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PUSHKAR
 Pushkar
fair is held every year around the full moon day of Kartik
Purnima in the months of October-November. The famous
Pushkar Fair is held near the Pushkar lake and is a great
tourist attraction. People from all over the world throng to
the ancient religious town of Pushkar which transforms into
a spectacular fair ground in the month of Kartik. People
bathe, worship and delight in the blazing goods of roadside
stalls. One of the most unique sights seen are the small
groups of men and women seen busy tattooing their hands and
other parts of the body.
Since the fair is predominantly a rural gathering, villagers
come from different parts of the state and bring their
cattle with them. The Pushkar lake is flooded with pilgrims.
As the crowd moves, it seems like a tide of color with
currents of crimson, yellow and turquoise. Folk dramas,
skits, music and folk dances of Rajasthan entertain the
tourists in the evening and throughout night.
The fair is one of the largest cattle fairs in the world, in
which camels are a special attraction, where one can see
camels being raced and paraded. Hundreds of oil lamps placed
on leaves floating on the lake by worshipers is sight that
cannot be missed.
For a visitor, it is an incomparable and lingering
experience to capture the reverberance of the entire state
of Rajasthan in one place.
Major Tourist Attractions in
Pushkar
Temples
Pushkar owns some ancient pilgrimage sites among which many
were destroyed by Aurangzeb and subsequently rebuilt. The
most famous among them is the only temple in India dedicated
to Lord Brahma. It's marked by a red tower and over the
entrance gateway is the hans, or goose symbol, of Brahma,
who is said to have personally chosen Pushkar as its site.
The Rangji Temple is another important temple at Pushkar. An
hour trek up to the hilltop temple overlooking the lake
provides an exotic view early in the morning.
Ghats
There are numerous ghats around the Pushkar lake, and
pilgrims constantly bathe in the lake's holy waters, even
before the sunrise. Offerings of coconut, flowers and cash
are made to the lake and the priests.
Events
Puppet shows, cattle auction and camel races are
some of the events which are the highlights of the fair.
Dance music and colorful shops sprout up during this fair.
Mouth-watering traditional delicacies are also available.
Colorfully attired village folk enhance the fun of the
occasion.
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