Camel Safari

JAISALMER, India - Camels are awkward creatures. Their gait is wobbly and unsure and they often trip on their own feet. They also reek and produce the most putrid farts. The smell is powerful enough to practically knock you backwards off its hump and send you tumbling onto the hot Thar Desert sand.

If it weren't for that whole can-go-for-days-and-days-without-water attribute, I can't see how they would possibly still have employment.

But all over this Rajasthan desert the stinky creatures are used in daily life. And the entrepreneurial spirit has found them an additional job: taking tourists on a camel safari into the desert. Yes, I actually paid money to spend a couple of hot, sweaty hours on the back of a camel named Calou.

The Thar Desert is amazingly - and disappointingly - green. I scowled at the surroundings - there was enough greenery for sheep and goats to graze. If I was going to get bounced uncomfortably on the back of a camel then I wanted to see some Lawrence of Arabia sand dunes.

Thankfully my camel "driver", who really just walked along in front of the camel, was amusing. He had dark, weathered skin and wore a bright orange turban on his head. Every few minutes he'd turn over his shoulder and call out: "You okay, Meg?"
"Yes, I'm good," I would reply.
"Good. You're good, then I'm good," he would say each time before breaking into a "happy" song featuring my name.

His family had lived in his tiny village - about 50 houses - for centuries. Marriages were arranged with nearby villages. Despite this isolated life - save for the tourists - he spoke pretty decent English. He had one adorable quirk that made me smile each time he said it. When I said "thanks", he would reply "welcome". But when I said "thank you", he would respond with "welcome you."

We left on the camel trek in the late afternoon and started climbing a little hill just as the sun was setting. As we reached the top beautiful, rolling sand dunes emerged - not a twig of green in sight. My six English companions and I watched the sun drop fast beyond the dunes. We ate dinner made by our drivers and drank rum.

That night I slept under the most beautiful sky I'd ever seen. It was so dense with stars it reminded me off that jello little old ladies make with the mandarin oranges suspended in it. Like you could reach up and scoop a handful. I fell asleep wishing on all the shooting stars.