Once upon a time in Bikaner

Fortunately for us, some time was allotted in our busy schedule to be normal tourists. In that time, it became our mission to find a place to ride a camel. The hotel we are staying at has a partnership with a "camel safari" provider (a.k.a. three kids with small camels that need more training before they can pull carts through the road) to take us on camel rides through the desert. At 5:45 AM, we dragged ourselves out of bed and rushed to the edge of the desert, about 15km from where we were staying. There, we met our guides, hesitantly approached our sitting camels, and got on. We thought the worst was over when we didn't get kicked or spit on, but then the guides told the camels to stand up. When they said hold on they meant it! We all almost rolled forward onto the ground as the camels stood up from a kneeling pose. From then on it was smooth sailing, except for Josh’s camel which did not appreciate the early morning ride.

 

Then we set out through the desert, which was more green than usual because of the good monsoon this year, to see the sun rise from the top of a hill. From atop our camels, we surveyed the local wildlife: cows and the occasional goat. We got to the hill and dismounted the camels, which immediately flopped onto the ground, rolled around, and took a nap… It was too early for them too!

After a many pictures and trying to communicate with our guides through sand drawings, we headed back. On the way, we came across a group of kids who had caught a cobra. Don’t ask me how, but it now lives in a little basket as a pet… They took a little too much pleasure in holding it up and watching us cringe.

Having safely evaded the cobra, we headed back to the hotel to change and see Junagarh Fort, Bikaner’s old palace. We got a tour from the main guide, who was nice enough to give it in Hindi and in English. We happened to be placed with a group from a tribal area who had never seen Western tourists before. Needless to say, we caused a stir.

 

Afterwards, we went to see another Bollywood movie “Once upon a time in Mumbai” with our host, Dr. Pankaj. Though it was still in Hindi, we were able to understand more than the last movie we saw, especially because the plot line was similar to many American movies.

Afterwards, Dr. Pankaj surprised us with dinner at a renovated palace that is still owned by the king of Bikaner. Apparently, many old palaces have been made into the nicer hotels and restaurants in the area. The food was delicious and the grounds were beautiful. Though the day was eventful, the fun left us ready to dive in to another day in the hospital!