Camel Fair-Louise and Stuart's Amazing India Travels

Namaste,The Jaisalmer Camel Fair held once a year is a spectacle beyond belief.Anyway we arrived in Jaisalmer and found a very nice hotel. The manager and all he boys are very friendly, and that makes a big difference. The Desert Festival was magnificent! It was held in three different locations......a nearby giant "stadium"......a dessert-like park....and out in the sand dunes. The camel judging contest was a special treat because to our surprise, our good friend from Pushkar was entered. Camel and rider are completely covered in colorful trappings and mirrored cloth. Our friend has won the Pushkar fair for the past four years, but he has until this year only succeeded in capturing second place in the Jaisalmer Festival. This year He Won! He was overjoyed and so glad to see that we were there to witness his victory. There was a tug of war between the Indian women and the foreign traveler women...and the foreigners won. Camel Polo was a blast. It was exciting and funny all at the same time. Everyone was cheering and hopping around. There were also cricket games, and strange Indian games. My favorite was the camel tattooing. Not tattoo as you might think....but camel maneuvers. The boarder guard who patrol the Pakistan/ Jaisalmer Camel Fair boarder (which is only about 60 miles away, are expert riders. Their camels are the tallest and the best, and you should see the acrobatics they perform on camel back.....sort of like the Arabian Horse rider antics. They came marching into the fairgrounds two by two, all decked out....with the military band in full dress riding in on camels behind them....beating drums and playing brass instruments. Very regal...all precision marching. The whole thing looked like the camel version of the Radio City Music Hall Rockets.Featured on The Travel Channel's 'What's your Trip' Episode 7 broadcast January 10-2009.