Into Thick Air

Back to stinky, hot, humid Delhi. We arrived in Delhi early on the morning of the 8th. At the airport, we said our goodbyes to Drew and Hanna, who were off to find a hotel room in the downtown area before flying out the next day to continue their traveling adventures in Indonesia. The remaining four of us grabbed a cab to Majnu Ka Tilla, the Tibetean colony the team had stayed at when we first arrived in Delhi.

We were lucky to get the last room at the Wongdhen Guest House, A/C included, so took it for two nights. The next morning we had a leisurely day of sight seeing before deciding on the next move. Hilde, the Belgian girl, decided that she had had enough for one trip and rebooked her flight back to Europe. Meanwhile, Doug, the other Ross, and myself planned out an intricate train trip that would take us from Delhi, north to Amritsar, then over to Kalka and up to Shimla. Prior to the disaster, we had booked train tickets from Shimla to Delhi to complete our intended Leh-Manali trip. This short 5 day adventure would allow us to hook up with those original bookings while also getting to visit some amazing places. We all thought it was better to get out and do something with our remaining days rather than sit around Delhi.

The air conditioned train ride from Delhi to Amritsar was great. It took us through the massive farming areas of the Punjab, India's bread-basket. Upon arriving in Amritsar, we were immediately assaulted by the chaotic frenzy of this relatively small, old city. It took us a rickshaw ride into the main city and then another back out to the train station area before we found accommodations, but fine accommodations they were at the Tourist Guest House. Big, high ceilings and marble floors, all for 600rp per night (about $15). We still had time left in the day to head out to the main attraction in Amritsar, the Golden Temple.

The Golden Temple is the most revered site for the Sikh faith. It was build in the late 1500's and, as you can see from this picture that I borrowed, the temple is surrounded by a large pool. The name Amritsar means The Pool of the Nectar of Immortality, and so the name of the city that grew up around the temple.

As with other Sikh temples, the Golden Temple is intended to be a place where all men and women are welcome, regardless of religious leaning. It is an amazing place to come and walk around, or just sit and relax. The temple also puts on a tasty free lunch/dinner, which of course we took advantage of both days we were in Amritsar.

The Golden Temple is also know for a more recent, darker event in the history of India. In 1984, Sikh separatists who were wanted for arrest by the Indian government took refuge in the Golden Temple. The PM at the time, Indira Ghandi, ordered the army into the temple to arrest them and resulting in many casualties, including children who were in the temple at the time. As a consequence, two of her Sikh bodyguards assassinated Ghandi not long after.

When we were in Amristar, we also made a visit to Jallianwala Bagh. In 1919 Amritsar was one of the many towns to see protests by followers of Satyagraha, the non-violent movement led by Mahatma Ghandi. On April 13, soldiers opened fire on a large crowd of unarmed men, women, and children who had gathered at Jallianwala Bagh, killing hundreds and wounding many more, and is one of the pivotal events in the path up to an independent India. The site today is an interesting and well put together memorial park. The original walls still stand in some places and you can see the bullet holes in various places.

After a day and half in Amritsar, we back tracked on the train to Ambala and then up to Kalka. Kalka is the start of the small gauge, 'toy train' that runs deep into the foothills of the Himalayas to the city of Shimla. During the days of British rule, the Brits in government found Delhi too hot in the summer so they moved the capitol to Shimla, high in the mountains, because they could. In order to access this misty, cool retreat, they were required to build a 100km long rail line. Since the hills are so steep, the route had lots of twists and turns. Therefore, the gauge of rail is narrower so that the train can make the tight turns and the locomotive and cars are tiny, compared to the regular train system. The ride up is long, about 5.5 hours, but very scenic as it makes its way through various forests, from thick rain forest to scotch pine.

Shimla itself is a quaint tourist destination from more well off Indians. The main drag is a little slice of England, with many Tudor style buildings and even a cathedral. It looks right out of place for India. There are lots of hotels and lots to buy, but overall, it is a nice, clean destination and certainly was a lot cooler than Delhi. We took a day there and visited Jakoo Temple. Build on the highest spot of land in the very hilly town, this temple is dedicated to the Hindu god Hamuman, the monkey god. And there are lots of monkeys. Be prepared to hold onto your camera tightly or to punch a monkey in the mouth (or carry a stick). After a couple of otherwise relaxing days, it was back down the tracks to catch an overnight mail train back to stinky, hot, humid Delhi.