Pushkar

A 7 hour drive from Delhi brought me to Pushkar in eastern Rajasthan. It is on the edge of a desert and is hot during the day and cools to 16 at night. It is built around a small holy lake which is totally surrounded by temples and their bathing ghats. Pilgrims come from all over India to bathe in the holy waters especially the Brahma Temple, apparently the only one in the world. The lake is peaceful and all of the temples reflect the sun! There is an old, relaxed but busy feel to Pushkar. Some rules: no shoes, no leather, no meat, no eggs, no alcohol...oddly many shops sell leather goods and you can still buy beer quietly from certain hotels! I am happy, there is one good coffee shop - Sunset cafe.

There is a familiarity to Pushkar...like Kathmandu, the same goods for sale, the same little shops, same dirty streets, motorbikes, people, many cows, birds, pigs roaming everywhere, and touts at every temple entrance to try to rip you off.  Perhaps due to the desert proximity, there are camels for hire, all for tourists of course. It is a small town and one day would be enough. Off to Jaipur shortly!