A camel fair?

We got to Pushkar with one day left to see the camel fair. The guy from the hotel was supposed to pick us up at the us station, and so he did, in a motorbike. As four people can't go in one, apparently in India three may, I had to walk for a while in a very dusty road till he came back for me.

We had booked a tent at the rooftop where the three of us would sleep at least for two nights. It wasn't the most comfortable accommodation I've had so far, as the tent was kind of little for the three of us, and Dan and Charlotte managed to get most of the space. A couple of accident occurred, like me hitting Charlotte's nose with my elbow and Dan knocking his head to my face.

Apparently, besides the camel fair, a great pilgrimage was going on. People were coming from all parts of India to bath at Pushkar's lake. A holy lake that, according to the legend, was created after Brahma, the Lord of creation, left a lotus leaf there. Tons of Ghats and temples surround the lake in order for pilgrims bath at its waters and pray for their families, what's called Punja.

Priests try to get you into that, by giving you a flower which you have to deposit in the lake and then, follow his chantings and prayers for each member of your family, and for which he will want to charge you about 100 Rs. for each one of them. Obviously all religions are the same...

So between the camel fair and the pilgrimage, the place was really full. At points, you had to push your way through the streets without consideration whatsoever, as they didn't have it with you at all. The attitude of the priests harassing you all the time when going through the ghats and the attitude of village men when looking to girls and trying to touch them wasn't very pleasant. So this and the fact that my stomach wasn't in a very good shape caused me to miss the fair and the ceremonies going on at the ghats. Not that it bothered me too much I must say.

However, after everything had passed, the little city became very peaceful, though still too touristic, full of hotels and restaurants with western food, specially Israeli.

At the end, my impression of Pushkar wasn't too good and I was still looking forward to shill out at one place for a few days and sort things out for Christmas and New Years Eve at Goa. Something that will end up being a total adventure.