THE THAR SUNDOWNER , BUSH COOKING ,FOLLOW THE HERD , THE ABANDONED CITY – KULDHARA , TWITCHERS TRAIL , IN CONCERT WITH HISTORY, BAZAAR IN THE GOLDEN CITY , VILLAGE VOYAGES ,

Jaisalmer sits on an expanse of history that has been carefully recorded by the bards of Rajasthan from the 12th century, when Rawal Jaisal of the Bhati Rajput clan built this ‘golden’ citadel in 1156 AD. It straddled the once prosperous trade routes of the Great Thar Desert, hosting caravans into India, some of them plying the subsidiary routes of the great Silk Road, connecting China and Asia to the capitals of Europe. A ‘living’ fort, it has within its walls beautiful palaces and havelis, or town houses. The city is known for its vibrant culture, kept alive by the utterly hospitable desert people. The Government of Rajasthan recently initiated a clean–up drive and restoration of the historic Jaisalmer Fort, which in 2013 was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site, a great tribute to this surviving medieval fortified city carved in yellow sandstone, where the sun reflects the colours of the rainbow against the golden hues of the great Thar Desert.