A Weekend in Amritsar

Just got back from a weekend away in Amritsar, which is in Punjab, the state next door to Himachal Pradesh, where we're living at the moment.

Punjab and especially Amritsar is the spiritual home of Sikhism, and the Golden Temple in Amritsar is a holy shrine for Sikhs, who come from all over the world to worship, bathe in the Pool of Nectar and view the original copy of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book.

We visited the temple early this morning, when the temple was quietest, and so we could see the temple at night and at sunrise. The whole temple area is open to tourists, and like all Gudwharas is welcoming to people of all faiths, including giving out free food to visitors.

The Temple is absolutely beautiful. The outside ring of the Temple is made from white marble, which surrounds the pool and Golden Temple at the centre.

There must have been thousands of people at the Temple, even at 5 in the morning, yet the atmosphere was calm and reverent.

Just outside the Temple couldn't have been more different. The old city is the busiest place I've ever seen. Think Oxford St. on Christmas eve and double it, add rickshaws and you're close. I felt safe the whole time despite some friendly warnings from police about pickpockets - but I did worry a bit about Jess and the girls we were with (Jess will probably blog about this) who got some negative attention, but were safe.

We went to the Jalainwala Bagh, which was where in 1919 the British Army opened fire on 1500 unarmed protesters. The area has been turned into a memorial for those killed. It was a very sobering experience. In the museum there were quotes from British politicians, including Churchill, which were placatory and made me feel ashamed.

By contrast, letters written by Gandhiji in newspapers were calling for calm and restraint in response. We came away with mixed feelings about the place, and about visiting it as British people.

We also spent a few hours at the India - Pakistan border at Wagah, to view the elaborate ceremony theyes hold every day. Its basically an excuse for both sides to outdo each other with military pomp and circumstance. There are stands on both sides for viewing the ceremony, and the Indian stands were full to bursting, with few people on the Pakistan side. There was a great atmosphere, with patriotic songs, calls of "Bharat Mataji" (Mother India) and flag waving. I'm not normally into patriotism, but I got swept up in the mood. It was really really fun.

Despite the fun we had at Wagah and the beauty of the temple, I don't think we'll be going back to Amritsar. The whole place was so busy that I don't think we'd be comfortable going back. Important glad we went though.