Camel safari in Jaislamer

Many tour companies run camel safaris out of Jaislamer- apparently it's the thing to do. And who am I to pass up that experience?!  It was myself and one other American, our guide Mango, and our camels Joe and Michael Jackson.  We set off around three, took about 1.5hours on the camel, and come to the dunes.  It wasn't "as far as the eye could see" but still very impressive. We found our own little spot behind some trees (to block the wind), made a fire, and drank chai.  I wandered off up onto the dunes for sunset- it was amazing.  Facing west there were no dunes but there were no people or buildings either, so I had an unobstructed view.  It was wonderfully beautiful.  And it seemed to go on for hours, well after the sun had actually fallen below the horizon.  I finally came down from my perch (after making a sand-dune angel and attempting to write things in the sand) and Mango was finishing up making chapatis for dinner.  The food was great! Jon (other American) and I chatted for a while about our travels and being away from the states for so long.  Mango helped lie blankets down and I crawled into my sleeping bag to stare at the stars while the boys chatted some more.  It was a new moon (and Chinese New Year!) so the sky was full of them.  I think I lay there for over an hour just starring, making shapes out of the stars, and watching for shooting stars (of which I saw 2).  I was most hesitant to sleep because of my fear of the dark and spiders, yet it turns out the problem with sleep was the symphony of snoring coming from either side of me. Less sleep = more time to look at stars.
Sunrise was also beautiful. Cold, but beautiful.  Even though I knew it was true, it was interesting how much the temperature changed between day and night.  So, amazing sunrise, a leisurely breakfast, and back off on the camels.  After about 30 minutes we came through a town to get water, and we made friends with two young girls. They were fascinated by my hair. Another hour and we stopped for good and Mango made lunch. After eating, we were picked up and taken back home.  The trip was a lot of fun- middle of nowhere, good food, amazing sunset and sunrise, a bazillion stars (I counted), and some solitude.  I'm not a romantic person- my idea of romance is a ball game, greasy food, and a good beer- but I get why people come out here.  Beautiful.