We had an uneventful 6 hour journey from Udaipur through to the Hindu-pilgrimage town of Pushkar (population 14,789); well, we did see rather a gory accident where a truck had dessicated a small car and flipped of the highway to land on its side about 30 feet below by the side of the road.
While driving along, I often look around me at the impassive faces of my fellow travellers and wonder what thoughts and feelings are crowing their minds; also chuckle at the facial contortions of those "snoozing". We are certainly not an attractive specimen when in repose: when you lie in your truck seat head flung back against the back of the seat, mouth wide open - and snoring!!!
We arrived in Pushkar around 1:00 p.m. and while waiting for something to eat I sat in the hotel garden sipping on a fresh lime juice and soda in the 40C temperature taking a quiet, solitary moment to reflect on all the amazing things we have seen so far. The legend regarding the founding of Pushkar is that Brahma dropped a lotus flower on the earth and Pushkar rose to the surface. The town is built around a small lake, along the edge of which are 52 holy bathing pools or "ghats". You can be blessed by the side of the water by a real or maybe not so real priest, for a few baksheesh, but somehow this didn't really appeal to us! There are many temples (most of them fairly new) mixed in with the tourist-cheap shopping area. We went into the Brahma temple with our little collection of rose petals and tried to follow the habits of those who had made the pilgrimmage there for holy purposes. It was very hard to find a "spiritual" element amidst all of the tourist-hype and constant barrage for money, although I asume at some level it is there. The main narrow street through town is lined with trashy tourist shops and full of pilgrims, tourists, local, cows and scooters. Despite the dirt and trashiness, it was a neat little town and we enjoyed a cool drink and later dinner on 2 of the lake-view roof top restaurants. The saddest part is the lake, which is very dry and which was being excavated to make it deeper. Not a pretty site! Water is a real problem in this north-western part of India and some of the towns haven't seen rain-falls for years.
It is the extremes in India that play with your mind. You no sooner conclude that generally all Indians are dishonest and only out for a buck, then along comes someone who shows a great amount of kindness. It's hard, but you have to adopt a neutral approach and let each person you meet convince you one way or the other by his/her own behaviour.
I haven't yet discovered the mystical, the magical, or the "romantic" side of India that you hear people talk about. The sites we have seen, although impressive and interesting and each containing their own special meaning, do not reflect the "magic" or the "romantic" element that you see in so any pictures. Life is hard here, the people are hard, its a struggle for survival for the majority in a land that constantly fights for the natural elements such as water, and other comforts of life.
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