Pushkar Camel Fair: It seems like I have been here for ever. It's been hard to get to Internet places. However, let me tell you about Pushkar. It is a small town in the state of Rajasthan which is in the north west of India. Very arid and desert like. The Camel Fair happens once a year in November, the six days leading up to the full moon. This is a massive congregation of camels, cattle, livestock traders, pilgrims, tourists, film makers, the weird and strange. We stayed in a tent just 1 Km outside the town as there is no room in the inn. Truly the place swells from 20,000 to 250,000. All the tribes in the area come here to buy and sell camels, plus other animals. They camp in the desert. There is a midway with rides and street hawkers. The traffic is madness with camel carts, motor scooters, cars, buses with people crammed in so tight you can't get a piece of straw between them and then there are about 50 on top of the bus. It reminds me of a cross between the CNE and the Royal Winter Fair. It is hot during the day. 35 degrees celcius. But, a dry heat (ha!). At night it is very cold. Staying in a tent is challenging for some, but having done enough camping in my life it's okay by me. Besides, I have a flush toilet in it (although it disposes of its contents in an open hole dug in the sand at the back of my tent) and a coolie brings hot water in a bucket at 6:00 a.m. I jump out of bed and plunge my hands in the water to warm up.

The town of Pushkar surrounds a "lake". Something I would call a big pond. Because it is a very holy site, the pilgrims come to bath in it in the morning and I got up very early to walk into town and visit the ghats (steps down to water) and watch. No photography is allowed. Also, Pushkar is completely vegetarian and no alcohol. In spite of this the town knows how to party and the last night it did so all night long and into the moring. I could hear the roar of the people and traffic from my bed in the tent which is 1 Km away. The walk about town gives way to the weird as every stange and deformed person from anywhere shows up to display themself on the street and draw a crowd. Cows with legs growing out of their necks, men with whiskers they have grown 6 feet long, magicians, holy men who will bless you (for a price), deformed people who beg along the side of the narrow streets and so many pilgrims making their way to the many shrines. It is like something out of a Fellini film.

As of today I am in a city called Udaipur which is further west and it seems to be quite nice. Tomorrow we'll go out to explore it.