The roads of Amritsar are pathed with gold and dirt

Following our time in Srinagar we flew down to Amritsar in the Punjab, where we experienced our first 5 hours of monsoon rain – and we are so pleased our hiking boots are waterproof.

After the rain we stepped out into the humid and hot environment to visit the sights. As always Alan decided to walk down local side streets with no other white peoples around (except for Helena).  During these excursions we visited the Hindu temple at Gurudware Santokh Sar, which was our first experience of seeing a new style of temple and the memorial at Jallianwala Bagh which commemorates a massacre in 1919 (by the British Army).

However, the main attraction here though is the Sikh Golden Temple. We had an aborted first attempt when we tries to enter wearing shorts – and were politely told to get ‘dressed properly’.  So after changing to our hiking pants, we went back and handed our socks and shoes to be stored, holding onto the silver token tightly. Following the ritual washing of hand and walking through a foot bath we were in, and what an amazing sight. The Golden temple is famous for its full golden dome, and it is one of the most sacred pilgrim spots for Sikhs. The Mandir (Temple) is built on a 6 square metres of marble and is a two storied structure, covered with approximately 400 kg of gold leaf. During our stay at the temple we called in to taste the ‘free’ food (dal, vegetables, rice and chapati) that is served to anyone visiting (at anytime).  There are two areas for eating, and the kitchens will provide enough food for up to 100,000 people a day – and yes we were the only westerners eating at our session.

Luckily, we also found a great location 5 minutes from our Hotel where all the locals eat. Here we tried all different foods including Pav Bhaji, Masala Dosa, Roti and of course Chicken Tikka (for Helena). This street food only cost us between 70 and 120 Rupees (NZ$0.95 – NZ$2.40).

On our last day/night we jumped on the local bus (40 Rupees each or NZ$0.80) for the 32 km journey to see the beating retreat border ceremony that happens every day at the border between India (Attari) and Pakistan (Wagah), and is attended by thousands of people. The ceremony is of half hour long and started just before sunset at 6.30pm, with people gathering from 4.00pm onwards. Before the ceremony starts, people dance to patriotic songs and chant Vande Mataram and Bharat Mata ki Jai. They’re is huge audience participation with lots of locals chanting Bollywood style and Border Defence Force (BDF) performing the most outrageous moves under the guise of a border ceremony and flag lowering – this is also copied by the counterparts on the Pakistan side.  Afterwards is was back onto a Tuktuk, then the bus back to Amritsar which cost us 50 Rupees each (NZ$1).

Our next location is back to the Himalayas to visit a ‘’very wise man.