Pushkar Camel Fair, the annual Rajasthani outdoor festival, draws people from all over India and the world. And to call this festival “wild” would be an understatement. A tented city is set up near the sacred Pushkar Lake during the days of the full moon every November for this madly exotic, colorful and thrillingly intense ingathering of thousands of snortin’ camels accompanied by their herders, handlers, traders, buyers, sellers, riders, raiders and farmers. And for photographers … paradise.

Dust! Noise! Turbans! Tents! Tassels and Tattoos! Sand!
Saris and Sitars! Heat! Dancing! Music!

This year the Fair is Nov. 2-10, 2011 and there are as many opportunities to sleep (if you can) in a variety of tent types at various levels of luxury as there are tour operators to India. One rule: you must have a guide from a good tour operator to navigate the chaotic scene.

Check out the basics on wikitravel.org/en/Pushkar. Check out Cox and Kings, renowned British outfitters with a great deal of experience and a Florida office. Click: www.coxandkingsusa.com. Or look at: www.exoticjourneys.com/PushkarAndRjasthan.html

News Flash! Jonny Bealby’s London-based Wild Frontiers Adventure Travel advises The Chandrabhaga Cattle & Camel Fair near Jhalawar and also in Rajasthan shares the same full moon as the Pushkar festival and attracts as many Rabari tribespeople, but is far less touristico. Click: www.wildfrontiers.co.uk, Call 44-20-7736-3968 or email: jonny@wildfrontiers.co.uk