Jodhpur and Jaisalmer: A Family Expedition into the Thar

Ruminating over fond memories of my previous excursions to the Thar, I realized that it was time my family members also got a taste of the desert, and so materialized my family’s first tryst with the Thar – and my third – in the end of November 2019. We took the Mandore Express from Gurgaon railway station, where we had to execute the train boarding with rocket-science precision on account of the train stopping only for 2 minutes, and reached Jodhpur at 8 AM next morning.

Day 1: Jodhpur and Mandore

We checked in to the Om Heritage hotel that afforded an excellent view of the Mehrangarh fort from its rooftop. The plan for the day, drawn on the experience of my previous sole trip to Jodhpur, was set, and so, the first thing we did was hire for the whole day one of those large auto-rickshaws that could accommodate all five of us, and headed over to the Umaid Bhawan Palace. Our next stop after that was at Mandore Garden, the place that had me mesmerized in my previous trip to Jodhpur.

Mandore, the seat of the Gurjara-Pratiharas in the 6th century AD, later became the capital of the Rathores before Rao Jodha shifted to the newly-founded city of Jodhpur. At Mandore, we first walked through the lawns and saw some of the temples and royal cenotaphs, and then visited the Government Musuem. From there, walking up an incline, we crossed a dammed mini-reservoir, and reached the ruined Mandore fort located on the top of a hill, getting a panoramic view of Mandore. After an hour and half well spent, we had our lunch in Mandore, and proceeded to Jaswant Thada on our way to Mehrangarh Fort.

The Jaswant Thada itself is located on the top of a flat red-coloured rocky hill which is barren, only punctuated with water pools, and has the scenic backdrop of the Mehrangarh fort on one side. Next up was Mehrangarh fort, which we reached at 4.30 PM just in time before the gates closed for entry. Taking up a guided tour, we gawked at the imposing palaces and exquisitely done interiors, before ending the tour at the raised long platform lining the fort wall the end of the fort where the cannons stand. We were then back in the hotel to have dinner, and prepare for checking out next day to proceed to the next leg of our trip.

Day 2: Exploring Jaisalmer city

The next morning, we started at 8.30 AM by the Innova car we had booked for the remainder of the trip. We passed through Balesar, as the land became progressively arid, with it becoming more distinctively barren and sandy as we approached Pokhran. By 2 PM, we had reached Jaisalmer and checked in at Hotel Heritage House, a hotel modelled as a typical Jaisalmer-style haveli. After a quick lunch at Shree Jee Restaurant, we went to see Patwon ki Haveli, actually a cluster of five small havelis, of which the most famous is the one in the front called Kothari’s Patwa Haveli.

Patwon ki Haveli was constructed over 50 years, starting in 1805 AD commissioned by Guman Chand Patwa, a trader of jewelry and fine brocade. The haveli is typified by latticed balconies carved out of sandstone but seeming as if carved from wood, ornate wall paintings, exquisitely carved pillars, and extensive corridors and chambers. After seeing the haveli, we proceeded to Jaisalmer Fort. At Jaisalmer fort too, we took a guided tour through the main palaces, hearing stories of the past, getting transported to the times when these were inhabited by the royals.

Later, we walked through the streets outside the palace, passing by and entering the street on the left side of the Lakshminathji temple. Just 100 metres in, we came upon the Baa ri Haveli, which we entered out of curiosity and were treated to interesting tidbits of the Rajasthani culture by way of of the artifacts on display, such as sculptures, furniture, toys, handicrafts etc. As we reached the terrace of the haveli, we saw the sun setting in the horizon marked by a long sandy ridge running in the distance outside the city limit, while twin spires of two temples stood in the foreground right in front of us.

Soon after, we had tea and snacks at a roof-top restaurant hugging the fort wall while enjoying views of the city and the barren landscape beyond it. Back in the hotel, we retired to bed after dinner in anticipation of our outstation trip from Jaisalmer the next day.

Day 3: Off to the Border – Ranao, Tanot and Longewala

We started lazily next day, checking out of the hotel at around 11 AM and proceeded towards Tanot, stopping at places to get down to admire the desert landscape, and taking pictures of the landscape and of ourselves. By 1 PM, we reached the location that had left such a lasting impression in my mind the last time that it was the primary reason I was so excited about the trip, keen to show it to my family too. Yes, the place was Ranao, and it lived up to its promise and how!

We got down at the decline before the road reached the lowermost point of the depressed stretch reminiscent of a river bed, and ventured into the sand dunes lying on the side of road, taking pictures. As we began to move on, and were almost reaching the bottom of the ‘bed’, we were hailed by a person standing beside a Bolero pick-up, who offered us a paid session of dune-bashing as well as a tour of the vestiges of the Indo-Pak war. We readily agreed, and were amply rewarded with an enriching experience as we wandered through the sands going up and down the dunes. Further, we checked out the numerous bunkers, and sat on the sands partaking of the views of the oceans of sand.

Finally, even though not content, in the interest of time, we left Ranao for Tanot which we reached by 3 PM. There, having a light meal, we proceeded to Longewala moving alongside the Pakistan border, reaching at 4 PM the War Memorial where we could spend just a little over half hour as evening was fast approaching. Thereafter, we headed back in the direction of Jaisalmer, reaching Sam Sand Dunes around 6.30 PM by when darkness had already fallen. We checked in to the Vinayak Desert camp, our stay for the night, where after seeing the folk art programme and a Rajasthani buffet, we went to sleep.

Day 4: Back to Jopdhpur through Osian

Early next morning, I woke up specifically to see sun rise from behind the sand dunes, barely catching the marvellous sight. A little later, we had breakfast, and then checking out from the camp around 10 AM, proceeded to do some camel-riding near the sand dunes. After that, we were headed to the last site of our Jaisalmer leg, the ruins of Kuldhara, which was as fascinating to me this time as it was the previous two times I was here. I was glad to see the family was enamoured too.

By 12, we were back again on the road headed back to Jodhpur, through a different route than the one we took for the outward leg from Jodhpur. Around 2.30 PM, we stopped at Phalodi to have lunch, and by 4.30 PM, we were at Osian. Osian, dubbed an oasis in the Thar, was a major religious centre of the Gurjara-Pratihara period dating from the 5th to 12th century AD, and had been a trading centre from well before that, at least from the Gupta period onwards. Today, the ruins of Jain and Hindu temples from that period stand witness to its glorious past. The Oswal community is said to have originated from Osian.

At Osian, we visited the Sachiya Mata temple – Sachiya Mata being the town deity, who as per Jain legend is the form of Chamunda that was turned vegeterian by Acharya Ratnaprabhasuri in 457 BCE. As a result, Sachiya Mata is worshipped also by Jains, and the temple itself has many Jain features. From the temple which is situated on a hillock affords a panoramic view of the landscape beyond the town, including the sand dunes located on the outskirts of the town. Apart from the Sachiya Mata temple, I managed to get a glimpse of a few other temples, including the ruins of the Harihara temple, Vishnu temple and Sun temple that were located on or in the vicinity of the main road.

By 5.30 PM, we had to leave Osian as it was getting dark and we had a train to catch from Jodhpur. We caught the 8.30 PM Mandore Express from Jodhpur and reached Gurgaon the next morning, still delirious from the memorable family expedition into the Thar desert.