Today was THE day. 70 pimped-out auto-rickshaws with novice drivers headed out of Jaisalmer for the open road. Logically enough, driving on the roads of India is vastly different than the the test track around the Maharaja’s palace that we had previously experienced.

After about 100km, driving Hillary turned into a Zen experience…we were one with the road, the meandering cows (did someone say cheeseburger??), goats, dogs, camels and other vehicles both large and small. Horns are a necessity while driving in India…a form of communication that is accepted and expected. Driving in India can be compared to playing an exotic video game, the only problem is if you lose the game you die!

Departing slightly after 9am we headed due East on NH15 towards our intended first night in Phalodi.  The roads were smooth and appeared to be newer tarmac.  Once Hillary got warmed up she drove comfortably between 47-55 km/hr.  We reached Phalodi relatively unscathed with only a few minor learning experiences along the way.  When we reached Phalodi the directions took us through narrow passage ways that Hillary’s 3-foot hips would barely fit through…at times we had to negotiate passage with other bikes, tuk-tuks, people and cars – it all just seemed to work out.

Arriving in Phalodi about 1:30pm we decided to push through to Nagaur, which was our scheduled second night’s stop.  The route to Nagaur took us on RJ SH19, a secondary road, also recently paved. Though much more narrow they were well-suited for Hillary’s hips, camels, cows and another vehicle.  This road brought us through various small villages and encounters with peacocks, dogs, and of course more cows.

We quickly learned that both entering and exiting these villages required going over speed bumps.  The speed bumps were unmarked and only visible prior to arriving at them by the line of boulders next to them.  Yet another lesson learned the hard way 🙂

Along the route we stopped for Petrol and to let ‘Ole Hillary cool for a bit — something her age isn’t meant to drive distances at these speed in 100 degree weather.  Getting Petrol involved having ~ 4.5liters pumped into a plastic jerry can then adding ~150mL of 2stroke engine oil prior to pouring it into Hillary via a plastic funnel.  We carry two 5-liter cans that contain mixed fuel for there is no gas gauge in our girl!

Each time we pulled into a Petrol station we were greeted — surrounded by helpful service station employees, their families, friends and passersby — all a friendly and inquisitive bunch.  We stopped to feed Hillary and let her cool about every hour.  This allowed us much needed time to stretch and some chai.

Arriving in Nagaur about 6:30pm we saw another auto-rickshaw parked in front of our hotel, the Hotel Shyam Palace (don’t misinterpret Palace — you get what you pay for for $20 per night!).  This was recognizable due to the fact that the rickshaw had the same Jaisalmer – Shillong Rickshaw Run sticker on it.

The Hotel Shyam Palace is starkly different than the 1st Gate Home Fusion hotel where we had spent the previous four nights. Tonight’s room is air conditioned and cost ~ $19/night for a room with one bed, two plastic chairs.  The bathroom is our first encounter with a squatty potty with a spigot and bucket sitting next to it – no toilet paper.  The shower is cold water only and is supplied from a shower head in the wall right next to the squatty potty….no shower stall and the water goes directly onto the bathroom floor and down a floor drain.  One of us is more excited about the true India than the other – just part of the adventure.

Dinner was paneer tikka masala, Potato peas, vegetable biryani, some tandoor bread, a bottle of water, a large bottle of Pepsi and an orange soda.  Excellent food, even the abundant flies felt the same.  This meal cost just under $11 total.

Off to bed to dream of tomorrow’s travels.  Original plan was to head to Jaipur however that is being re-evaluated, we may push about 40km further if Hillary is game.

Cheers,
Jason and Brian