Venue: Pushkar,
Rajasthan.
Time: October - November
Duration: 8 days
About Pushkar Fair
Pushkar fair is held every year around the full moon day of Kartik Purnima
in the months of October-November. The famous Pushkar Fair is held near the
Pushkar lake and is a great tourist attraction. People from all over the
world throng to the ancient religious town of Pushkar which transforms into
a spectacular fair ground in the month of Kartik. People bathe, worship and
delight in the blazing goods of roadside stalls. One of the most unique
sights seen are the small groups of men and women seen busy tattooing their
hands and other parts of the body.
Since the fair is predominantly a rural gathering, villagers come from
different parts of the state and bring their cattle with them. The Pushkar
lake is flooded with pilgrims. As the crowd moves, it seems like a tide
of
color with currents of crimson, yellow and turquoise. Folk dramas, skits,
music and folk dances of Rajasthan entertain the tourists in the evening and
throughout night.
The fair is one of the largest cattle fairs in the world, in which camels
are a special attraction, where one can see camels being raced and paraded.
Hundreds of oil lamps placed on leaves floating on the lake by worshipers is
sight that cannot be missed.
For a visitor, it is an incomparable and lingering experience to capture
the reverberance of the entire state of Rajasthan in one place.
Major Tourist Attractions in Pushkar
Temples
Pushkar owns some ancient pilgrimage sites among which many were destroyed
by Aurangzeb and subsequently rebuilt. The most famous among them is the
only temple in India dedicated to Lord Brahma. It's marked by a red tower
and over the entrance gateway is the hans, or goose symbol, of Brahma, who
is said to have personally chosen Pushkar as its site. The Rangji Temple is
another important temple at Pushkar. An hour trek up to the hilltop temple
overlooking the lake provides an exotic view early in the morning.
Ghats
There are numerous ghats around the Pushkar lake, and pilgrims constantly
bathe in the lake's holy waters, even before the sunrise. Offerings of
coconut, flowers and cash are made to the lake and the priests.
Events
Puppet shows, cattle auction and camel races are some of the events which
are the highlights of the fair. Dance music and colorful shops sprout up
during this fair. Mouth-watering traditional delicacies are also available.
Colorfully attired village folk enhance the fun of the occasion.
Shopping
Pushkar's main bazaar is a web of narrow lanes lined with an assortments of
interesting small shops. Best buys at Pushkar include silver and beaded
jewellery, embroidered fabrics, bed and cushion covers. Its also great place
to buy books as an excellent range of second hand novels in various
languages are available.
Getting There
Air : The nearest airport from Pushkar is Jaipur. Jaipur is well
connected to all the major cities which includes Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta,
Jodhpur, Udaipur. Recently, flights to Dubai has also started from Pushkar
by Indian Airlines.
Rail : The nearest railway station for Pushkar is Ajmer, which is on
the Broad Gauge and hence connected to all the metro cities of India. There
are daily trains from Delhi in morning (Shatabdhi Exp) and evening
(Intercity Exp).
Road : Pushkar is 11 km from main Ajmer bus stand. Rajasthan
Roadways run very comfortable deluxe & air conditioned buses from
Jaipur. There are buses from Jaipur to Ajmer every 15 minutes, some nonstop.
The roads are very good, and it takes around 2 hrs from Jaipur. Taxis are
available for hire. .
Accommodation
Accommodation is not a problem in Pushkar. One can find hotels of all types
ranging from heritage to budget and resorts.
