Week two of travels in India started off with the celebration of the Holi festival. And Pushkar promised to be an unforgettable experience for celebrating the festival of colors. At 10 am we all gathered in the courtyard of the hotel in our white outfits where we could start playing with the Holi colors. We started of a little apprehensive, but it didn’t take long before we were all covered in different colors and some of the hotel staff joined us. We even put on some music as we showed our best dancemoves.

A little later we were all ready to leave the comfort of the hotel and join the locals and other tourists in streets of the city. Drenched in vibrant hues of pink, green, and blue, we joined the crowds becoming a swirling kaleidoscope of colors and exchanging greetings of "Happy Holi". Even though the crowds scared me a little at first, everyone was very polite and kind and there was an overwhelming sense of happiness which could transcend culture and language.

I however didn’t participate in the festivities for a long time and I soon joined some of my fellow travelers at a rooftopcafe where we watched the chaos from above and we had a change to have a drink and something to eat. And not long after we made (or at least tried to) our way back to our hotel. At the hotel we started the daunting task of washing all the colors off. I think I got most of it, but some bits and pieces definitely lasted for a couple more days. Perhaps as a reminder.

The next day was all about exploring Pushkar and learning more about the town and the sacred lake. In the early morning we started off with a walking tour of the city where we got to visit some of the more spiritual sites like the Brahma temple. It felt really special to visit these places and to see and feel how important these are to the people who come here. We ended this day with a short hike up the mountain to see the sunset. It was a bit difficult to walk up all the steps and stones, but the views and sunset were definitely worth it. 

On day 9 it was once again time to travel to another destination. This time we were off to Jodpur. It set out to be our longest drive yet, but on the way we stopped at a homestay in a local village. Here we got the meet the family who lives here and we learned about their craft of dhurrie weaving. The rugs were really well made and nearly indestructible. And we learned that it can take several months to make just one; talk about dedication! Afterwards we had lunch together and we got to try out wearing traditional Rasjtani clothing and getting henna tattoos. I am not sure it the clothing suits me, but I do like the henna. 

Our next and only full day in Jodpur started off with another city tour. This time we got to see another fort; the Mehrangarh Fort. I just loved the idea of walking through history and seeing where the royal family of the city used to live. Although I do have to say that I wanted to get back into a room with aircon fast; it was hot. In the afternoon we had some free time which we used to explore some of the blue city and we did some shopping. At night I had the idea that I wanted to eat some Korean food, so some new friends and I went of in search of a place we could satisfy our (okay, my) craving. After almost half an hour we found the place by walking up some very narrow streets and losing the way more than once. On our way back we made it back to the hotel in a staggering 5 minutes. I think Miss Google Maps though that we hadn’t taken enough steps that day.

On day eleven we set off for a very special experience of camping in the dessert. We arrived at our camp a few hours before sunset. This gave us enough time to explore a little and to see the sun slowly set behind the sand dunes. The different colors in the sky were astounding. But perhaps not so much as the many stars we could see in the night sky once it was completely dark. We spend the night having a simple dinner and sitting by the campfire with some local and international music of choice. After we went to sleep on camp beds under the open sky one by one. It got a little cold at night, but I got a full night of good sleep.

After waking up in the desert and having a light breakfast we quickly set off for the city of Jaisalmer, before it got to hot. Not long after the arrival at the hotel and some freshing up, we set out to explore the city once more. One of the places we got to see was the man made lake in the city, after getting some ice cold, much needed, coffee. It never stops to amaze me that humans are capable of making such things. I guess that we can really do anything we set our minds to it and work together to achieve our goals. 

In Jaisalmer we didn’t end the day in our hotel, but went to the local train station in the late afternoon. It was to be on time for our overnight train back to the capital of Delhi. We would be riding this train for the next 15 hours, but we had the comfort of bunkbeds and being surrounded by our fellow travelers. The bed was comfortable enough with a pillow and blankets provided. After dinner we closed the night off with bingo on a moving train. And what do you know, I even won a small price!

The next day at eleven am, after I got a surprisingly good night of sleep, which couldn’t be said for all travelers, we arrived only a little bit delayed in Delhi. We quickly made our way to the hotel, where we could finally meet the host of our trip. She got delayed because of a visa issue, but all of use were happy that she could join us. As it was our last day together as a group, but the actually the first day with everyone present, we set out to do some last time sightseeing. We visited a small masoleum and we explored another part of the city with some great looking streetwallart. For our last meal together we not only had food but we also got to celebrate my birthday. It was a few days early, but I never pass up the opportunity to have cake as an appetizer. 

Later that night we could really feel that this trip would be coming to an end as we said our goodbyes to the first person leaving. I also went to bed not long after as I would be leaving at 830 am the next morning to catch my flight back Frankfurt.

I look back on a great (almost) two weeks of travel. Some parts of traveling can be hard, like me having a milk allergy and not being able to have a lot of food choices, because almost everything in the Indian cuisine is made with some kind of dairy product, but most of it was great!  I got to see amazing places, make new friends and meet some lovely people. I can’t wait for a time to go back and to see more of what India has to offer.