Jaisalamer: Is it the most romantic city in Rajasthan?
July 2014
Jaisalmer sits in the northwestern corner of Rajasthan sitting in the middle of the great Thar desert and feels very close to the end of the world. Located about 100km from the Pakistan border, this small city rises out of the desert and disappears back into it just as quickly. It's said to be the most romantic city in Rajasthan and is also known as the "golden city" because of the yellow sandstone making up most of the buildings within Jaisalmer. As our first destination in northern India the dry desert landscape of Jaisalmer seemed liked something straight out of Lawrence of Arabia movie and was an exotic change from our three months of house sitting in tropical Kerala.
Jaisalmer's claim to fame is the 11th century Jaisalmer Fort that functions as the town's tourist drawcard and a living heritage site. Over 3000 locals still live and work inside the walls. It could truly be called the world's largest inhabitable sand castle and it's hard not to be charmed by its twisted streets. The fort was built in 1156 by the Indian King Rawal Jaisal. From 30 miles away visitors see only a sheer golden cliff rising nearly 25 stories from the desert floor. The walls of rich yellow sandstone are unique to Rajasthan's quarries and shimmer like a mirage. It's very atmospheric and charming to wander the twisting lanes inside the fort filled with shops, colorful embroideries and hotels. During the past 20 years the sandstone blocks of Jaisalmer Fort have been immune to the elements but as the tourist boom grows sewage system overload is leaking directly into the fort's foundations and its beginning to crumble. Efforts are in place to advocate more responsible travel by staying outside the fort walls to help take pressure off.
Havelis is an arabic term meaning "private mansion" and within the Jaisalmer Fort there are many of these ancient residences built by wealthy merchants which have equisitely carved sandstone facades. The detail was mind blowing!
The reason most tourists come to Jaisalmer is to wander the old town and take an overnight camel safari out into the desert which was our planned intention. However, our camel safari had to be cancelled due to a severe wind storm at the time of our visit. This was really disappointing as we had extensively researched our safari and found a great company called Trotters Independent that have consistent excellent reviews and it was an excursion we were really looking forward to...But, another time.
Instead we spent our time in Jaisalmer by wandering the lanes of the city and taking time to engage in discussions with locals. We ate more sand and dust than we'd care to admit due to the unfortunate weather but we still marveled at the feeling of being in such a remote location so vastly different than anything we could imagine.
So was it as they say, Rajasthan's most romantic city? Well, it comes close once you look past at what first appears to be a crumbling grungy city. The locals are friendly and interesting and gazing out over the roof tops of the old city watching the sun set as the Jaisalmer Fort becomes illuminated along the ridge feels pretty awesome and indeed quite romantic.
So was it as they say, Rajasthan's most romantic city? Well, it comes close once you look past at what first appears to be a crumbling grungy city. The locals are friendly and interesting and gazing out over the roof tops of the old city watching the sun set as the Jaisalmer Fort becomes illuminated along the ridge feels pretty awesome and indeed quite romantic.