Well I'm writing this post on the special demand of a special friend. Also this might be informative for those who have never been to Amritsar before. So here it goes:
I won't go into the background details, as to how in the world did I get the permission to go with an All-Girls group, or how hard I had to convince my parents, or how heavily it was raining the day I was to leave, etc. etc., as that would require a separate post altogether!! I would jump directly to the part where I am about to leave home for the railway station.
"Dhyan rakhiyo..station pe pahunch ke phone karna, train mein baith ke phone karna, train chal jaye tab phone karna, train Amritsar pahunch jaye tab utar ke phone karna, hotel mil jaye tab phone karna, hotel ka address message karna, kahin bhi jao to cab ka number message karna................................Dhyan rakhna"
These were my Father's standing instructions. Grandmother's set of instructions included these and the following:
" .....Ladkiyan ladkiyan hi hain sirf ya ladke bhi hain...ajkal zamaana kharab hai...darr lagta hai...group mein ladke bhi hone chahiye ek do....." (by ladke, she meant bodyguards actually)
About my Mother, she just asked me to take care. So after the whole melodrama, I was relieved and left home happily for the station.
I was accompanied by my friend. Together we boarded the metro and got down at IP metro station. From there we took an auto till Nizamuddin railway station. I must say I have never seen a filthier place in my entire life. Apart from the mess we just got a stare or two from some people both inside and outside the waiting area. Although the waiting room was meant for ladies, still some men were ignorant enough to be there. I tried to visualize the whole scene like a tourist, and the feeling was far from wonderful! After a while, the other girls arrived too, we headed towards the platform and had a brief introduction session. We passed our time clicking photographs, eating chips and patties and chatting. Upon inquiring about the train, we got to know that it was late by 45 minutes, so instead of 8.15 it would arrive at around 9:00 pm, and we regained our activities.
The train arrived, all of us boarded (safely), except one. The rest of us started searching frantically for her. Few of us even got down and looked for her on the platform, but had to go back since she wasn't there. We were relieved, however, to find her when we got inside. She was there all the time, but nobody saw or heard her somehow. (Girls can be silly at times..please ignore)
After we settled down, we ate the paranthas with aam ka achar that my mother had packed for all six of us, as well as some chowmein, as we were hungry after a long day at work. What followed was total craziness. We had dumb charades and antakshari sessions. We drew the curtains (thankfully it was 3AC), sang at the top of our voices, from the deepest corners of our heart, and danced like mad, without caring the least about people who were passing by (and may be even laughing at us) and even some who were trying to get a good sound sleep! (not to forget the heavily snoring uncle) It was past 12:00 am and we were still awake and alive. Then, few of us (including me) realised that we should probably take some rest. So each of us took a berth and made an effort to sleep (except one or two mobile phone addicts :) ). And i think I, being the laziest person in the group was the first to go into slumber.
Next morning, the first day of March (my favorite month), we woke up, feeling the freshness of Punjab, the Land of Five rivers (and much more). Miles of green fields, small mud and brick houses midst the farms, a big kothi here and there, very few motor vehicles (even spotting a maruti 800 was a miracle), turbaned males, ladies in multi-colored bright patiala salwar suits, kids filled with cuteness and innocence...we watched all of this from within our coach. We bought tea from a chaiwala roaming the corridors, and had it along with hide-and-seek biscuits. It was bliss. We saw Stations passing by- Ludhiana ... Jalandhar ..... Beas and then finally the much awaited station, our destination-->Amritsar.
Amritsar station is just like any other station but I found it less crowded as compared to what I have seen in Delhi. The weather was a bit cold, but after living in Delhi for so many years, I didn't mind it actually. We got down and were surrounded by auto and taxi drivers. Finally, we settled for a shared auto and loaded ourselves and our baggage in it. On our way, I observed that local sanitation is an issue, but otherwise, it's a city full of life.
The auto dropped us right at the feet of Harmandir Sahib. We had already researched on some of the Niwas Sthans or Sarais that are there in the vicinity and also had the addresses of local hotels. It was decided that we have breakfast first so we deposited our luggage in Guru Ramdas Niwas for a minor amount of Rs 20/-. On our way, we spotted Bubby's dhaba, but the neighboring dhaba saw us first and one of the persons approached us hastily. Just then, the guy from Bubby's dhaba spotted us and started reciting the menu. Both of them had a tug of war, until we finally asked them to stop fighting so that we could decide peacefully. Finally, we settled on Bubby's dhaba. Seating arrangement was done for us. Sitting in a dhaba for breakfast is not something that I experience everyday, still I was wondering what my mother was preparing for breakfast. We ordered 3 paranthas (aloo and gobhi) and 4 tandoori kulchas, with sweet and salted lassi (and the sizes of the paranthas, kulchas and lassi glass were huge!). Our meal arrived and the butter clad paranthas and kulchas (with chhole ki sabzi and curd) along with lassi topped with thick cream were gobbled up within minutes (finger- licking delicious!). I had masala tea in the end (to digest the buttery stuff). The bill was not so delicious, so we tried our hand at bargaining with the dhaba owner (by comparing the prices with Delhi's local restaurants), but had no luck.
Having paid the bill, we took back our luggage and went to Guru Arjan Dev niwas sthan. However, the person at the counter told us that since we were a group of single girls and the niwas was meant for families, we could not stay there. Instead, he asked us to go to Guru Ramdas niwas (Caution: If you are a bunch of single ladies, you can stay only in this niwas). But there, the bath area being shared, we dropped the idea and moved to Hotel Temple view, situated right at the backside of the Akal Takht. We booked two rooms there for a tariff of Rs 1250/- per room (13% service charges extra) and in a few hours, were ready to go.
It was 2:30 in the afternoon, and we decided to visit Wagah border first. We were approached by several cab and shared auto drivers, with rates ranging from Rs 400 to Rs 800. Eventually, after a long (unnecessary) discussion we decided to hire a shared auto. It was not a very comfortable ride (especially when it started drizzling and the cold wind blowing straight into our faces...oohhh it was so chilly), though we made it fun by our giggling and bantering in between.
The driver dropped us at Mehra dhaba (around 2 km from the main border area) and we had lunch there. However, the food was nowhere close to what we had for breakfast. We clicked photos while washing our hands under the handpump, stopping only when we realized that people had gathered around us.
On our way, we were told that we had to deposit our bags (after taking out all valuables like phone, camera, wallet, etc.), which we did. (There is a separate counter for depositing bags. Please don't give it to the dhaba people even if they insist).
The walk towards swarn jayanti dwar was around 1.5 km. But it was worth it. We were running at times, to stay ahead, to get the best seat with the best view.At the dwaar, there was separate seating for ladies, gents and VIPs.
There we were, right on the border of India and Pakistan.
The other side could be seen clearly, their soldiers clad in black uniforms, their people with immense enthusiasm, similar to ours.
The ceremony began half an hour later. Our soldiers marched and performed some stunts.
Then women were called out randomly from the crowd. They were to run, two at a time, while carrying our national flag till the border gate and then come back. Music was being played in the background, all sorts of famous patriotic songs from movies.
Women and children formed a large group and danced in full patriotic fervor. Next, the flags of both countries were crossed and soldiers from both sides met and shook hands.
The auto dropped us at Durgyana temple. It is built on the same lines as the Golden temple, gold plated on the outside, with the main darbar surrounded by a sarovar. Next, we had dinner at Kesar da dhaba. Again, not very impressive as compared to what we had heard. Lots of oil spoiled the mix veg and daal, and raita was no better. We were able to finish it though, thanks to our empty stomachs. The autowala dropped us near our hotel. He took an increased fare however, for keeping him waiting everywhere we stopped. Before going back, we bought punjabi juttis and slippers from the local market, which was not very cheap (we bargained hard). Day 1 ended on a tired note, but I must say that the journey didn't affect our high spirits at all!
Our plans for Day 2 included getting up at 3 am to watch the palki ceremony of Golden temple, which couldn't happen as we had slept late. Anyhow, we woke up at 7:00 am and got ready by 10:00. It was a bright sunny day.
Harmandir Sahib was hardly a 5 minute walk from our hotel. Upon entering, we saw huge queues (rather herd) of people waiting for their turn to get inside the Darbar Sahib. After half an hour of struggling and pushing among the crowd, we reached the main Darbar.
The shabad and bani, the granthis, devotees bowing at the Holy Granth, gave us a pious feeling.
We then moved upwards, where the original hand written Granth Sahib is kept.
We caught a small glimpse of it, and even tried to click pictures of ourselves once we came out, but were not allowed to do so. The top portion of the Darbar Sahib is entirely gold plated. According to Indian history, the gold plating was done on the orders of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. We also saw the Dukh bhanjani beri, which is a 400 year old tree, kept alive using nitrogen urea and insecticides.
It is supported by various anchors. We then moved towards the langar area. It is a huge space for accommodating hundreds of people, with a massive task force to perform various chores from cutting and cooking vegetables, to washing and arranging the dishes. The coordination is really commendable. After that we were separated for a short while, so me and one of my friends decided to take a walk around the sarovar, where we spotted beautiful orange and black fish.
Upon return, we booked bus tickets for the return
Moving on, we went to Jallianwala Bagh. It has been turned into a normal park, but it wasn't so in older times.
After the park, we decided to explore the local market. From there, some of us bought ambarsari vadiyan and papad. We visited the main wholesale market (pretty expensive..lots of bargaining done here as well) and one of us managed to buy a suit from there.
From the market, we went to a local restaurant and had lunch.
In the evening we visited Jallianwala Bagh once again, for attending the Laser show. However, only the audio part was being played. The story of the massacre was being narrated, which ended with Udham Singh killing Michael O'Dwyer and General Dyer. I felt as if I was watching the whole incidence live. When the national anthem was played, it was a moment of pride.
Our Punjab roadways Volvo arrived at 9:15 pm. We left around 15 minutes later, with tired but dreamy eyes.
The bus dropped us at Kashmere gate ISBT, and once again we were encircled by a group of auto drivers, charging from Rs 150 to 200. So me and my friend chose the good old Delhi metro instead. And there, I was back home by 7:30 in the morning.
In all, it was a journey full of fun and exploration, that will remain etched in my memory forever. I am looking forward to more of such journeys, as I believe that India is a land of a thousand mystical places, left unexplored.
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