Justin Kerby

Today we spent the day in Jodhpur. We slept in until 830AM and had breakfast at our hotel, Singhvi’s Haveli. I had an omelet and Amanda had French toast, with Masala Chai of course. After lounging around in the breakfast area on the comfy floor cushions, we got ready and headed out into the city. We wandered through the old alleyways while following Google Maps offline feature to a clock tower at the center of the city. On the way, I bought three types of spices I wanted to bring home – Garam masala, tikka masala, and a vegetable masala. I also bought masala chai so I can make plenty of tea when I get home. You just boil it with milk and water and you’re good to go.

At 2 PM we met Chhotaram, our guide for the afternoon. We signed up for a camel safari, something we were supposed to do in Jaisalmer. Chhotaram drove us 65km out to Osian where we met our camels, Michael Jackson and Mick Jagger. I rode Mick Jagger, the lighter in color, bigger camel.

Partially I took Mick Jagger because Amanda and he got off to a shaky start.

We toured through the desert for a couple of hours. Riding a camel was much more comfortable than I expected. I would do it again in a heart beat. After an hour or so on the camels, we stopped to take pictures in the dunes and met some local children.

Mick Jagger looked pretty exhausted during our break.

We rode some more, and then said goodbye to head back to Jodhpur. We drove back to the clock tower while sampling some of Chhotaram’s favorite Rajasthani music, and then took a tuk-tuk back to the hotel. We’re located in a very narrow alleyway, so cars won’t fit. Our dinner at the hotel was fabulous, Malai Kofta which is dumplings in a sweet curry, and the Singhvi Special which is a spicy vegetable curry. Accompanied with lots of garlic naan and beer for good measure. All in all, another great day in India.

Today we caught an early flight from Goa to Mumbai, then from Mumbai to Jodhpur after a short layover. Jodhpur is a really cool city – it has a mix of historic forts and busy streets that make it feel very alive. Our hotel was only three miles from the airport but took half an hour to get to via tuk-tuk. We had to drive through very skinny winding streets to arrive at the Singhvi Hegelian Hotel. The hotel is really cool – it has a very colorful eating room, a funky common area, and our room is enormous. It sits at the top of the hotel and overlooks the entire city. It’s really amazing. There’s also a rooftop bar that’s great for reading in the daytime and having a drink on at night.

After relaxing at the hotel for a bit, we took to the city. We wandered through the skinny alleyways to the Mehrangarh Fort. It’s the best viewpoint of the city, and also the most dominating feature of the city by far. We wandered through the Fort and explored for a few hours before heading out to see the rest of the city.

We walked down from the Fort through the town and made our way to Jodhpur’s famous clock tower. It sits at the center of the city and is surrounded by a large market full of spices, clothing, fruits, and much more. I bought 6 teacups featuring the Taj Mahal for $2 that I’m pretty proud of. Here’s a look at the market.

We tuk-tuk’d home after the market, and had dinner and drinks at the hotel while watching the final US presidential debate. Amanda went to bed after dinner and I hung out on the rooftop for drinks with a new Belgian friend. All in all, I’m really liking this city.