The best living fort and jaw-dropping havelis in desert Jaisalmer, India – 10/2023 (Stop 11)

13-15, October 2023, Jaisalmer, India

I continued my adventure in the Indian state of Rajasthan. From Jodhpur, I took a bus ride for 5 hours to Jaisalmer, near the Western border with Pakistan.

It looked yellow, right in the center of the Thar desert. It had some trees among the golden houses and a lake, so it looked and felt like an oasis.

In the city was another great fort. This one was unique – it was a living fort – people still lived in it. Stones had been cut and stacked, a stone upon a stone, to rise from the slopes of the hill. These tall walls ran a good length at the hilltop, anchored by numerous circular bastions, which also provided the viewpoints to look down on others. Inside the fort were houses still lived in, and shops selling souvenirs and merchandise tourists with emotional needs found irresistible. Narrow lanes divided these shops and houses, with barely enough space for motorbikes, people, and cows to navigate on.

Jaisalmer Fort

As I walked past a few cows, suddenly two of these big guys tangled with each other. They locked horns, from one junction to the next street. They would not be separated no matter what the locals did. I did not know if one got upset because of what the other guy said, or stepped on the other guy’s poo. I had not heard any locals exclaiming “holy cow!”. Cows had their own space in the town. They are well taken care of here.

Some of the architecture in the city was hundreds of years old, and both their interior and exterior were truly exquisite. The havelis I visited, Kothari’s Patwon ki Haveli and Mandir Palace, were the masterpieces. Take your time. It wasn’t rude to stare.