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| The view from our terrace |
We booked a taxi to take us from Jaipur on what should have been an easy three-hour journey but it just happened to be the last day of Pushkar's annual camel fair. When we realised our dates overlapped with the fair we didn't think much of it, hoping to cruise in a few hours before the end, see a couple of camels and get some Gram-able pictures. We should have done more research...
As we got closer to the small town the traffic got worse and worse until we were at a total standstill. Our car didn't move for two hours while a constant stream of Rajisthani villagers, women wearing traditional saris and nose rings, men with machetes, farmers leading camels or horses and hawkers selling sugar cane surged past us. We peered out of the windows as our driver Imran told us that around 200,000 people come to this famous event every year. We'd got it wrong. This wasn't just a fair, it was camel Glastonbury.
Tension started to build in the car as Jack, Imran and I sat in silence, unable to move with so many people blocking us in and banging on the doors. A young woman draped in glittering red saw me in the back, screamed and grabbed her friends, who flattened their noses on the windows and shouted "hello! hello!" It was just meant to be friendly but made me feel like Free Willy when he's in the aquarium.
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| Pushkar streets once the camel fair was over |
Half an hour of pushing, shoving, dipping and diving later we fell through the door of our beautiful (if slightly crumbling) guesthouse and Meera welcomed us with a big smile and sweet chai tea. She showed us to our clean, cosy room with its own little terrace and the view took my breath away. We could see the sacred lake, encircled by temples and bustling bathing ghats which were alive with colour, voices, gongs, chanting and cows. Mountains on the horizon turned the sky a dusty blue and birds swooped in every direction. I fell in love with Pushkar instantly.
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| FaceTiming home |
We also had some of the best food in Pushkar. At Honey & Spice cafe (my favourite cafe in all of India) I tucked in to homemade granola with toasted grains, nuts and figs served with yogurt, banana, papaya and pomegranate... pure breakfast heaven, especially with a cup of spicy, fresh lemongrass tea.
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| The best breakfast at my favourite cafe, Honey & Spice |
At chill-out spot Nirvana cafe I had a cup of chai so good that it set the standard for all other chai teas. Sweet, milky and fragrantly spiced with cardamom, cloves and black peppercorns. After not much convincing we tackled Hello To The Queen, a huge, mysteriously-named dessert made with bananas, crushed cookies, ice cream and a drowning of chocolate sauce – like a next-level banoffee pie.
We had four nights to soak up the magical atmosphere of Pushkar and I think that was the perfect amount of time. The journey in might have been really overwhelming but I forgot about it almost instantly and Pushkar still remains one of my favourite places in India.
Stay: Bharatpur Palace, £14 a night, we had room no.1
Eat: Honey and Spice cafe, Raaju Garden Roof Terrace and Nirvana Cafe
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| Watching the floating candles at sunset |
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