So to get out of Delhi as quickly as possible we hopped on a night train from Delhi to Amritsar. We stayed in the sleeper class trains which are very basic fold down bunk beds. We met some really nice people on the train. In our booth there were 4 Korean travelers, and in the next stall there were 2 Irish girls and a couple of Americans. Also, across from our stall were 3 Indians who were very helpful in providing information about the train, the cost of things and about Amritsar. We got into Amritsar at about 5AM and headed to the Golden temple with the two Irish girls. The Golden Temple is a Sikh Temple and as part of their faith their temples provide free accommodation and free food for people of all religions who come to visit. After some running around, we finally found the shared dorm for foreigners which is basically just a room with as many beds as possible crammed together--but it is wonderful! We have eaten for free at the temple several times every day and it has been delicious! Brie says some of the best food she has ever had! And the experience is so amazing--sitting in a giant dining hall on the ground, cross-legged, with thousands of Sikh pilgrims with your plate in front of you, while men walk around with big buckets and dish out the dahl, coconut rice and various other curries! We spent the day with the Irish girls, hanging out at the temple...and then that evening we met some more lovely people at the dorms and a group of seven us went down to the Pakistan border for the daily ceremony to close the border. About a kilometer away from the the border there is the first set of gates that are closed until about an hour before the show--and it is definitely a show--Indians and Pakistanis come from all over and join the huge crowds to sit in the big bleachers on either side of the border. When the gate finally is opened the thousands of Indians rush forward in a mad dash to get the best seats--it is absolute chaos with guards on horseback trying to maintain some sort of order...we were stuck in the crowd but we didn't have to rush for seats because the simple fact that we are foreigners means that we are VIPS and get special seating front and center--which was bizarre--though we were still frisked several times before the front gate..the start of the show includes both sides blaring music over loud speakers with women dancing in the streets and a commentator urging on the crowd to cheer louder than the other side. The main show was quite the spectacle--guards on both sides wore hats with big plumes out the top and they would call out to each other--stretching out the call as long as their voice would hold, before marching toward the gate, stomping at each other and then kicking so high that some of them hit their own heads! This was repeated several times before the generals of both countries quickly shake hands, the flags are lowered and the gates are slammed shut! It is quite a bizarre event of national pride and military bravado and shows some of the contempt and competitiveness that the two nations have for each other...
Today, after eating at the temple again (During busy times it serves up to 80,000 meals a day), we went to the site of an infamous British massacre of Indians who were protesting British rule in 1919. The Indians were protesting in a courtyard so they had no escape when the British troops showed up and opened fire...more than 1,000 people died that day...After that we went to a Hindu Temple with some other Americans we met at the dorms...it is a temple dedicated to a women and is thought to help women become fertile! We walked through low passages and an artificial cave with water running through to get to the massive stone and mirror mosaics and shrines to the gods.
And that brings us to now...we are planning on eating more of the delicious temple food, exploring more of the golden temple which is illuminated at night, spending the night here and then heading out to Mcleod Ganj tomorrow morning--we have really enjoyed Amritsar but we are excited to get into the mountains and away from some of this heat! And looking forward to the Tibetan food and culture up North. We have also really enjoyed staying in this dorm, and meeting other travelers, and sharing stories...most of the people we met left for Mcleod Ganj today so we hope to meet up with them tomorrow!
After that, are plans are still unclear...but we are leaning towards taking the 2-3 days of travel to get up to Leh to further explore the mountains and possibly trek there...but we will see what happens!
p.s. Glad the house is looking so good Mom, I can't wait to see it. I hope you all have a good time in Birch Bay. I will be hoping for good weather.
Love to you all!
Taylor and Brie
