Amritsar

Golden temple is so beautiful that every new picture makes you want click another. There will always be something missing in the picture which your eyes wont agree to and to be in presence of such beautiful holy place is totally an extraordinary feeling.

Amritsar, is a packed city where rickshaw pullers are still preferred over taxis. Traffic is low, but jams are usual. People are loud, rude but equally joyful & friendly. The rickshaw puller, an old man, gave us handful tips on city, on our way to hotel. I still cannot figure out the presence of truck in a boulevard where even Maruti-800 is difficult to drive. The road was jammed because it was faced by a Mercedes in the opposite direction. It was amusing to see the rich man guiding the truck driver to make a way out. I wonder if the rich man had been a truck driver. While looking for shoe shop, an uncle walked us 200 mts to make sure we don't miss the correct turn, although the suggested shop was found closed, is a different matter of fact.

Every one out of five men wears pagdi, preferably dark colored, but inside temple saffron is the most common choice. Men are tall with strong build, specially the one who wears pagdi, with beard & mustache as most common look. Where as women are tall, thin with long hair (tied together by two ponytails) and always found bargaining with the shopkeepers.

People respond mostly in local language. Sometimes when we would try to talk in Hindi, they would nod their head but speak only in Punjabi. On our way to Waga border (which was another great experience), the drive kept talking about the city and its people, we couldn't understand a word, and the only response he got from us was 'ohh achcha?' followed by confused look on our faces.

Food here is extraordinarily delicious and cheap. People here like to have heavy meal during all the courses. We had Alu de parothe with Amrisari chai at breakfast. During lunch we had famous Amritsari khulchas loaded with Alu and Gobi at 'Kushwant Singh Kulchewala' just for Rs. 17each, followed by dinner at 'Brothers Dhaba', No. 1 in Amritsar as they claim. At both places we couldn't resist ourselves from overeating. I’m sure my tailor would be benefited by this trip.

Being a northern city of India, temperature here falls to near-zero. During our visit in December, the sun would set around 6pm and it would be absolutely cold and dark by seven. At night, shopkeepers would leave their shop and gather at the bonfire created on street.
Market usually closes by 7:30pm except the milkwala shop remains open till late night. People here loves to drink milk as much they love whiskey, which is made thick (by overheating) and served in a full large glass, with a layer of cream on top. Gajar ka halwa is another favorite choice.

Amritsar is not a city to pass by. It is a city where one should stay, for not just a day, but for at-least a week to observe and learn. It is a city where people wake up for morning prayers, where people stand in line at Golden temple everyday, work hard and gather for functions and bonfire during night. It is a place where people find pride in themselves and still manage to crack jokes on each other. Amritsar is indeed heart of Punjab.