Jan 14, blue Jodhpur, Mehrangarh Fort

Morning call to Muslim prayer wakes us up around six, followed by sounds of Hindi morning worship….followed by very loud crickets and a mooning cow. This was only seven in the morning ;)

At 9 everything was still closed for breakfast except the hotel restaurant. Not the breakfast we hoped for perhaps, because our minds were set on the Omelette Shop, but the prospect of walking to the fort uphill on an empty stomach made us settle for anything.

  Tempting spices lining the walls of a local shop. To tell real saffron from the fake one, take few drops of water and mix it in - real saffron is equally long and just colors the water without falling apart under your fingertip. 

Fresh clover plated for holy cows every morning 

Blue City on the way to the fort

 we're still scratching our heads over this one...

amazing carvings

Now, a moment of traveler’s honesty…

After finding ourselves in so many situations where we were either scammed or lied to, our trust in everyone who seems to be nice and helpful diminished, especially when those offering help or guidance seem to have personal gain strings attached. First couple of days we were both replying to every hello and namaste, now we’ve become two greeting snobs, responding only to those who seem genuine and lack interest in our money. Like all tourists, we draw attention regardless of how unattractive and messy we might be. To some extent it all seems to be a fare exchange of attention - we look at them and vice versa - but there’s always a breaking point when the attention you’re given somehow makes you uncomfortable. There were instances when little boys almost or actually fell off their bikes because they forgot to look at the road ahead or strange men put arms on my shoulder when posing for a photo. The assumption that I’m a WWW [white western woman] therefore less conservative often drives me nuts. The oddity of a light skin color calls for attention and the sooner you accept it, the quicker you’ll get used to it and learn that dismissing it is not signaling your lack of good manners. Also, it may seem impolite to ignore constant “hello” and “where from”, but in fact it’s a perfectly normal strategy of survival and a way to keep your sanity intact. Walking the streets here I often feel like I’m wearing a label on my forehead that says “I like when strange man hassle me”. After the first couple of days all the commotion becomes draining, like the fumes constantly weighting on your lungs. When that happens and it becomes hard to breathe for whatever reason, it’s a good idea to either seek refuge at your hotel rooftop or simply sit down at a café somewhere. Only then the tables turn, more or less, you get to be still for a moment and relax while your surroundings twirl around you.   

Sadly, we grew thicker skin in over a week.