Guru Nagari - The Golden City

A city of Gurudwaras, temples and heritage. A place one should visit for sure at least once in their life time. The name comprises of two words Amrit + Sarovar, Amritsar. Amrit Sarovar is the pool of nectar that surrounds Sri Harmandir Sahib, also known as The Golden Temple, spiritual & cultural center for the Sikhism. Amritsar is a place of rich culture and an absolute heaven for people with big appetite.

It's my mother-in-law's first trip to Amritsar. She and I flew by Vistara from Delhi to Amritsar. Greeted by Satnam Singh at Amritsar airport who drove us to the hotel City Park. It's a decent hotel close to the Golden Temple. We had quick dinner as it was late in the evening and slept. Next morning both of us were ready to go to the Golden Temple. On arrival at the Golden Temple, everyone is required to cover their heads, remove their footwear and wash their feet by walking through pools before entering the temple. It was a foggy winter morning and temperature was around 7 Degrees, there were jute carpets in the passage of temple due to chilled weather. There's always a sense of calm at the majestic Golden Temple. It has a square plan with four entrances, has a circumambulation path around the pool. We had good darshan and was fortunate to have the famous Kada prasad. We fell in love with the energy of the place and how it can touch the souls of everyone. Outside the Golden Temple complex there are a lot of shops where you can shop from clothing, accessories, toys and also offers a couple of eateries.

We returned to the hotel and relished Sarson da saag and makki roti for breakfast. Then we headed to shop for phulkari chunari from Raja Exclusive shop, they offer good variety of phulkari for different price range. Next in the list was Gobindgarh Fort, it's one of the best historical place and is being developed as a unique live museum, as a repository of Punjab's history. School children often come there to get enlightened on Punjab's history and live local performances. Due to time constraint, we headed to Wagah Border to see the Beating Retreat Ceremony. On the way we stopped by for lunch at Sarhad restaurant. This restaurant is close to the border and has good ambience, quick service but the food was average. My demands while I eat out anywhere are a many and fussy - I'm vegetarian in meat lovers paradise, I pay a lot of attention to the ingredients being used to make a meal, gauge value for money, desire an authentic feel to the place and of course a big deal on the taste ! I strongly recommend to go to Kesar da dhaba, Bharawan Da Dhaba and Brother Da Dhaba for lunch/dinner. 

In winters parade at Wagah border starts at 4:15pm. Parking one can find easily near the parade ground. Parade is a free show and no ticket is required. On reaching the spot, we climbed up a stadium like place. Towards our right was the enormous gate that separated land as India and Pakistan. We could see the stadium on the Pakistan side. The spectators were miniscule on their side. But the roars of pride from both Indian and Pakistani spectators grew equally strong and loud as the parade progressed. The sheer thrill you witness while flags are raised and lowered is something to be felt and not described.

Rest of the evening was spent shopping for Amritsari Jutti and having photo session at Sarson ke khet mein. A break from reality, all we want is the day, a shining soothing sun in winters on the top and blooming flowers at the bottom.. 

It is so important to acknowledge life beyond work, credentials and money. After dinner we went again to the Golden Temple, soaked ourselves in peace and beauty of the place.