Category Archives: India Like the rest of India, the Great Thar Desert is a beautiful expanse, full of contrasts. At one end of the spectrum was the luxury tented resort where I, my tour companions, photographer Karl Grobl, and local guide DV Singh, were all staying; Manvar Desert Camp, amongst the dunes of the Great Thar Desert and just off the Jodhpur- Jaisalmer […]  With 83 people per kilometre, compared with about two and a half people per km in the Sahara, the Thar Desert – that large arid region that stretches across most of the border between India and Pakistan – is the most densely populated desert in the world. About 85% of this desert is in India, and about 60% of that covers Rajasthan – where it is home to 40% of the state’s population. […]  The Thar Desert, or Great Indian Desert, is an arid region that forms a natural boundary between India and Pakistan. A relatively large area, it spreads across four Indian states (Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, and Rajasthan) and two Pakistani states. The Thar Desert is the most densely populated desert in the world, with 83 people per square km. This population lives in small villages, far apart from each […]  There are countless deities in the Indian pantheon. Sometimes it seems that the number of religions and cults is almost as high. Scattered around the Western Thar Desert of India and Pakistan are villages of people calling themselves Bishnois. Followers of “Jambhaji”, as Guru Jambheshwar of Bikaner (b.1451) became known, these people are predominantly descended from Jat peasants and Rajput warriors from the north: Haryana, […]  I’ve been dreaming of camels lately… That’s probably because the annual five-day Pushkar Camel Festival in Rajasthan, Northern India, finished earlier this week, and a number of my friends – including photographer Karl Grobl and local guide DV Singh – were there. I couldn’t help but feel a little envious, as it has been two years since I visited India […] |
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