2011 Biking Rajasthan

Jaisalmer (82km), known as the Golden City because many buildings are constructed from a yellow-gold sandstone, was our westernmost destination. We had to hitch the last 28km into town as my back tyre had shredded and I popped two tubes in a short span of time.

Jaisalmer lay on the silk route, and merchants and princes grew rich here. We loved our hotel, which had a rooftop restaurant that offered stunning views of Jaisalmer fort on its hilltop. We visited three havelis, beautifully carved and decorated in over-the-top style; the old city inside the fort (here we met a young man of 25 who studied philosophy and psychology, but dreams of working for KPMG. He, however, has four sisters and is responsible for helping his parents secure their future by providing dowries and finding them husbands); the ruins at Kuldhara, one of 84 tribal villages abandoned when the maharaja increased taxes beyond bearing; and a smallholding where I got to hug a baby goat and grubby children played in the dusty yard.