camel power in Jaisalmer

Made it out to the fort town of Jaisalmer, the furthest point west that i'll be travelling in India. It's about 150 km from Pakistan. Out here, you hear a lot of fighter jets flying by since we're close to the Pakistani border, and relations between the two countries hasn't been exactly cordial.
part of the fort that dominates the town of Jaisalmer
incredible sandstone detailing on the exterior of a Jain Temple
hanging out in Jaisalmer
delicate and intricate detailing of a Haveli which are large, sandstone carved homes of the higher castes in Rajasthan, built back during the Mughal period
Ended up going on a camel safari with my new Barcelona friends that I met on the overnight train ride from Jodhpur. In exchange for being able to join them on a desert camel safari, I had to act as their bodyguard from overzealous tour guides and also mention them in this blog. It's funny, the guides paid all their attention to the girls, catering on them, is everything ok? do you want more food? will you marry me? etc., while the guides treated me like one of the camels. The trade off was that I got to practice speaking Spanish again, and the Barcelona girls taught me the Futbol Club Barcelona song.
Here they are starting to sing the song to an obviously interested local onlooker.
my camel 'Cooli' upfront at our first introduction
Riding a camel is a bit like riding a horse only you're up higher, the camel has more of a rolling gait and is not as fast. But it gives you that same familiar pain in the groin and buttocks area at the end of the day.
photos of a village we cameled to
a grandmother in a local village. You could almost read the history of her life from her wrinkles.
Sleeping in the desert sand, under the stars and a full moon has a certain nostalgic charm to it. This is true except when one of the clients you are bodyguarding steals all the blankets leaving you to freeze in the cold desert night.
Here's a group photo the morning after of Cecile, Adaia, Natalia, and me. All smiles on the outside, but I'm cold and bitter on the inside.
Here's Tirra, from a desert village nearby. We're standing in front of the 'om' sign I made in the sand. People thought we were brothers because we had on similar outfits. Tirra obviously has good fashion sense.
happy trails
You know what's coming, you know how it's going to end, yet there's nothing you can do to stop it......Dónde está Ché Pelotas?