Led by the nose

Camel head
Originally uploaded by Amberly & David.

Not me, the camel! We returned yesterday from a lovely sojourn in the Thar desert on camel-back. After the constant noise and bustle of inhabited India, the desert was blissfully quiet. We trekked around in the morning, then had a nice lunch and "hot-time" break under a surprisingly shady tree. The guides whipped up an absolutely killer curry and chapatti (from scratch, mind you) while the camels, unsaddled, roamed around with a small length of rope around their front legs for impeding their running away.

Another couple of hours led us through a watering-hole village and finally to a lovely set of dunes where we camped. After a sumptuous dinner, the guides sang camel songs around the campfire. The stars were absolutely amazing.

Jaisalmer was a great little place. The fort is absolutely amazing (more photos to come, but quite a few photos uploaded) - all made of sandstone through and through. I spent the first 24 hours laid up in bed with 'Delhi belly', but nothing to be concerned with. We're in Jodhpur today, seeing the last of our Moghul forts here, and then off to Pushkar for some R&R. I hope to write more from there.