the many havelis built by wealthy merchants with intricate and fine work done on it’s sandstone walls, a thing that caught my attention was a painting of lord ganesha on the wall of a house, with a graffiti reading, ‘Shikha weds Rahul’. On seeing the question mark on my face our guide answered, people here don’t print and send out wedding invitations but it is in this manner that near and dear are invited for the wedding. Nodding at this new known candour, my eyes fell on the ring dazzling on Mr. Sodda’s finger, and on raising my brow with mischief, he coyly answered that he was engaged. His aunt and uncle chose the bride and he hasn’t seen her yet, and if he dares to set a glance on her before marriage, he will be discarded as ‘characterless’ and the engagement will be called off. Oops! My best wishes with Mr. Sodda and this also made me peek into the culture of Jaisalmer. The society strongly abides by the rules of caste and creed. The men in this part of the country are known for their colorful pagdis. And the less known fact is that each community is defined by the pagdi they wear. The Bishnoi community wears white, Raika community Red bright turban, Langa Kalbeliya in checked color etc. and, mind you, the well jagged moustache they flaunt is their pride and a matter of colossal dignity. Women are seen in their colorful traditional attire with purdah system still prevalent and in not such a good news for feminists, it is a patriarchal society!
6 Km off the Jaisalmer city on Ramgarh Road is a worth viewing destination, the ‘Bada Bagh’. Apart from the govardhan stambh and a dam, another interesting testament of the princely rule is the cenotaph. These were constructed by the various Bhatti rulers. On the death of a king as a testimonial to his life, a cenotaph has been erected for each ruler, such that he lives on even after his death. Aah! Now you wish to be part of royalty?
Sam Sand Dunes, 42 away km from Jaisalmer, is the most popular excursion to see the total sandy bush-less desert. And how can we end our voyage without a tryst with the Thar? Unlike other places, to reach the Thar you cannot hurtle in a technologically driven vehicle but have to mount the traditional one, ship of the dessert, the Camel. For a flash of a second I forgot the desserts as I was glued to the excitement and joy engulfing my parents whilst they enjoyed their camel ride! The camel is undeniably a majestic creature. The most striking feature about it is the way it walks with its head held high, and believe me, our fashion models can learn a lesson or two perceiving the camel’s move.
The desserts are mysterious and on a moonlit night, with folk music playing distantly, the Thar for sure is not dry, barren or just sand but can undoubtedly be symbolized as a metaphor for beauty!
With the kathputlis or kalbeliyas dancing to the melodies of morchang, algoza, or ektara, the folklores have magnificent tales to tell about the valiant kings and kingdoms.
As they say in Rome do as the Romans do, similarly in Jaisalmer rather than hunting down for pizzas or shahi paneer, we treated our appetite with the Jaisalmeri cuisine of kher sangri, lal maans and dal baati. Though there are many restaurants catering the needs of tourists by taking special care in savoring the amount of oil, ghee or even spice. Many of them are located such, that apart from restaurant’s food treating our taste buds they also delight us in a visual treat of the fort’s panoramic view alongside with live Rajasthani folk music on most evenings.
And now comes the time to wind up as 3 days at Jaisalmer just whiffed past, but this golden city has for sure left memories etched in our minds. So, with the New Years’ eve around the corner have I prodded you to a worthwhile destination? Do try and bid adieu to discotheques or dance parties and embrace the New Year in the serenity of the Thar. So now as our train shuttles to leave the sandy tracks of Jaisalmer, I pen off saying, ‘Khama ghani!’
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