Bikaner & the Temple of the Rats
With a bustling city sprawling around a higgledy-piggledy historic center, Bikaner is another desert oasis worth visiting if you have a few extra days or a penchant for the unusual. Bikaner is a popular stop-off between Jaipur (or Pushkar) and Jaisalmer and is also easily accessible from the Shekhawati region. Some like to compare Bikaner with Beirut. The city's historic center has a lovely medieval market atmosphere, offset by grandiose havelis (many owned by trade-merchants who made their fortunes in Calcutta and built their houses here), and the city also boasts an impressive fort, India's only camel-breeding farm, some pretty heritage accommodations, and a wide range of temples, many of them Jain. Founded in 1498 by Rao Bika, a Rajput descendant who established his own kingdom on the lucrative spice trade route, Bikaner really is a desert oasis, and it's quite surprising to find a city here -- seemingly in the middle of nowhere. At its heart is a fascinating walled Old City packed with spice markets, havelis, Jain temples, and a wonderfully medieval way of life. This is also a good place to be based for desert safaris that are less commercialized than those in Jaisalmer. Bikaner will certainly strike you as somewhat unusual, remote, and tangibly cut off from the rest of the world. Two of its biggest claims to fame are that it has remained, throughout its history, a battle-free state, and it is host to an awesome kite-flying festival (usually in Apr).
Most visitors scramble to visit the bizarre Temple of the Rats or rather, Karni Mata (entry free; Rs 20/50¢/25p camera), no doubt expecting to witness some arcane rodent ritual. Instead, they experience a rather pleasant 600-year-old temple with the unusual addition of thousands of harmless little rats dashing about and feasting on sweets left by worshipers and competing with cheeky pigeons. The temple is dedicated to an incarnation of the goddess Durga (whose mythology of miracles is remarkably similar to that of Christ); her father apparently found a husband for her near the place where the temple now stands, in the remote village of Deshnoke (less than an hr. by bus from Bikaner). The rats have apparently been living here for 6 centuries, and scientific tests have shown them to be quite healthy (we think they look a bit malnourished, no doubt suffering the effects of too much ghee); they are given water and milk, and there has never been an incident of plague. While you may tremble at the thought of a rat scrambling over your foot (which must be bare in the temple, of course), this is actually considered a good omen -- and if a white rat runs over you, it's very lucky indeed.
Locals consider Junagarh Fort (tel. 0151/254-2297; daily 10am-4:30pm) the finest in Rajasthan, and while this is highly debatable, the monumental construction (built from 1589 and only completed in 1937) is fiercely impressive and filled with interesting collections, architectural details, and hints of royal excess run amuck; at times it seems as if each successive maharaja insisted on establishing his personal authority by building yet another bejeweled private audience chamber. You can only visit as part of a guided tour (and you will be pushed for a tip at the end), but it's really worth it, not least for the great views from the ramparts and roofs. The decor is a hodge-podge suggesting confused tastes and predilections evident throughout Rajasthan wherever there appears to have been an abundance of wealth; you'll notice Belgian mirrors and glass throughout, Rajasthan's first elevator (brought from England in 1914), and, in the massive private audience hall of the second to last maharaja, a sandalwood throne made in A.D. 1212.
Myriad heritage properties in Bikaner have been converted to accommodations for those wanting a taste of a bygone era. While some of the most important royal properties (like Lalgarh Palace) are now hotels, these are often poorly managed and in a rather unfortunate state of disarray, not to mention overpriced. In a different league altogether is Bhanwar Niwas (Rampuria St.; tel. 0151/20-1043; www.bhanwarniwas.com; Rs 4,000/$98/£49 double), a smart haveli built in the 1920s by a Jain textile merchant whose descendents still live here. Rooms range over two floors around a central courtyard; it's not opulent or pretentious like the royal properties, but it's comfortable and well-maintained (the frescoed walls are touched up regularly). Each guest room is unique, from the patterned floors and framed paintings to the stained-glass doors, canopied beds, and antique furnishings. Much of it is more Versailles than desert haveli: European baroque hangs heavily, all swirling floral arrangements and heavy pastels. In the drawing rooms and corridors, black rococo figures, flamboyantly dressed in gold, hold electric flames, while gold-plated wooden thrones stand on either side of a fireplace beneath an underlit bejeweled peacock.
The haveli is right near the heart of the old city, so you can set out on foot to explore medieval Bikaner, passing unique architectural facades along the way. Many are crumbling, and many are still home to families that have lived here for centuries. While exploring (or getting lost), ask for directions to the gorgeous Bhanda Shaha Jain Temple, which (unusually for Jain temples) is richly decorated with wildly colorful frescoes (rather than carvings). The local priest will tell you that the temple (apparently 540 years old) predates the city and that the mortar used in its construction was mixed with butter instead of water; the stone used in its construction was brought all the way from Jaisalmer. If it's quiet, the priest will probably even let you into the inner sanctuary, strictly off-limits to all except Jain priests. Climb to the top of the temple for views of the surrounds.
Staff at Bhanwar Niwas will gladly assist with your transport needs (a car and driver for the day will cost around Rs 800/$20/£10) and organize a guide, so you can put together an itinerary that takes in all the major sights. Incidentally, should you want a guide (highly recommended in this bustling city where attractions are spread out), try to recruit Jayant Singh (tel. 98-2919-0488), a veteran and arguably the best guide in Bikaner. Situated several miles from the city, the camel breeding farm (entry Rs 10/25¢/15p, Rs 20/50¢/25p camera; daily 2-6pm) is where you can get up close and quite personal to the most intensely studied camels in India; the farm is actually a research facility where you can ask questions about why these animals look so content traipsing through hostile desert environments. More likely you'll want to hop aboard for a short ride or even ask to sample some camel milk, which is definitely an acquired taste. But if you really want to enjoy a proper desert dune camel safari, you'll be better off heading for Kakoo, a tiny village near Bikaner that serves as a starting point for camel-back adventures that include a night or two in simple desert tents and dining under the stars. The experience hasn't yet been discovered by the tourist hordes that flock to Jaisalmer's Sam Dunes; you can book by contacting Bhagwan Singh, the manager at Bhanwar Niwas.
