Damodra, Rajasthan, India
Well, not exactly ! I wouldn't know how to load a camel or get it to go where I wanted. Two camel herders, four camels and me, it was. That's as close as I am ever going to get to being alone in the desert. After two weeks relentlessly behind the wheel, my faithful companion got a break and instead the top speed I hit today was 3 kmph !!
We set out just after breakfast. About 20 kms to go - ambling along leisurely to reach a vantage viewing pint by sunset. Add in camping for lunch, an afternoon siesta on the sands and we were in time to watch a glorious sunset on the dunes. I'll let the pictures show you my Safari.
The desert is a magical place. Magnificent vistas. The lovely experience of just going - no trails, no roads, nothing - just the sand , any direction and off you go. Ambling along leisurely on a camel's back, life takes an altogether new meaning. The immensity of it all reinforces the smallness of our place in the universal scheme of things.
The desert teaches us to be humble. The harshness of life there teaches us to appreciate the incredible luxuries we have. The cheer of the villagers, despite the harshness , shows us the way to contentment. The oneness with nature gives us a way to live life without destroying what is around. The stillness calms our mind. In the silence of the desert, our voices carry a huge distance, maybe even a mile, and shows us the power we have.
The desert provides us a perfect place for reflection - something we rarely do in the daily bustle of life.
As the sun set, I turned back, a "richer" man.
" I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed:
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away"
--- Percy Bysshe Shelley
Me, my camel and the endless Thar
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Damodra, Rajasthan, India
Other Entries
-
Feb 232 days prior
Bajana, India -
Feb 241 day prior
Jaisalmer, India -
Feb 25
Damodra, India -
Feb 261 day later
Longewala, India -
Feb 272 days later
Tanot, India -
Feb 283 days later
Jaisalmer, India -
Mar 014 days later
Bikaner, India -
Mar 025 days later
Jobner, India -
Mar 036 days later
Ahmedabad, India -
Mar 047 days later
Mumbai (Bombay), India -
Mar 058 days later
Bangalore, India
Comments
2025-05-22
Comment code: Ask author if the code is blank
Vincy
2014-02-25
Yet another lovely account of your travel Ramesh. Yet another fantastic day.. such good shots of a place I have only read about or probably seen in discovery seen through your eyes and experience. Wow!!
20kms on a Camel!!! Phew!!
Asha
2014-02-25
Wow! that's fantabulous!! the description and the photos, my takeaway experience from this post is one word - SPIRITUAL. Thanks for sharing the experience. Lived through your account.
Sandhya Sriram
2014-02-25
Amazing Ramesh. your verses in the first half were as outstanding a poetry as the verses that you have shared in teh 2nd half.
Really, an extra-ordinary sense of calm in me after reading this post.
indigoite
2014-02-25
@Vincy - Touched at your Interjection ! :)
@Asha - Yeah it was kind of spiritual. Very nice
@Sandhya - Aaahh - I am tickled pink to be even mentioned in the same page as the great man.
sriram
2014-02-25
Yes, there is no $$ value that I can ever attribute to such experiences. We are immensely rich and rarely ever we pause to even think about how rich we are, because more often that not we are trapped in a world that is all about being materially rich.
BTW, I reverted to my "sriram" ID because apparently you had problems with my other one, which I love. In fact, many times I go a step more and call myself the "global village idiot"!!! But, I do whatever pleases my friend ;)
Shachi
2014-02-25
My oh my! who says you need to lug expensive dslr's and lenses to capture beauty around you? a simple hand camera will do - just present the pictures with your experiences weaved into a poetry of words, and voila - you leave the reader with a fabulous experience!
Kudos!!!! Grateful that you are blogging your travels!
indigoite
2014-02-26
@Sriram - Ah - I have no problems with an idiot [;)], but Big Brother which runs this service might have taken some exception or the other.
And this reflections have no use for you - you have done that long ago and d it with great effect, almost every day.
@Shachi - :):) Flattered like crazy. Thank you kind lady.
Suja
2014-02-26
Your journey sounds poetic even without Shelley's help! :)
For an alternate view on rides on camels, here is my experience, in dialogue : At the camel wallah : 'iske oopar uthna hai? seedi hai kya?' to my daughter : 'en camel moonjiyum muzhiyume nalla ille, oru shidu-moonjiya irrukkummnu thonardu' to myself : 'when did they last clean this thing I am sitting on I wonder, yikes!', to the camel wallah: 'aahista le ke jao', to myself ': I am feeling sea sick', to the camel-wallah : 'itna peeche reh gaye sab se? thoda jaldi karo', to myself : 'what if we get lost, I don't even have a bottle of water with me, do I know how to extract water from cactuses? I should have googled it!' To my son : 'ayoh, hold on tight, forget camera-vamera, you make me nervous', To the man : ' pahunch gaye hain? aur kitna door?' To my husband on the preceding camel 'your camel has an upset tummy!', To the camel-wallah 'rukiye rukiye, mera bag gir gaya', To myself 'I am made for luxury travel; camels do NOT count as luxury!!' On reaching the view point 'idukkAgavA ittana kashta paTTOm?', to my daughter on accepting tea and snacks from the camel-walla 'sAppiDa vEnDAm, avan kaiyE alamballa - nAn pArtunDudAn irundEn' , to my daughter 'How did the sand get within the undergarments?' to my son 'Do you really have to climb the highest dune around here?' To my daughter 'No, there is no portaloo here', at end to myself : 'my bottom hurts!' and to my husband 'Yeah yeah, I saw the desert, half of it sitting inside my shoe!!'. Not much poetry here :)
indigoite
2014-02-26
@Suja - Ha Ha Ha Ha. Hee Ho Hee Ho. My sides are splitting. A masterpiece without doubt. I bow to thee, O queen of writing .
I've been chuckling for a good one hour and everybody who sees me is having a quizzical look on his face.
What a brilliant piece of writing
Ha ha ha ha Hee Ho Hee Ho :):)
sanjay Balachandran
2014-02-26
I have been following your journey, your posts and images. It feels as if I have myself taken this journey. Off all the achievements and success one may have, nothing beats the feeling that one gets when they do something they really want and enjoy doing. I am sure it must be one of those moments for you Ramesh. I am sure this will stay with u for life
indigoite
2014-02-27
@Sanjay - Delighted to know that you are following. Yes, its nice to be able to do what I want to do.
You are a seasoned traveler yourself. Why don't you write travel stories ?
neeleshshanbhag
2014-03-03
The Desert is alive with your Captures and words..
indigoite
2014-03-06
@Neeslesh - The desert is alive with the wind and the ghosts - not sure about my photos :):)