Jaisalmer, India ...

A fascinating place, indeed! Being approximately 100km away from the Pakistan border has been interesting. Jet planes cruise overhead every couple of hours. There is a huge fort here that sits high on a hill. Lots of people reside in this fort. It's my last night here and I find myself in one of the guest houses within the sandstone walls.

I just returned from a camel safari and it was excellent! I finally feel as though I'm in holiday mode. Camels are such interesting creatures ... very prehistoric. Sleeping under the abundance of stars was amazing. Although I wasn't able to get much sleep, staring at the sky to burn the hours away didn't hurt my feelings any!

I am scheduled to leave on another overnight bus tomorrow ... oh no! This one leaves at 5pm rather than 1am, so my fingers are crossed for a better journey. I get to the other end at 4:30am which isn't going to be too fun. I am heading to the airport in Gujarat. It will be there that I'll catch a direct flight down to Goa. Finally, the ocean!

It's hard to believe I've been here almost four weeks. I've been real up and down as to whether or not I like India, but the last few days in the desert has really changed my mind. I got to spend some time talking with the camel guys and their stories are great. It's an amazing life they lead and by no means an easy one.

We were able to visit some desert villages along with some empty villages. When questioned as to why they were empty, the response was that the villages were bombed by Pakistan. The people died or fled. It really put things into perspective.

One thing I will say about India is that it continues to fascinate me. Sometimes positive, sometimes negative. Either way, it opens my mind to different ways of thought.

I am exhausted. Food first and then rest to follow. I have a long travel weekend ahead of me.