Jaisalmer - Exploring the Golden City of Rajasthan Day 2

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[{"address":"Thar Desert","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.18347772757635147,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":26.931137912846186,"longitude":71.24676035093229},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# **Camel Safari**"},{"type":"audio","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2F2023-04-16%2010-28-42%20(mp3cut.net).mp3?alt=media&token=51854cc8-ee87-4363-8903-5ab02f5297cc"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2FScreenshot%202023-04-16%20at%2010-01-39%20DSC01449-e1544566214848.jpg%20(JPEG%20Image%20750%20%C3%97%20500%20pixels)%20%E2%80%94%20Scaled%20(87%25).png?alt=media&token=1ec664ac-43d9-4561-9293-212172e6a01c"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2FScreenshot%202023-04-16%20at%2010-03-05%20DSC01453-1-e1544579379413.jpg%20(JPEG%20Image%20750%20%C3%97%20500%20pixels)%20%E2%80%94%20Scaled%20(87%25).png?alt=media&token=85c9d8ad-ea96-4d78-b31f-0633a6836717"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2FScreenshot%202023-04-16%20at%2010-03-54%20DSC01459-e1544581196918.jpg%20(JPEG%20Image%20750%20%C3%97%20500%20pixels).png?alt=media&token=a85faf58-caad-429b-86ce-e65954cf95f9"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2FScreenshot%202023-04-16%20at%2010-03-50%20DSC01457-e1544566325357.jpg%20(JPEG%20Image%20750%20%C3%97%20500%20pixels).png?alt=media&token=2a2ff31c-c142-43de-91f0-0dbe806aca74"},{"type":"text","content":"The next morning, we were supposed to continue on, just the two of us and our guide for a second night in the desert."},{"type":"text","content":"I was feeling so much better by breakfast, that we decided to trek on for our second night. It would just be the two of us alone in the desert this time after all, so I didn't want to give up such a cool opportunity!"},{"type":"text","content":"The morning light was bright and strong. We parted ways from the group and trekked further into the desert with our guide."}]},{"address":"WFV8+73 Delasar","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.11463516312559315,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":26.94315812908263,"longitude":71.4652155860877},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# **\"School pen\"**"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2FScreenshot%202023-04-16%20at%2010-07-45%20DSC01461-e1544566876217.jpg%20(JPEG%20Image%20750%20%C3%97%20500%20pixels).png?alt=media&token=ef4b5b86-989e-4609-819a-97f637897d53"},{"type":"audio","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2F2023-04-16%2010-33-29%20(mp3cut.net).mp3?alt=media&token=1eb4762c-3a49-4a72-94c0-fb7e53ade53a"},{"type":"text","content":"After 1.5 hours, we were approaching a small village, I was so excited to get off my camel. Little did I know I wouldn't get back on it! Within seconds, I started to get dizzy."},{"type":"text","content":"I knew **I was about to pass out**, so I ran to the only shade I could see, where two goats were lying in a scattered layer of old goat poop."},{"type":"text","content":"I hurriedly shoo them away and lie on the ground, tossing my legs up in the air for Paul to catch (to prevent me from passing out)."},{"type":"text","content":"Two small girls from the village come over to speak to me, and the whole time I was on the ground (like 15 minutes) they kept trying to ask me something, but I couldn't understand so I assumed they were asking if I was okay."},{"type":"text","content":"But silly me. I realized, finally, after they kept pointing at my scarf, sunglasses, and camera, that they were actually saying \"school pen.\" They were **asking for** **money to buy a school pen!**"},{"type":"text","content":"Sensation comes back to my hands and arms (because they went numb and tingly) and I get up from the dirt. The camels are drinking from a basin and I just want to jump in."},{"type":"text","content":"Forfeiting our second night in the desert meant not only losing out on the opportunity but out on the deposit, too. Not to mention, we had to pay an extra fee for an \"emergency vehicle\" to come pick us up-two hours deep into the desert."},{"type":"text","content":"> I just spent nearly 3 weeks in India and my body chooses my first night out in the desert to get deathly ill? I have a knack for these kinds of situations, it seems. But we laughed about it while we waited. We knew the story this would turn into one day. And here I am, telling it."},{"type":"text","content":"The ride back was humbling. We passed desert towns, shacks bearing the brunt of the desert heat if you will, with camels and trash sprinkled about. My privilege was on display that day. I get sick and I get an emergency vehicle. If they get sick, the children, the elderly? Well, I doubt an \"emergency vehicle\" comes for them."}]},{"address":"Real Desert Man Camel Safari Jaisalmer","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.1816337303142776,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":26.910542058060223,"longitude":70.91529125000002},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# **Back in Jaisalmer**"},{"type":"audio","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2F2023-04-16%2010-51-55%20(mp3cut.net).mp3?alt=media&token=d6c280ec-3f51-4867-bed1-ce5f4a56dfd4"},{"type":"text","content":"Once back in Jaisalmer at the Real Desert Man Safari hostel, I took a very long nap. Since we had to forfeit our night out in the desert, the staff offered us a room for the night for free and wished me well. After a few hours, I was able to explore the golden city again."},{"type":"text","content":"### **SIDE STORY: STRUGGLE & SUCCESS**"},{"type":"text","content":"After my nap, we head back into the Jaisalmer Fort to find dinner, despite my disinterest in food. Instead, **we stumble upon a local shop** that has a big “as seen in Lonely Planet\" banner strung above its entrance."},{"type":"text","content":"The girl, whose name I cannot remember now, greets us warmly and welcomes us inside. At the time we were reluctant because we really weren't in the mood for haggling."},{"type":"text","content":"### **The mysterious couple**"},{"type":"text","content":"But to our surprise, there wasn't any haggling or negotiating, only conversation and story-sharing. She was from **a different caste** and moved to Jaisalmer with her husband after falling in love on the train.\nHis family does not accept her very well, as she is from a \"lower\" social ranking. **She told us her story**, of her life and her struggle to integrate into Jaisalmer which has a rich diversity of both Muslims and Hindus. People would throw cow shit and rotten vegetables at her shop and call her nasty names because they believed a woman shouldn't be at the forefront of the store.\nAs for the husband, he is the one who started up his store after wanting to help out the widowed women living in the desert outside of Jaisalmer. Together they sell handicrafts; **pillowcases, trinkets, bags**, and especially quilts, that are **handstitched by the widowed women** and adorned with recycled jewels, beads, and sequins often from old wedding dresses."},{"type":"text","content":"### WAS IT A SCAM??"},{"type":"text","content":"The story is all very telling and **we stayed for 2-3 hours** just talking to the lady and her husband, who came by later on. He explained that I was sick because of the bottle of water that the camel safari gave out to us, mentioning that it was recycled water and they re-use the bottles. He also went with Paul to the local store to get me a bag of fresh curd/milk - promising that if I drank this I would feel instantly better. And they were right, I did.\nThat night we left feeling overwhelmed by their story of struggle and success. **We gave them the benefit of the doubt** that it wasn't just one huge scam or sob story - as we often heard when shopping in India."},{"type":"text","content":"We decide to go back the next day for lunch, just to swing by and say hello. The husband had mentioned owning a restaurant nearby, so in order to support them, we decided to go there to eat. He even walked us there and showed us a table on the rooftop overlooking the golden Jain temples in Jaisalmer. He ushered the waiter to come to take our order."}]},{"address":"desert haveli roof top restaurant","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.1816337303142776,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":26.912104408060742,"longitude":70.91251594999997},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# **Rooftop Restaurant**"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FUpybcWpozj21jT4FH87a%2FScreenshot%202023-04-16%20at%2011-00-28%20heritage-house-rooftop.jpg%20(JPEG%20Image%20550%20%C3%97%20367%20pixels).png?alt=media&token=a352f7a5-a7dc-4216-9c06-b6d4e89a9301"},{"type":"text","content":"ROOFTOP RESTAURANT WITH A VIEW"},{"type":"text","content":"Without a plan, we roam the streets to find food. We come across an adorable rooftop restaurant with cushions and carpet to sit on. The view is unhampered and **the edges of the fort are dimly lit from the warm, golden lights below.**"},{"type":"text","content":"Paul orders a delicious curry that turns my nose up. We chat about our travels in India and how they are coming to a close, as I slowly, and carefully, eat spoon-fulls of plain rice."}]}]