Pushkar Fair
Tuesday, November 25th, 2008| November is here and so is the Pushkar Fair – a much awaited event that draws villagers from all over Rajasthan and visitors from around the world to the picturesque town of Pushkar. Nestled on the shores of Pushkar Lake and bound by hills on three sides and the undulating sand dunes on the fourth, Pushkar is the perfect backdrop for this beautifully colorful annual fair.
Held for five days from Kartik Shukla Ekadashi till Kartik Purnima (between the end of October & early Novermber) , this five day festival is an important event in the lives of hundreds of Rajasthanis who dress in their finest and bedeck their cattle in a riot of colors to be a part of this event. You can join in the color and gaiety of this fair and enjoy: |
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Camel Fair : Pushkar Fair is synonymous with the largest camel fair in the world. Bells jingle and jewelry twinkles as thousands of bedecked camels strut across the fair grounds – be it as racers in the camel races or participants in the camel beauty contest. A hilarious event is the competition in which the camel which seats the most people walks away with the prize, leaving behind |
| the many people sprawled in the dust after having fallen off a camel’s back. Musical chairs for camels are also held. As part of the cattle fair, hundreds of camels, horses, cows, goats and sheep are decorated, shown off and sold throughout these five days. | |
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Shopping:Browse through the local artifacts on display at the many stalls lining the fair grounds. Buy saddles and straps for your camel and bedeck it with decorative strings. Browse through the stalls for the perfect piece of beaded and silver jewelry that matches your newly bought printed and patchwork garment. To end it all, get a tattoo made. |
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Entertainment: As the day melts into dusk, music reverberates in the air and traditional dances performances enchant the audience. In the backdrop, Pushkar Lake comes alive with hundreds of lamps lit on pattals (leaves entwined together to form plates) set afloat. |
