No 200.

I never thought it'd go on for so long but here we are, post #200! More than two years from the first one and still on the road.
So many things have happened all this time, so many adventures half-forgotten and even more hard-imprinted. I can't admit I'm any wiser about when we'll get there yet. There might have been more than a few places where "there" seemed to be found and who knows how many more were brushed away lightheartedly. Time has been precious and still remains. But they say the trip is more important than the arriving and I'm happy to keep it up for who-knows-how-long-more. I'm an optimist after all...

On The Desert Road.

The Pilgrimage.

Religion is big in India. Everybody knows that and I've been tasting it first hand. The ever-presence of temples and ceremonies of all faiths, purges, festivals and pilgrimages is as natural and common as the air you breathe. Yet, there are some occasions where I find myself surprised and disorientated. Overwhelmed I should say.

Holi in Mathura had a couple of moments like those and the pilgrims we kept driving into in Kachchh had the same effect on me. There's an annual Muslim pilgrimage, around 200km long and in the Indian fashion it's done on foot. Tents with blaring music as makeshift resting stops, a sea of discarded plastic chai cups around and the endless river of people walking as if forever. Some carrying suitcases, others only green flags, families or single youngsters on their mobile phones. And camels, horses, carts and rickshaws. I counted a few hundreds in 15 minutes and they were walking for days. In the desert. All this commitment, the energy, the faith. All I could do was stare.

Needlework and Fish-shaped Mirrors.

Of course the purpose of this part of the trip was the handicraft tour of the local artisans organized by matsya. Each community specializes in one kind of craft, putting all their dreams, traditions and lives in the patterns. The daily chores, their skills and talents, the weddings and the sorrows. Every step of the process is meticulous but usually done during the free time from the necessities of life.
Materials and final products change hands seamlessly. And be it hand decorated silk in incredible fashion, welding-free cow bells, geometric needlework on cotton or fine-detailed woodwork and block printing, everything is made to be used and worn. This is living in Kachchh.

* As usual my photos might not be as informative or to anybody's taste. For a much more thorough record of the handicrafts and artisan's tools, please visit Diti's blog post. There's more to see there too!