culture shock and funny antics aside, we were able to see some amazing places in rajastan...highlights for us were visiting the taj mahal
(a tomb built by shah jahan in 1630 for his wife who died in childbirth), the rishabhji jain temple in ranakpur, and sleeping on the sand dunes in khuri, a small village just 50km from the border of pakistan in the thar desert. the taj mahal, one of the wonders of the world, is surreal...it looks like a painting in the early light just before sunrise. for me it was amazing to see it up close. it is incredible to think of the thousands of people who spent 23+ years building this tomb!
in ranakpur, a tiny town that is just gaining popularity with tourists for trekking in the mountains, we visited a 15th century jain temple that took 27,000 people 63 years to build! the temple is made of marble and has over 1400 pillars that are intricately carved. it was one of the few places in india where we found peace and quiet!
in khuri, outside jaisalmer, we rode camels to the sand dunes to watch the sunset, then ate dinner prepared back at the camp before heading back out to the dunes to sleep under the stars. 
it was freezing out there!! we shivered the night away watching the constellation and the moon move across the night sky. daryll's camel's name was disco, and mine was yusef. our camel drivers were a pair of brothers, 15 and 20 who have both been driving camels for more than 5 years. there is only one watering hole a couple of km away, and water is so scarce in the village that women clean pots with the sand!
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