After 3 weeks in India, one of our favorite things BY FAR was our adventure in the desert
— maybe top 3 travel experiences EVARRR! When we started our 4-month travel adventure in April 2016, we knew we wanted completely new experiences, and India was always on the list. We bought one way tickets and had no idea how long we’d stay. We landed in Delhi and worked our way down south. India is HUGE and each region is so unique that it would take multiple blog posts to properly do it justice, so I will just share one of our most memorable moments from the Rajasthan region — sleeping under the stars in the desert.
We took a (slightly scary) overnight train to Jaisalmer, The Golden City named for it's golden sand. We stayed one night in to explore the city and enjoyed cold sodas on rooftops. We met a lovely German couple who joined us as we toured the town. Loved the tiny alleys with the twists and turns into little shops and cafes. Jain temples, cows, stray dogs, and tapestries hanging from walls. There's even a bhang shop -- if you're into that sort of thing.
The next morning, we were picked up in a jeep after a tasty breakfast and arrived in a tiny village. The local kids swarmed us to say hello! They loved being in front of the camera.
After a bit of a rest, we were picked up for our sunset camel trek. Camel riding is much bumpier than riding a horse, so hold on tight, ya'll! We went through the sand dunes and were greeted by some musicians who intermixed Ben's name into their song. The kid taught Ben how to properly “screw in the lightbulb,” and they loaned us head gear for good measure.
Dancing while being serenaded
Then, we stopped to watch the sunset among the vast sand dunes. We haggled for some cold beers and masala lays potato chips. After the sky turned all sorts of colors, we rode back to the campsite and enjoyed a buffet dinner with the other tourists. I prefer North/South Indian food over Rajasthani food, but it was still tasty. They had a dancer and the musicians from the desert jammed out too.
We settled back into our hut for a much appreciated shower, bed, and fan. We had the option to sleep there or the desert. CHOOSE THE DESERT. After washing up and prepping for bed, we joined our camel taxi into the night.
While we trekked laying on a mattress being pulled by our camel, our ‘driver’ sang us a song in Hindi, and we sang Disney songs for him. When we sang "Bonjour" from Beauty in the Beast, he sang along with us ("Bonjour! Bonjour! Bonjour!"), even though we're pretty sure he understood just a few words of English.
About 20min in, we stopped hearing the sounds from the campsite, and things started to get completely quiet, everything was dark but at the same time lit up by the twinkling stars. We arrived at a metal bed frame where we got off and our camel guide started taking the mattress and bedding from our ‘taxi’ bed, setting up our bed on the frame. I was sorta in shock…I didn’t expect an actual bed!
After setting it up, the guide rode off (not before taking our offer for a piece of bhang cookie, of course). He went far enough where we had privacy but close enough so that we could shout for help, if needed. The weather was nice. Maybe 65 degrees with a slight breeze, but cozy under a warm down comforter. Before hopping into bed, I remember feeling the soft sand between my toes. I realized maybe they needed a bed frame to avoid snakes coming into the bed. Either way, I felt safe and blissful.
Ben and I talked through the night, mostly about how lucky we were to be there, staring at the most stars I’ve ever seen — so many in fact, that they felt like they touched the edge of the sand surrounding a completely clear sky. I saw my first falling star. At about 3am, Ben sneezed and from 50 ft away, our camel guide screams out “bless you!” :) When we woke up, the bed was perfectly positioned to gracefully wake us up to the sunrise at our feet. We stepped onto perfectly untouched cool sand, continued to be in awe of what we just experienced. All I know is the semi-scary train ride to Jaisalmer was well worth it. Thank you, India.
