Greetings from Pushkar!
The ride here was supposed to be 5 hours, but it ended up taking way longer. Honestly, I didn't mind the bus ride. It gave me a chance to spend more time with my friends. Usually, we split up and explore in small groups so we don't draw attention to ourselves. The hotel here is the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in (which means a lot because I've stayed at a lot of resorts). The sounds of birds chirping and water droplets is so soothing. As if the hotel isn't nice enough, there are fans and air conditioning. The hotel also has free wifi, which excited most of the group. I was mostly exited to FaceTime my little brother, Rohan. Ronu, if you're reading this, I miss you so much! Half of the group went to a cooking class last night; I chose to stay in and relax. Tonight, I will be learning to cook samosas and kheer. My mom would be proud. India is training me to be a good Indian wife!
This morning, we met at 9:00 and went to a temple where Brahma is worshipped. This is one of the few temples that praise this god. Today is a full moon, so it is a very auspicious day for the locals. Many people from neighboring towns traveled to Pushkar to pray to Lord Brahma. The temple was small, simple, and lightly decorated. However, seeing how much joy the prayers brought to people was so precious. I also visited three other temples here with Walker, Josie, Karina, Leela, and Josh. We walked around the entire lake that Pushkar is centered around and visited two temples that praised Lord Shiva, and one Sikh gurudwar. All of them were beautiful in their own ways. I particularly enjoyed the gurudwar because of its exterior architecture. It was white marble with lots of gold details; the dome structures added to appeal. Pushkar has 550 temples, and of the 4 that I visited, I loved them all. I hope to come back here some day.
Throughout the day, I was confronted with similar situations with beggars. Once again, my conscience didn't allow me to walk away without donating some money. I've always wanted to see a snake charmer, so when I saw a man with a snake, I was so excited. He wouldn't do anything until we paid him, so all of us gave him 5-10 rupees. However, when he noticed I was Indian (yes, he targeted me as the Indian this time), he said that it was my moral duty as a Hindu to give him at least 100 rupees on this auspicious day. I kept refusing, because I had already given him 15 rupees. Everyone grew impatient to see the snake, so I decided that I would give a little bit more. I only have 100 rupee notes, so Josh gave me 10 rupees to give to him. The man still refused and questioned my faith because I wouldn't give him money, so I ended up giving him 100 rupees. And guess what happened after that!!! Nothing. He took his snake and left. Basically, I paid him 125 rupees to stare at a snake do nothing. I should probably stop being so nice to the locals now. I was happy that people here recognized me as Indian, though!
Tomorrow at 4:45 am, I am riding a camel to the desert to see the sunrise. I can't wait! I bet the view will be breathtaking. Until then, I love and miss everyone back home. Xoxo
PS: IT IS HOT.
The ride here was supposed to be 5 hours, but it ended up taking way longer. Honestly, I didn't mind the bus ride. It gave me a chance to spend more time with my friends. Usually, we split up and explore in small groups so we don't draw attention to ourselves. The hotel here is the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in (which means a lot because I've stayed at a lot of resorts). The sounds of birds chirping and water droplets is so soothing. As if the hotel isn't nice enough, there are fans and air conditioning. The hotel also has free wifi, which excited most of the group. I was mostly exited to FaceTime my little brother, Rohan. Ronu, if you're reading this, I miss you so much! Half of the group went to a cooking class last night; I chose to stay in and relax. Tonight, I will be learning to cook samosas and kheer. My mom would be proud. India is training me to be a good Indian wife!
This morning, we met at 9:00 and went to a temple where Brahma is worshipped. This is one of the few temples that praise this god. Today is a full moon, so it is a very auspicious day for the locals. Many people from neighboring towns traveled to Pushkar to pray to Lord Brahma. The temple was small, simple, and lightly decorated. However, seeing how much joy the prayers brought to people was so precious. I also visited three other temples here with Walker, Josie, Karina, Leela, and Josh. We walked around the entire lake that Pushkar is centered around and visited two temples that praised Lord Shiva, and one Sikh gurudwar. All of them were beautiful in their own ways. I particularly enjoyed the gurudwar because of its exterior architecture. It was white marble with lots of gold details; the dome structures added to appeal. Pushkar has 550 temples, and of the 4 that I visited, I loved them all. I hope to come back here some day.
Throughout the day, I was confronted with similar situations with beggars. Once again, my conscience didn't allow me to walk away without donating some money. I've always wanted to see a snake charmer, so when I saw a man with a snake, I was so excited. He wouldn't do anything until we paid him, so all of us gave him 5-10 rupees. However, when he noticed I was Indian (yes, he targeted me as the Indian this time), he said that it was my moral duty as a Hindu to give him at least 100 rupees on this auspicious day. I kept refusing, because I had already given him 15 rupees. Everyone grew impatient to see the snake, so I decided that I would give a little bit more. I only have 100 rupee notes, so Josh gave me 10 rupees to give to him. The man still refused and questioned my faith because I wouldn't give him money, so I ended up giving him 100 rupees. And guess what happened after that!!! Nothing. He took his snake and left. Basically, I paid him 125 rupees to stare at a snake do nothing. I should probably stop being so nice to the locals now. I was happy that people here recognized me as Indian, though!
Tomorrow at 4:45 am, I am riding a camel to the desert to see the sunrise. I can't wait! I bet the view will be breathtaking. Until then, I love and miss everyone back home. Xoxo
PS: IT IS HOT.
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