The camel
dancing was just one of the many sights that awaited me as I made my way to
Pushkar for the annual camel fair, the
oldest continual animal fair in the world. Along with the dancing there were
camels "dressed up" with patterns shaved in their fur, flowers on their noses, necklaces and
garlands looped around their necks and at times dyed tuft of fur at the top of
their humps. Those were clearly the fancy camels. The ones meant to pull
tourists around in a cart or give them a ride on their back. If you made it to
the back of the fair grounds, that is where you could find the serious camel
traders. Close to 50,000 camels I would guess, scattered across the desert
hillside. When I climbed up on a wall I couldn't believe just how many had
converged on Pushkar for the five day festival. There were camels everywhere!
Standing and sitting in groups, outside of their owner's tents. Waiting
impatiently as a buyer pulled open its mouth to check the teeth. Smacking its
jaws as it ate from a pile of feed. Nuzzling a baby camel by its side. Bowing
spit bubbles and drooling on unsuspecting tourists that wandered too
close. These are the sights of the
Pushkar camel fair that will forever be imprinted on my mind.
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