We started 
the day with a delicious breakfast (included with the hotel). They made me a fresh omelet on the spot and I had cooked tomato and toast. Joe had the same, plus bacon and banana bread. The service here is outstanding, can’t say enough good things!
At 9am, Nanu introduced us to our guide for the day Lalu (I don't make these names up), a 24 year old Brahman who is native to the area. He took us through a detailed tour of the Jaiselmer fort complete with history and funny stories including the “welcome stones” that the fort dwellers pushed off the wall at unwanted visitors (pictured to the right). Lalu also showed us some typical haveli home’s inside the fort and explained that once an Indian family has paid tax on a house for 30 years, they own it and don’t have to pay
tax anymore! He pointed out the amount of damage that is being done to the fort from overuse of water by foreigners. Many tourists stay in the fort and have long showers, perhaps unaware that 
they are doing irreparable damage to the walls of the fort which now have to be replaced before they fall down. The base of the fort has become one big septic field and has started to displace its foundatin and is sinking an inch or more per year. Hotel owners don't care as long as they are making money, they take advantage of their houses for as long as they can until a rich buyer comes along or the house falls down first! Unesco World Heritage organizers have begun working on its repair.
the day with a delicious breakfast (included with the hotel). They made me a fresh omelet on the spot and I had cooked tomato and toast. Joe had the same, plus bacon and banana bread. The service here is outstanding, can’t say enough good things!At 9am, Nanu introduced us to our guide for the day Lalu (I don't make these names up), a 24 year old Brahman who is native to the area. He took us through a detailed tour of the Jaiselmer fort complete with history and funny stories including the “welcome stones” that the fort dwellers pushed off the wall at unwanted visitors (pictured to the right). Lalu also showed us some typical haveli home’s inside the fort and explained that once an Indian family has paid tax on a house for 30 years, they own it and don’t have to pay
tax anymore! He pointed out the amount of damage that is being done to the fort from overuse of water by foreigners. Many tourists stay in the fort and have long showers, perhaps unaware that 
they are doing irreparable damage to the walls of the fort which now have to be replaced before they fall down. The base of the fort has become one big septic field and has started to displace its foundatin and is sinking an inch or more per year. Hotel owners don't care as long as they are making money, they take advantage of their houses for as long as they can until a rich buyer comes along or the house falls down first! Unesco World Heritage organizers have begun working on its repair.
We really enjoyed Lalu's company and he explained a lot of the Indian culture to us, as he is the first young person we've encountered so far who speaks English well. We noticed that ma
ny boys and men hold hands and are always touching each other. Lalu said that this is just a sign of affection of best friends and not uncommon and that they are not gay (although it wouldn't be a problem if they were). When asked, he said that men and women also touch in public, which you see much less of, and that India has become more modern, much to the dismay of it's older citizens.We toured another architecturally outstanding temple, carved with much detail with beautiful statues. Lalu also pointed out the kama sutra statues carved into the ceiling and smiled as he explained the follow
ing: back when the temple was built many couples married very young and didn't know anything about sex so they went to their priest to explain the positions and more about there own bodies and how to be a good lover. He said that today with the internet and television nobody turns to their priest for help!On our tours we are also gently forced to take a tour of shops with no pressure to buy things :). Shop owners seem to think we have endless space in our bags/houses for quilts, antiques, etc. We feel guilty turning them down, the work is very beautiful in most cases, but a person can only buy so much “stuff“. Of course I got talked into cust
om making a ruby ring for myself and matching silver wedding bands for Joe and I (ok maybe there wasn't that much arm twisting)!
We spent the afternoon lounging in our luxury hotel before heading off to the desert for a camel ride on the sand dunes. This was my third and possi
bly last camel ride, as its very uncomfortable on the bum. The dunes were very peaceful and windy and we enjoyed our camel ride.
om making a ruby ring for myself and matching silver wedding bands for Joe and I (ok maybe there wasn't that much arm twisting)!We spent the afternoon lounging in our luxury hotel before heading off to the desert for a camel ride on the sand dunes. This was my third and possi
bly last camel ride, as its very uncomfortable on the bum. The dunes were very peaceful and windy and we enjoyed our camel ride.We finished the evening with more international food at our fabulous hotel before turning in for the night!!
We are currently in Udaipur and more blogs to follow. Wi-Fi is hard to come by, but I am trying my best!
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