As the van pulled out of the Amritsar train station to take us to my grandfather's village, an unease quickly started growing from within. What would we say to relatives we had not seen in over 10 years? More importantly, did we really want to have our every movement controlled by their overzealous hospitality?
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| the Golden Temple at night |
A quick check with my mum revealed similar sentiments, and I scrambled to the driver to have him take us back to the city. He was far from amused of course, since we had agreed to pay him a decent sum, but dropped us off at the hotel where I had originally made a booking. It was not anything fancy, but its biggest draw was that it was situated, quite literally, just around the corner from the
Harmandir Sahib, or
Golden Temple, the holiest shrine for Sikhs. It was originally built in 1574 and rebuilt in the 1760s following an attack by the Afghans. The temple has four entrances, symbolising the openness of Sikhs towards all people and religions. It is undeniably the biggest attraction for visitors to the city. I would suggest visiting it twice, sometime in the day and after dark when the temple is bathed in light.
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| the entrance to Jalianwala Bagh |
Close by is
Jalianwala Bagh, a public park where in April 1919 a massacre had taken place. What started out as a peaceful demonstration was seen to be an act of defiance against a ban on all public meetings. Those gathered in the park (some estimates say up to 20,000) were shot at on the orders of British Brigadier-General Reginald E H Dyer. Official sources said 379 people were killed. Other figures run up to at least a thousand. Historians consider the episode as a decisive step towards the end of British rule in India. The park now commemorates those who died in the massacre. Personally though, I didn't quite like what I saw of this historical site (even if the intentions were noble) because it looks too made-up. Some of the surrounding buildings still bear bullet holes from the incident. A well into which people jumped in an attempt to save their lives is also standing; it is a protected monument and mostly meshed up.
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the crowd during the border-closing
ceremony |
The other must-have experience while you're in Amritsar is to make your way to
Attari-Wagah for the
border closing ceremony which takes place every day. The atmosphere is nothing short of carnivalesque, what with the loud music and stalls selling snacks, flags and other trinkets for a fifteen minute display of jingoism on both sides of the border (although I did notice that the Pakistani side was a lot more subdued). When the show ends though, you're likely to see people rush to the gates to meet friends or relatives stuck on the other side.
Of course, what's a visit to Amritsar without good Punjabi food! I found out about
Bhrawan da Dhaba (right) from a friend's sister, who recommended it and spoke of (among other things) rotis dipped in generous amounts of ghee. She wasn't far from the truth, but I'm happy to report that my heart stood strong as the butter slid menacingly into my body. My mum and I had two rotis each and a bowl of
daal makhni between us, much to the surprise of the guy serving our table. The other patrons were constantly calling him and his colleagues over for more bread, more this or that. My mum and I, on the other hand, sat in our quiet corner struggling with one bowl of daal. When we finally called the guy over, it was only for the bill.
Where are these guys from, he must have wondered.
Anyway, the story goes that the brothers who set up Bhrawan da Dhaba had a falling out and one of them broke away and opened another restaurant right next door. I did not go to the other one, so if you do, let me know which is better (if at all). Another well-known restaurant worth checking out is
Crystal on Cooper Road. Here you'll find both vegetarian and non-vegatarian options. I personally loved the tandoori fish.
Recommended duration of stay
2 days, 1 night. Enter in the afternoon and leave the next afternoon. This would be most suitable if you're coming from and returning to Delhi.
Getting in and away
Trains for
Amritsar Junction leave from New Delhi Railway Station and take about 6-7 hours on the
Shatabdi Express.
Flights are mostly to Delhi, though Jet Airways flies to London, Air India to Toronto and Qatar Airways to Doha. There are connections to Central Asia as well.
Buses run from Amritsar to several Punjabi cities, as well as Delhi.
Read!
The Butcher of Amritsar: General Reginald Dyer by Nigel Collett
Amritsar: Mrs Gandhi's Last Battle by Mark Tully
A History of the Sikhs by Khushwant Singh
We love taking photos of people. I do too. Here's a first collection from my trips.
