Pushkar camel fair

Pushkar, nestled between the foothills of Snake Mountain and the fringes of the Thar Desert, 132kms from Jaipur in the state of Rajasthan, India, hosts one of the biggest animal trading fairs of its kind in the world--the Pushkar Fair. The small town's population swells with the influx of 250,000 visitors, bringing with them more than 100,000 camels, cattle, horses and goats. In the chilly hours of the morning, Hindus wrapped in blankets slowly shuffle along the meandering Pushkar streets, making their way to the bathing ghats to take an early morning dip in the holy lake. Later on during the day from a high vantage point on the edge of town, in the distance through the heat waves and smoky haze, camels can be seen traded, as more and more caravans arrive to the hot dusty location with hundreds of camels and owner families all traveling together. During the evening, a lot of the caravans leave the Mela area and head out into the open spaces in search of food, however for the smaller herd owners, it is easier to bring the food for their animals with them. Trading and shifting of animals creates a dust bowl, until darkness restricts activity and peace and quiet returns to the chill of the desert night. Day after day the trading continues, until the last day when most of the final activities, such as camel races, breeding competitions and cultural programs are completed. Vultures continuously circle in anticipation, looking for the slightest sign of weakness, and sometimes they find it, with sharp beaks and large talons ripping apart a small calf like a tissue paper, one of the many feasts during the week of the Mela. On the last day, the pilgrims leave as quick as they came, heading off into the open spaces for their return journey: for some it will take weeks, but this does not seem a deterrent, their enthusiasm to bathe in the holy lake and trade a few animals, keeps them coming back each year for the annual pilgrimage to Pushkar.

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Keywords rajasthan india pushkar fair camel colours