Making friends is often part of an adventure. This expedition is no exception. In a series of amazing coincidences, we have been befriended by Bubbles Singh. Bubbles, intrigued by our adventure, has helped us buy camels, obtain equipment, find an interpreter and camel experts, and now we've been recuperating after our first ten days in the desert at his castle. It turns out that Bubbles is descended from a line of Maharajas, the past kings and princes of India. His castle is located in a village along our route. Turrets, fortress walls, stables, and living quarters comprise this crumbling relic. Portions of the castle are over 200 years old and some walls are already returning to the desert sands. In many ways, it is like staying at an archaeological site. We have many questions for Bubbles when he meets us at the castle. His answers take us back to an older India.

The ceilings of the rooms and corridors are studded with metal rings. They used to support rods from which hung short colorful curtains. Servants at opposite ends of a room or corridor held ropes which they pulled on to make the curtains fan the area below. Bright hued curtains of royal red, purple, and yellow would have made the castle look like the brightly colored peacocks that now perch on the walls. Towers of the castle are dotted with slots, allowing defenders to fire flintlock guns at an approaching enemy. There is also a defense against a strange warfare tactic. When storming a castle, the enemy would bring large desert lizards, Godi. They would tie ropes to these three foot long lizards and toss them over the castle walls. These lizards cling so tightly that they can support two hundred pounds. The attackers would then climb these ropes. The defense against this tactic were long narrow slots pointing down towards the ground. Boiling water was poured on any enemies that made it to the base of the castle wall, or lizard throwers.

The upper terraces of the castle were divided into two areas. One for the men. Another for the women. Unless you were family, the men and women did not mix. The women would peer through lattice windows at the activities in the courtyard below. If men were around, the women would cover their heads and faces with their shawls, a practice still common in the villages, although less so in major cities.

There are five water holding tanks for collecting rainwater that is used for cooking, drinking, and washing. Most village homes still rely on cisterns. America, which is beginning to experience water shortages, might consider the advantage of having cisterns to collect rainwater. Even if the water was only used for gardens and general cleaning, it would save a huge amount of drinking water.

Right now we are sitting in a room lit by a single candle. Old pictures of past maharajahs line the walls. Old men in white shirts and dotties (loose pants wrapped on like turbans), black hair slicked back, legs crossed, wish us luck on the next leg of our adventure.

At this point, we leave behind our interpreter, Iqrar, and camel helper, Kiteram-jii, and head off into the desert on our own. Find out how we do with our Hindi langurage skills in asking for directions and whether our camels are any better behaved.