The merchant havelis at Jaisalmer have jali screens that turn the noon sun into lacework on the floor. The custodian at Patwon-ki-Haveli told us five brothers built it over fifty years, each trying to outdo the others. He pointed out their initials in the carvings, like a family argument in stone.

The rat temple at Deshnoke is its own thing. Barefoot, the cool marble, the rats running over your feet because they were here first. We came back through the camel research station at sunset. The camels were just sitting in dust, chewing, watching tourists with the patience camels are famous for.

Mehrangarh sits 400 feet above the old city and Jodhpur from up there is genuinely blue. The colour comes from copper sulphate, the guide said, to keep termites off the lime wash. We watched the call to prayer go up from the city below, and the kites that live on the fort walls didn't flinch.

The 18th-century stepwell behind the Pal Haveli has been cleaned out and the local kids dive into it from the topmost ledge. We sat on the steps with a kulfi and watched. The water was clear enough to see the bottom and warm enough to make the dive obviously worth it.