Jaisalmer: A Desert Mirage

From the moment I set my two-week travel itinerary with India Someday, I was most excited to visit the desert in Jaisalmer.  I’d heard other adventurers mention a camping trip to the Thar Desert, and I couldn’t wait to experience it for myself. 

When I arrived in Jaisalmer (after a freezing cold 14-hour overnight bus from Jaipur), I went straight to Mystic Jaisalmer Hotel and repacked my bag for a journey to the desert. 

Coldest night of my life!

Jaisalmer from the roof of Mystic Jaisalmer

I was lucky enough to be joined by a lovely family from New Zealand on the desert safari.  They were just like my family growing up -- Mom, Dad, two sisters, one brother -- except they all got along so well!  I couldn’t have asked for a more delightful group of people to spend the next 24 hours with.

Our first stop on the drive out into the Thar Desert was a small Hindu Gypsy village.  A local family invited us into their home and showed us around the village.  

Hindu Gypsy Village
Thar Desert

The daughters brought out their henna ink and started painting the hands of the Kiwi sisters.  When they finished, one of the Hindu girls turned to offer me some henna, but then stopped, grabbed my hand, and said it looked like my skin was already covered in henna. 

*Le sigh*

I rarely go more than three days in Asia without educating someone about freckles.

The next leg of the journey was not in the van, but on camels!  The Kiwis and I climbed up on the humps of our trusty steeds and held on for dear life.  Just so you know, camels do NOT make for a smooth ride!  

Mattais, my ride through the desert

Bumpy ride

My camel, Mattais, was not very fond of me.  He kept making a sound I can only describe as the dirty belch of an old drunk man.  

As we bumped and humped through the desert, we caught sight of herds of goats, cows, and sheep, as well as the tiniest little deer I’ve ever seen.  The landscape was breathtaking, with rising and falling sand dunes spotted with craggy trees and brush.  I’d never been to a proper desert before, and I couldn’t open my eyes wide enough to take it all in.

Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

We arrived at camp just in time to climb atop a sand dune and watch the sunset in the distance.  Life is good!

Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Sunset
Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Sunset
Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Come on!!!  What more could you want?

As the darkness rolled in, our guides started the fire and cooked us dinner.  We bundled up under blankets and sang songs around the campfire.  I could have done with a few beers, but I guess you can’t have it all!

It was so incredibly dark in the desert.  The stars were out in all their glory, and we slept on mats right out in the open, no tents.  The air was dry and cold, and I didn’t want to close my eyes for fear of missing out on one more second of the beautiful desert sky.  So magical.

In the morning, we woke up with the sun and climbed back up the dune, faced the opposite direction, and watched the sunrise.  The tin cup of masala chai was the perfect pairing to the wonderful view.

Sunrise over the dunes
Thar Desert
Rajasthan, India

Our campsite

After breakfast, we loaded up the camels and headed back towards civilization.  

Packing up

Sittin.... waitin...

Camel Convoy

Mattais

Back in Jaisalmer, I said goodbye to my Kiwi family and set off to explore the Jaisalmer Fort.  Jaisalmer is known as the Golden City because of the straw-colored sandstone fort rising out of the desert.  It’s an impressive sight!

Jaisalmer Fort

Inside the fort, I felt like I had stepped back in time to a Medieval castle village.  The fort was buzzing with commerce and daily life.  The other forts I had visited in India were empty, more like museums.  But Jaisalmer is a living fort, and it made for such a fantastic afternoon of wandering around honeycomb streets and alleys, visiting havelis, sipping chai on the rooftops, and watching life go by from the steps of Jain temples.

Entering Jaisalmer Fort

Jaisalmer Fort

Haveli
Jaisalmer Fort

Haveli
Jaisalmer Fort

Haveli view
Jaisalmer Fort

Jaisalmer Fort

Jaisalmer Fort

Jaisalmer Fort

Rooftops
Jaisalmer Fort

The Golden City sprawling below Jaisalmer Fort

Jaisalmer is quite a distance out of the way from the rest of the usual Rajasthan tourist stops, but I’m so happy I made the journey.  It was one of my favorite cities and a place I’ll never forget!

El Nido, Palawan

During the Tet holiday in January, I traveled with my friend Dave to the Philippines.  I’d been once before, but this trip was to El Nido, Palawan, known for its natural beauty and cluster of islands.

Inspired by this magnificence, and the current English unit at school about non-rhyming poetry, I’ve decided to tell the tales of my adventure in El Nido, Palawan, in acrostic form. 

So, here’s to you, El Nido!

E: Experience

When people ask me where is the most beautiful place I’ve been, it’s difficult to choose just one.  But I think if I really had to choose, I would say the Philippines, and feel confident in my answer.  Of course, there are plenty of places I haven’t been, and plenty of places in the Philippines, but the parts that I’ve seen...there is no comparison!

The people are friendly, the food is delicious, the views are beyond words.  It just feels good to be there.

So if I can give you a bit of unsolicited advice: Go EXPERIENCE the Philippines!!

Our first glimpse of Palawan from the plane

L: Landscapes

I mentioned the views are beyond words, and really, it’s true.  I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.  The first beach we visited was in El Nido town.  Not a great beach for sunbathing, but clean nonetheless.  The whole strip is lined with hotels and restaurants, but it was surprisingly quiet when we were there.

The bay at El Nido

El Nido

One afternoon, we rented a motorbike and drove out through the country to a beach called Nacpan.  About halfway there, the paved road ran out, and we rode the rest of the way down gravel roads full of potholes and across tiny bridges made of rotting logs.  But we got to see this!!

Rural Palawan

Country road, DON'T take me home!

Nacpan Beach
Paradise??

After eating some possibly dodgy seafood, Dave and I both got food poisoning.  It was a bonding experience.  There is no way to un-hear someone puking their guts out through the thin bathroom wall.

To recover from our nastiness, we spent an afternoon lounging on a nearby beach called Las Cabanas.  I mostly laid in the shade, sipping a coconut to replenish my electrolytes.  But if you’re going to “waste” a day in paradise, this ain’t a bad way to do it.

Las Cabanas Beach

N: Natural

Our hotel, Island Front Cottages, made it very clear when we booked that electricity is a privilege, not a right, on Palawan. The power only operated for certain hours of the day.  Most of the businesses ran generators during the outage hours, though.  We had to time our showers to allow for the hot water heater, or pay an icy price.

Our hotel beach at low tide

No power lines

On our last day on the island, it rained.  It rained all day.  All day.  And because most people had traveled to El Nido to go scuba diving, island hopping, and sunbathing, the entire tourist population was trapped in the restaurants and bars along the one little road through town.  We, of course, found friends in a bar to spend the time with, drinking and playing cards.  Ahhh, the simple life.

El Nido town

If I lived here, I'd see this every day...

I: Island hopping

El Nido is part of the Bacuit Archipelago, which consists of 45 islands scattered around the South China Sea.  This makes for an excellent day of island hopping on a banca boat.  Dave an I packed our sunscreen and booked ourselves some fun in the sun with Art Cafe’s famous Tour C.  

The tour took us to such mystical places as Hidden Beach, Secret Beach, Matinloc Shrine, and Helicopter Island.  The scenery cannot be rivaled, and again I think I should just let the pictures speak for themselves.

Hidden Beach

Dave swims through the tunnel to reach Secret Beach

Matinloc Shrine

Matinloc Island
Look at that clear water!!

Lunch break

Island hoppers

On the tour, we got to snorkel at several locations, and the water was so clear and full of life, it put an other snorkeling I’ve done to shame.  I even saw an octopus!!

OoooOooo, a collage!

D: Diving

When I learned to SCUBA dive in Thailand back in October, I thought diving was the most amazing thing ever invented.   Little did I know it could get BETTER! Because El Nido is so well-preserved, the diving is beautiful.  We were lucky and had good weather conditions for excellent visibility and plenty of sea life.  

I don’t have an underwater camera, and Dave’s isn’t safe to use at diving depths, so I don’t have any pictures of diving.  But let me just say this: we went on nine dives over the course of the week, and never once were we disappointed in what we saw.  I saw tons of clown fish in sea anemones, trumpet fish, giant clams, sea cucumbers, and countless jellyfish.  I swam through a school of yellow snapper.  And I watched a sea turtle eating coral.  I mean, come on!!

I'm not as terrified as I look

O: OMG when can I go back??

The one bad thing about a spectacular vacation is that it only makes you want to go back.  I don’t see how the pristine beaches and sensational diving could get old any time soon.  But maybe I should branch out and see other places?  Get another stamp in the ol’ passport?  Try some new cuisine?  

Lucky for me, my job has good holidays.  Sipadan, anyone?

Corong Corong sunset

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