The Blue City
Trip Start
Oct 20, 2004
1
5
44
Trip End
Apr 26, 2005
Jodhpur, India
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
So we finally made it to Jodhpur, and since we didn't have a hotel lined up beforehand, we did a little bit of searching around. At this point in our journey, I was feeling pretty gross. I contracted a nasty sinus infection somewhere along the way (Could it have been from recycled airplane air? Or was it from the cold night of camping in the desert? Perhaps it was from playing with dung beetles before eating. Maybe I was coughed upon, sneezed upon, or spit upon! Oh...I know...it must have been the rat excrement that lingered on my bare feet, encrusted between my toes for five hours!), and I was in dire need of a time out, a cup of tea, and a foot bath. Our prayers were soon answered, and we found the best guest house ever: Newton's Manor. If you ever get to Jodhpur, Newton's Manor is the place to stay. It's a colonial style guest house with six rooms, free internet, home cooked meals, and kitschy antiques all over the place. The staff is wonderful, and Mr. Newton makes a point of interacting with each of his guests. It was a fantastic home away from home for our two days in Jodhpur.
Jodhpur, the blue city, was amazing. We started in the morning with Jaswant Thada, a marble memorial described as the "Taj Mahal of Marwar." It had a calm beauty about it. We then went to Mehrangarh Fort, our favorite fort in Rajasthan. Our ticket price included an audio tour that we almost declined; however, we accepted it anyway and were thoroughly impressed. The narrative was engaging and informative, and the fort's history really came alive with our "audio guide." I've never been big on audio tours, but this was first-rate. The fort was spectacular, as were the views of Jodhpur. For miles and miles we saw what made Jodhpur famous as the "blue city". Houses are painted an indigo color, originally done to signify the homes of the Brahmins. Apparently, the color keeps the home cool inside, and is effective in repelling mosquitoes.
We heard from a local of Jodhpur that the Marwar festival was happening during our stay. The annual festival, put on by the Rajasthan Tourism Department, seemed to be aimed at westerners, though the half-filled stadium seating reflected more of an Indian audience. (Actually, we were surprised by how few western tourists we saw throughout our trip. And, according to the Rajasthanis, even fewer Americans visit the region since 9/11. What a shame in a place where westerners - even Americans - are so eagerly welcomed.) The first event we saw was some sort of "battle of the marching bands." The police and military marching bands (maybe 4 or 5 total) all took turns performing, timed by somebody with a stopwatch at the sidelines. Each team marched onto the field (it was Jodhpur's big stadium, yet it reminded us more of a divot-marked high school soccer field), cacophonously banging drums, tooting horns, and squawking clarinets. It was quite strange. Following the band competitions, a stray dog trotted into the middle of the field and took a dump. Next was the turban-tying competition among Jodhpur's most recognized turban-tiers, followed by a group of young turban-tying boys. Then - the highlight - was the foreigner turban-tying competition, a hilarious event in which a small group of tourists (including Andy) attempted to wrap 10 meters of cloth around their heads (imagine the amusement of the Indians!). I was proud of Andy for participating, and although he didn't win he definitely received an "A" for effort and an "A+" for entertainment. (Right on, Andy!) Before leaving the festival, we watched the Rajasthani border soldiers (India/Pakistan border patrol) ride about 50 camels in random formations (figure 8s, circles, crisscrossing, etc.) throughout the field. It was spectacular, but in a way was kind of sad; it seemed like such a huge production for such a small audience. It was interesting and entertaining nonetheless.
