Religion, History and Geography ka Sangam- Allahabad/ Prayagraj

Allahabad is the heart of India. Situated in the Uttar Pradesh state of India (erstwhile United Province, during the British rule). The city is now known as Prayagraj, owing to the recent name change.

The city can be reached by trains, flights and roadways.

Here is a little insight to my mini trip to the beautiful city:

I reached the city via train from Siliguri, West Bengal (New Jalpaiguri station). There are many trains plying from the route and the Rajdhani Express 12423 runs everyday between Dibrugarh to New Delhi, while Prayagraj Jn. is in the midway. My train was scheduled to arrive at 1pm on 20June but owing to the floods in Assam state, the train was delayed and arrived at the NJP station at 2.30am on 21June. I reached Prayagraj Junction at 2.15pm on 21June.

I had booked Hotel Polomax (walking distance of about 100metres from the Prayagraj junction). Although I was tried of almost 24hours out of my home, I was determined not to waste my day at the hotel room. It was about 4.30pm by the time I left the hotel room after lunch.

I met this amazing uncle who drove me in his AutoRickshaw to the famous Triveni Sangam- the confluence of the mighty rivers Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati. I was taken to the river bank of River Yamuna as there was a crowd on the Ganga river bank due to the religious ceremonies like Ganga snan (religious bathing) , rituals of Shradh and Pind-dan (post funeral rituals). We stopped near the Allahabad fort and since I wanted to see the confluence, I rented a boat to the Sangam.

Though it was almost 6pm by the time i reached and only 30mins left to close the boat rides, the majhi (boatman) oared as soon as possible. Since it is almost monsoon the confluence wasn't noticeable as i saw it on the internet but one could make out the two different rivers by the colour of the water and the flow of the river. The river Yamuna is calm and has greenish water while the river Ganga is a little fierce with force and has brown muddy colour.

I was asked to stay a little longer for the Ganga Aarti on the Ramghat.

On the way back, is the magnificent Allahabad fort.

I retreated to the hotel for the day. Ordered amazing vegetarian food via Food delivery since most hotels do not offer in-house meals due to restriction of Covid-19.

Next day, I met the same auto rickshaw uncle, and he drove me to Anand Bhawan- the residence of the former and first Prime Minister of India Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and his family. Adjacent is the Swaraj Bhawa- the birth place of the former and the only woman PM Mrs Indira Gandhi. Anyone interested in the National Movement for Independence, will love this place. The Bhawans are filled with the life and the history of the Nehrus, the freedom struggle and so much emotions. The Bhawan filled with books reflect the intellect of the freedom fighters, the pictures taken during the meetings of the Indian National Congress in the pre independence era takes one back in time. Various major turning decisions were taken in the living room and library of the Bhawan. Swaraj Bhawan reflects how little Indira spent her life while her parents were in the prison for the freedom struggle. It also has the pictures and letters exchanged between the father-daughter The letters were emotional to read. Certain places had restriction to photography.

Had my lunch at a road side restaurant near the Allahabad High Court. Here, the food was tasty and fresh and packed with the lawyers who came during their lunch break. (Tip: Restaurants packed with people who eat there on a daily basis are sure to have fresh and tasty food and are comparatively cheaper)

Later, I visited Khusro Bagh, a Mughal garden by Jahangir (also called Khusro) which houses the tomb of the beloved. The garden has little squirrels all over. It reminded me of my first visit to Delhi sometime in 2009-10 where I first saw squirrels at the Qutub Minar complex. In the Khusro Bagh complex itself is a nursery, from which I bought the famous Allahabadi Amrood (guava) plants for merely Rs29/plant to plant at my house in siliguri.

After this, I took the rickshaw to the hotel and booked a Tatkal ticket back home. Had my dinner ordered through online delivery. Boarded a 10pm train to NJP from Prayagraj junction.

My 2-day stay in Allahabad filled me with so much emotions. As I write this blog, Im still dreaming to go back to visit many more places including temples and explore the market and localilities I failed to explore during my last visit.

You should visit Allahabad/Prayagraj and you will love every bit of it. Hope my little experience helps. THANK ME LATER😉